In a message dated 18/10/2003 04:45:38 GMT Daylight Time, Tamara [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
> I have to agree with Susie -- leave the magnifer off as long as you > can. At least in BL, anyway :) In BL, you move by touch most of the > time; after you know what your'e suposed to be doing, that is :). A > properly pre-pricked pattern aids you in that; you don't need to *see*. > When I used to do miniature needlepoint, I used to use a magnifying > lamp on any canvas with more than 32holes per inch, but it was a pain > in the, um, head... working through a magnifier, one's not working "in > real time" as it were. I found I had to stop and rest my eyes *much* > more frequently than when working on the pieces which did not require > magnifcation. And, getting back into work, in its blown-up version, was > very difficult. None of those problems appeared with even *slightly* > larger canvas, which I could tackle by unaided eye-sight. I spoke with Dad about all the postings on magnifiers and light and he wanted me to share with you his experiences of using them over the past 10 years that he has gone blind. We hope that this information may be of use to anyone thinking of using / buying light or magnification. Dad started to go blind about 10 years ago and began to use a magnifier for his model making. Dad thought it was brilliant and kept telling me to get one. However, because my eyesight was 20-20 I found that useing a magnifier on a 3-d object, such as model, meant that I was loosing my 3-d perception. As Dad's eyesight got worse, he started to use a very large, illuminated magnifier which has a width of lens around 30cm. Dad discovered then that his 3-d sight was affected by the magnifier because he couldn't hit the model with the paint brush. This was made worse with the fact that shortly after he lost his sight in one eye and so lost his stereo vision. But, what he has found of more use since he started to go blind and we have all over the house are daylight bulbs and lamps. We have been supplied by the Daylight Company who are wonderful for blind people as the offer special rates for registered blind which are vat free but also even cheaper than they should be <A HREF="http://www.daylightcompany.co.uk/";>http://www.daylightcompany.co.uk/</A> they are also fantastic with their customer service - I am sure that there is a US equivilant. Dad and I have got into using flourescent bulbs (you take the wattage and muliply by 7 to get the equivilant wattage of a normal bulb) because they are clear, pure, bright light which is cheap to run. Dad has one over his pc keyboard which is designed to pull the light down onto the keyboard and no where else - so it doesn't blind what little sight he has left. We also have daylight bulbs in the main lights and other flourescents around the house to help him. When I worked nights I used a 15w daylight lamp on my desk so I could move about when the main lights were out but because it was well designed, all the light went on my desk and didn't affect my collegues trying to sleep. Dad has used the clip on magnifiers that you put on your glasses - I know that many of the ladies at my lace group also favour these but they are heavy and can 'pull' your glasses. Dad also felt that because they were very small the main focal area was restricted. He found it easier to use a much larger magnifier that gave the whole area he was working on. However, for the ultimate in magnification, he now has a cctv magnifier which has a large movable work table linked to a colour vdu. It magnifiers newsprint to 3". But then, Dad now has only 5% peripheral vision and has been unable to paint or make models for over a year - he had hoped that this would help but he cannot get a model under the magnifier. In addition, he has now found that extensive use of a magnifer has adverse effects on his eyesight and actually makes it less effective for a long time after using the magnifier. We aren't saying that using a magnifier ruins your eyes, but if you use one for a long period of time you will find that you will need to 'rest' your eyes for at least as long if not 2 - 3 times the lenght. Dad has experienced this personally but also been told it by his eye specialists and by his supplier. My optician told me a very long time ago that crafts and hobbies were great but you must do them in good, clear daylight or excellent quality artifical light and never, ever in pure direct sunlight - this was because I had sat in my window making lace with direct light on my pillow - I ended up with excruiating eye strain because the light was too strong on my pillow and the pins had reflected and tried to 'burn' my eyes (his words). Everytime I closed my eyes they burned - the way that they did when I was a kid and would watch the fire at christmas. You know, when you forget to blink when watching a film and am tired then you close your eyes and they feel hot. Now I make lace in the afternoon in my bedroom where the light is coming in through the window from an angle away from my bed and is clear but not direct. Hope this helps Regards Liz Beecher I'm <A HREF="http://journals.aol.com/thelacebee/thelacebee";>blogging</A> now - see what it's all about - To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
