16 October 2012

Let There Be Light - hopefully....

I might have solved something which has been a huge irritation to me.
This time of year when the daylight changes and you need lights on indoors, or actually not, I find using the sewing machine difficult.
Where my machine is situated I can't add a lamp to the table, there simply isn't room, and certainly can't do with more wire trailing across what working space I have.  But I've become increasingly irritated by the bulbs in my sewing machine.  Yes my Bernina has two, inncey wincey weeny little things, but they throw off a yellow light, sometimes with some threads I can't even see where I've stitched.  I try with the light on, off, add in the room light, sew almost in pitch darkness.  Last year so fed up with this I resorted to hanging a small flip light around my neck to focus in onto the needle.  Of course perfect until I moved and then back into not being able to see.  Next I tied it up to the underside of the harp bit.  That works, until stitching something large which needs to slide through the harp, then there is all sorts of manipulation needed, sigh.

What I really don't understand is why can't you get daylight bulbs for sewing machines?  Isn't it so obvious? I know some machines have them, but not as tiny as my machine needs.  In fact I enquired of the lightbulb manufacturers themselves (tell you this has really bugged me), they told me they didn't make bulbs that small, oh right, so I painted their name onto the bulbs myself then, sigh.
Top a daylight sewing machine bulb - described as a Pgymy...
below the one from my machine

Surely there must be other hobbyist equipment which take small bulbs, and wouldn't it be an instant seller to have daylight bulb versions - or is someone trying to tell me that my 20 year old machine is too old to bother with.  I know these teeny bulbs are used in things like projectors, microscopes, or around the house to illuminte display cabinets.

So, do I have a solution, well will have to see if the latest idea works.
Now I've bought one of these small round LED battery lights.  As my noticeboard is immediately behind the machine, I'm going to put the light on there shining onto the needle area and we will see if that improves things.  Now the variable is of course me, sliding the machine back and forth on the table, as I tend to push it back when I'm finished, so we might have to play with adjust the angle every time....
All these Dragons Den and business entrepreneur programmes - just make me a tiny daylight bulb - me and a zillion machiners would be so pleased!  Or alternatively get me a house big enough to have my own studio, where I can set it up to meet my every need.  At the moment I don't even have a room for my sole use.
I think that's it, I am quite comfortably now into the whining old biddy zone.

2 comments:

Su said...

I think you should invent one - Dragon's Den could be your oyster! Seriously it's a very good idea, and one which I'm sure someone could invent. Those little LED lights are very good though, I have them in my shed and greenhouse, so will be interested to hear how you get on with it for sewing.

Diane Kelsey said...

What a fun picture you paint with all your antics. I hope you solve the problem and make your fortune!