Can You Bring Sewing Needles on a Plane?

Last Updated on September 12, 2022

Can you bring sewing needles on a plane? Are you allowed to sew on a plane, or can you carry a sewing kit on a plane? It’s pretty simple to figure out what you can carry in your hand luggage on an airplane and what you can’t.

Both general and private rules are on the website of each airline. The prohibitions are also reminded by special “showcases” at airports, where items confiscated from hand luggage are presented. At the same time, the transportation of some of these exhibits is allowed in checked baggage.

Prohibited Items in Carry-on Baggage on an Airplane

The procedures for conducting pre-flight and post-flight inspections, as well as the basic list of prohibited objects and substances for carrying on an airplane (attention – both in hand luggage and checked baggage):

What Not to Take in Hand Luggage?

In addition to those listed above, all potentially dangerous types of cargo, including objects and substances that you can use to attack passengers or crew (primarily sharp metal products), fall under a complete ban on transportation on an airplane.

Embroider on an Airplane: is It Legal to Sew on an Airplane?

People frequently ask me how to embroider on an airplane. Are the needles taken away? Can you carry scissors on board the plane? How do people sitting next to me react?

I do not recommend taking a suitcase (briefcase) for embroidery on a trip. Surprisingly, organizer suitcases are now popular among embroiderers, which is rather strange for me: they are pretty large and at the same time small in capacity. If you do not have a porter, it is better that the needlework takes up as little space as possible and weighs as little as possible (this is especially true when hiking with a backpack).

Can You Take Scissors on a Plane?

I never carry scissors in hand luggage. Although, according to the rules, you can put scissors with a blade length of up to 60 mm in hand luggage, you can still take scissors away at the inspection. The rules provide for this (the same with knitting needles). If they are in a carry-on bag, they can’t be more than 4 inches away from the point where the bag opens and closes.

After reading several pages on airlines, I concluded that you could carry these items in hand luggage:

In Nepal and the UAE, carrying any scissors, including nail scissors, in hand luggage is forbidden.

All this is a theory. The security personnel will be the ones to decide when any objects constitute a risk to the health of the passengers and crew, and also the safety of the aircraft and its assets.”

My advice is that if you go with time, ask at the control before checking in and if there is something that they object to, put it in the luggage to be checked in.

When Flying, What Can You Bring Instead of Scissors?

On the plane, you can take a thread cutter instead of scissors – a convenient thing! Even adapted with it to rip the embroidery if you make a mistake. To do this, you must pick up the thread at the cross, carefully cut it with a cutter blade, and then dissolve it with a needle.

Is It Permissible to Bring a Sewing Kit on an Airplane?

If you are very farsighted, a mini sewing kit will not occupy you, with threads in the color of your garments, a few buttons, a couple of safety pins, and a sewing needle.

Is It Possible to Bring Needles on a Plane?

Many are interested in: how to bring needles into the plane. I read in social networks that needles are tied to the bow of fetters and hidden in boots.

In general, they are perverted in different ways. I’ll tell you this: you can carry embroidery needles on board the aircraft without any problems! I never hide them, and I always have a pack of needles with me.

How many flew? No one even paid attention to the needles. But just in case, you can put a spare needle in your checked baggage – you never know. With large needles (such as, for example, a needle for sewing knitted products or a needle for felting), there may be problems during the inspection, as with knitting needles.

For convenience, you can take a pincushion for storing needles with you; a twister pincushion in the form of a twisting lipstick is perfect for this purpose. Inside the needle case, a magnet does not allow the needles to get enough sleep. Sometimes I also take a needle bed with a pillow for the current work.

How to Embroider on an Airplane?

For the convenience of embroidery, choose a place either at the porthole (there is better lighting here) or at the aisle (you may be touched by people passing by). If you get a seat in the center row, there is a chance of being sandwiched between two moderately well-fed fellow travelers – you will not be up to embroidery!

Ideally, the chair next to you is not occupied: you can put everything on two tables, it will be more convenient. But in reality, this rarely happens.

Until the plane takes off, you can safely embroider. During takeoff and landing, you should remove the embroidery, and when the plane gains altitude and the “Fasten your seat belts” sign goes out, you fold the table by the chair and take out the embroidery.

It’s more comfortable to embroider on an airplane during the daytime. After sunset, it’s already a bit dark. The eyes are more strained. I recommend hiding the embroidery for lunch – there is a chance of getting it dirty with food because there is not much space on the plane. It is also better to postpone embroidery during turbulence – I don’t feel comfortable embroidering when it shakes.

Can I Knit or Embroider on an Airplane?

To begin with, it is worth pointing out why there may be a problem with carrying knitting needles, needles, and crochet hooks in hand luggage. All these items are formally piercing, i.e., have a pointed end that can cause injury to other passengers. That is why, for safety reasons, you cannot carry piercing objects into the aircraft’s cabin.

In practice, things are a little different. Most airlines do not classify the above items as potentially dangerous and allow them to be carried in hand luggage. But there is a caveat to this. If you plan to carry knitting needles or sewing needles in your hand luggage, it makes sense to contact the airline in advance and find out the nuances of this. Do not forget that foreign airports may have different security measures. You must think about this if you plan to make a transfer on the way.

The possibility of embroidering or knitting during the flight is at the discretion of the personnel servicing the aircraft. There are no rules and regulations in this regard, but under adverse flight conditions, you may be asked to remove the knitting needles and needles.

For those who do not want to risk their favorite tools, I have found an excellent alternative – plastic or wooden knitting needles. As a rule, they are made of a much softer material than metal ones, do not have a pronounced sharp end, and therefore do not make claims against them during the inspection. Don’t worry about embroidery needles, either. You can purchase a plastic needle and a special embroidery needle with a rounded end.

Can I Carry a Sewing Machine in Hand Luggage?

No, a sewing machine is not allowed on the plane as hand luggage. Even if by weight it fits under five kilograms, you still can’t take it with you to the salon.

You can freely transport it in the luggage compartment, only in a box, it must be well packed.

Conclusion

Different airlines have their own rules about bringing sewing needles on a plane. Again, most airlines have no hard and fast rules for a sewing needle. So, if you want to carry your sewing needle on a flight, it is better to consult with the airline personnel before going for checking. They are the only ones who can rule on whether or not you can bring a sewing needle with you. However, I recommend you not carry even a sewing needle on a flight to avoid the uncertain hassle.