I don’t think I’ve mentioned this here publicly. I have vision issues as a result of not taking care of my diabetes. I have a great doctor and he is working closely with me to get the problem solved.
Because of this I struggle with seeing the thread while quilting and where I’ve been unless I use a contrasting thread. This isn’t necessarily bad but I do get asked why I use high contrast colors and sometimes, frankly, it feels a little judgemental.
Somewhere over the course of the past two years I put a call out on a facebook group asking for ideas and help. Someone mentioned watching a Jamie Wallen video about side light. Also, I set out to get glasses that were for mid range vision only.
I went to Home Depot and bought a battery operated light and a board. The boyfriend taped it to the board so I could see if it worked. It was a failed experiment for me. I didn’t understand I’d have to turn off other lights.
This past week I found my light and decided to give it another try. Here are some pictures to illustrate.
My machine, overhead and ceiling fan light are on. Notice the shadow.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRihIwp2G007Fwd6901QSVYtaVUeKJZUACgU2FfaVMasJQ4Xsy7lkKdLBKNbyAsms8SDXACgGxF0cyWnxrNM_GKHkfrBemd-jdyPGmMHOlYHpPDuNOEMCHcsmYsll4F5Al8Ms_/s9999/IMG_8236.jpg)
Here I turned off the machine light.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXRjgdcRlTvqnlHEtT6yTEcL4ziauwEOlqyqoQVKOEurGM5XKIVvcjtrnMIZJxizEePvCxcCZGAeaJvlaqb7nahmiEdMPjc0VQeP-YP9lNyOIPQMyACb3Pli6IDIGKuIeeAwhH/s9999/IMG_8237.jpg)
Here I turned on the sidelight and ceiling fan light is still on.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2bfp8p6Zf1Y5GxHpC7oVhRp1wkhHFaFaiugip96g5eu-EW8FtjjozCYZ69KoogOJTDxdiNrWEap60GRr2fQY0VCe21oIJlmq8LhxhVPO47SIiX6ygAu0L_M4cMfsNBfAPk7FO/s9999/IMG_8239.jpg)
In the picture the contrast is better than to the naked eye.
Here I turned off the ceiling fan light. What an amazing difference.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDTOzO3lTOW0PAmkjL_VsKMljjfjjtUZFn5bVkPlOEDEPuQ7D3K3UC20TNMmZ2MXfr_O0A1n5I58-P5ZFSLpCCdolwgXubdIuRVO0W_xodrQqcaFvMKXUyhBM8tGEYPggXJg2e/s9999/IMG_8240.jpg)
Here is my little contraption. The boyfriend put screws on the side of the board to mount it properly.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDwl8UBZzspKkp8fS8rv1jxOgqlG1ZTlSCFV1BQeureXhq8cw6z1VNOHmIu8Xmt9YoQcXFZwKQdZyuayofs1TxSVLWnVbAkxRHJ08t0Obi-stIGFIRaau0QfmlTlht3YdlaWXr/s9999/IMG_8241.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQAIPiJ04S0Xy34gyFwQMQwxtI2HKZk0m6kMlTaF4rIITV1Ykisz76-_c7UHo_ga7yDGIG9-oJx09fcQEImRNwms6tHaCCS8FqEIHmoS9vG1q9E5nc1e6sdZCXO5DaM-TRO0sH/s9999/IMG_8242.jpg)
The quilting you see in the pic was accomplished with my light. I have my glasses in hand and I’m ready to go!
Got any more tips for me? Hope someone finds this useful.
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