Needle threader and needle threading mechanism

A needle threading mechanism that includes:

• a needle receiving hole having a needle supporting bottom surface, the needle receiving hole extending in a first direction that is along a longitudinal direction of a needle held in the needle receiving hole, the needle supporting bottom surface being offset in a first sense of the first direction;
• and a threading member that can enter a needle eye of the needle held in the needle receiving hole, the needle threading mechanism being capable of inserting a loop of thread through the needle eye by the threading member entering the needle eye, the needle threading mechanism comprising:
• a guide mechanism for guiding the needle into the needle receiving hole, wherein the needle receiving hole is formed with a slit that extends substantially across an entire length of the needle receiving hole in the first direction and that includes a curved portion gently curved from the first direction;
• and
• a thread pressing mechanism including a pressure receiving part and a pressing member that is reciprocally movable between a first position on or near the pressure receiving part and a second position separated from the pressure receiving part, wherein the pressing member is moved to the second position when the threading member enters the needle eye, and the pressing member is capable of pressing the loop of thread inserted through the needle eye against the pressure receiving part when the threading member retracts to a position away from the needle eye.