Let There Be Light!

Now, I'll be the first to admit that my sewing studio is pretty nice. I have lots of space, several sliding glass doors and skylights to let in natural light. And there are plenty of electric lights to use when I've "run out of light." With a lot of lights, and most of them being above where my 5'3" stature can easily reach, I tend to let more than one burn out before I drag in the ladder to replace them. However, recently I noticed that there were three light bulbs out, and they were all right near where my sewing machine resides. Something had to be done.

This all is not as easy as it sounds. First I have to bring in the ladder. Sometimes I have to rearrange furniture (or stacks of fabric!) in order to put the ladder where I need it. Then I climb up the ladder and remove the offending bulbs. Because I do not just have all these bulbs on hand. Our house would look like a hardware store if we stocked all the different kinds of bulbs that we use! Side note: one of the burned out bulbs was a halogen bulb which had actually exploded in its socket. I had to have some help to get that one removed. See--it's not easy!

So after removing the bulbs, I take them to the hardware store to buy replacements. Which the store may or may not have. Usually I leave the ladder standing during this interval, because I'm going to need to climb back up there again, right? When I get home from the store I climb back up the ladder and replace the bulbs.

And now it is amazing how much light I have on my workspace! The photo shows two lights that were previously burned out, and I'm more or less sitting in front of my machine to take the photo. Having good light is such an essential element in any work.

Word to the wise: Not because I've learned this the hard way, but it's a good idea to have your cell phone in your pocket if you're climbing ladders and you're alone in the house. At any age, it's easy to lose your balance or take a mis-step and fall. Cross my fingers, I haven't fallen yet, but I do realize that I'm rather vulnerable if I'm home alone and there's no one to call out to.