you must buy embroidery needles. There is a difference in the way the "eye" is grooved and also the tip is slightly different. I guess you could use the regular in a dire emergency, but I wouldn't make it a habit.;)

Oh, Letvia, yes yes yes! You must get embroidery needles, like Jrob said. They really are constructed very differently, regular sewing needles will shred & nest your thread. Ask me how I know this. On one of my embroidery machine's many visits to it's original home at the Dealer's because 'it wasn't working right', she saw that I had a regular needle in there. She is one patient lady, it's a wonder she doesn't thunk me upside the head for doing these things. I was willing to pay $15 for metallic thread, but wanted to sew it with 50 cent needles. Sigh. Keep asking, Letvia, you'll keep from making my mistakes, anyway. And everybody here has such great knowledge & advice! I learn something new every day. Thanks, gals!
Marji

Letvia, I do not know what machine you have. I have Babylock embroidery and serger. My work horse is an old Bernia 830. I use only Schmetz needles for all. Mostly univeral,I like the top stitch needles 80and90. For 75 I use embroidery needles. Hugs and flowers.

I have janome 300E and use embroidery needles ...different sizes for different material

letvia, Needles are cheap. Change needles fairly often, after large projects, or a few small ones. A bad needle can scar your throat plate or bobbin area + cause ugly stitched out designs. More hugs.

Letvia, you're one of the smart people, most of us learned this one by *mistake*!!! A lot of people do use ordinary needles and seem to get away with it, but would you want to ruin some expensive fabric because of the wrong needle. Hugs and flowers.

My favorite needles are Organ brand. I found that if I bought them in bulk from Jhittlesewing.com (Wholesale Sewing Supplies) I can get them for very little cost. I get a combination of sharps (for woven fabrics) and ball-points (for knits). They also offer a nice range of sizes. Personally, I HATE "universal point" needles. They are too sharp to be ball-point, yet not sharp enough to be sharps. Especially on delicate fabrics, they are more likely to make a mess (scarring the fabric or tearing the thread) than a true sharp or ball-point. If you are having problems with threads breaking, the first suspect for me is an old/inappropriate needle. =]

letvia, Like dimds I like Schmetz needles and I do use the embroidery needles they make a difference,ask me how I know, trial & error. Heres a flower for you.

Yep! For sure buy Embroidery needles. Like Carol mentioned, needles like pre-wound bobbins (the best embroidery concept to ever come my way!) can be bought much cheaper in bulk. I agree, 'Organ' makes very good needles. I also prefer the Chrome plated needles which last seemingly forever (I won't dare tell you how long mine have lasted on my Baby Lock BMP6 for fear of jinxing them lol). The only other type I would even consider buying would be Titanium plated needles. I play it by 'ear' with replacement. If I hear them 'pop' as they punch the fabric (I never see any flaws) I change them otherwise I let 'em rip until they break. I have very very few problems... and I run at consistent speeds of 800-1000 spm on a regular basis and sew on lots of heavy materials like denim. The only exception I make is to replace them if I am working on a more delicate fabric.
Good luck and keep those questions flying! It's far easier than learned by trial and error like I did!