The most common reason people don't talk up thread crochet is that they find it hard to see what they're doing. For the same reason, many thread crocheters stick to size 10 thread. Fortunately, there are tools to help us get around such weaknesses of the flesh. Magnifiers are helpful supplements for middle aged eyes (and I personally was far to macho to use them until, at 40, I accepted that I was officially middle aged). And full spectrum lighting is a wonderful thing: not only does it make it easy to see stuff, but it also improves your mood.
I got into good full spectrum lighting via cross-stitch and needlepoint, when I needed to separate very similar thread colors at night (I was a professional baker at the time, so night was when I was awake). I soon found that a good light also makes it far easier to crochet with tiny thread on those long winter nights.
Stitchery also induced me to buy my first magnifier -- I was hemstitching on handkerchief linen (which is totally insane, but that's another story). It didn't take long before I started wondering whether this magnifier thingy mightn't be just what I needed to help me crochet with invisibly small threads. Indeed, it was just the thing, and I immediately came down with a raging case of MAS (magnifier acquisition syndrome) . So I have personal experience to relate regarding most of the possible magnifiers out there.
Strength of lenses is expressed in a number followed by an 'X'. The bigger the number, the stronger the magnification.
An interesting note: while my middle aged eyes definitely appreciate a magnifier whenever I readjust to using tatting or sewing thread, they seem to acclimatize rapidly. After a snowflake or two in tiny thread, I don't seem to need the magnifier anymore.
$7 - $10 plain
$15 - $25 with light
These are the most common options, available at every craft store. The string allows the magnifier to hang around your neck (just like a massive necklace), and then the magnifier has little feet that allow it to stand up on your bosom. Between the string, the feet, and the lift provided by your bosom, the lens ends up neatly propped between your eyes and your needlework. There are versions with built in lights that cost about twice as much -- they use flashlight bulbs and batteries.
Usually these magnify about 1.5X, though some have an impractically small 4X or 6X magnification inset. Because they're not very strong, I'd recommend them mostly for learning larger sizes of small thread, or for someone who's having trouble learning thread work at all. While they're better than nothing, they're not strong enough to make sewing thread look big.
$25
A battery powered reading lights, with an attachment to hold a lens to magnify what it's lighting. It's like the basic magnifier in that it's hangs from your neck like a necklace, but it's shaped quite differently. Unfortunately, the light isn't very strong, the apparatus is awkward and very hard to aim properly, and the lenses are the kind that are flat and ridged, so they don't give a particularly clear view of what you're trying to look at. This was my most disappointing excursion into Magnifier Acquisition.
$30 - $40
This contraption has a plastic headband, and the lenses are on a hinge so you can swing them up out of your way, or down so they're right where you need them. A lot of needleworkers love their Mag Eyes, but I simply happen to dislike anything that clings to my head (I won't even wear hats!), and it might be a problem if you have a hair style that's easily crushed.
On the bright side, it's very handy, is compatible with glasses if you wear them, and has good quality lenses. You can also get different strengths of lenses to go with these, and it comes with a couple of different lenses. Be careful though -- different versions come with different sets of lenses, and if you're going to be doing very small work, or have particularly middle-aged eyes, you're going to want to make sure you have the stronger lens package. At JoAnne.com I'm seeing two different lens sets -- one they call lenses #2 (1.6X) and #4 (2.0X), then another that comes with lenses #5 (2.25X) and #7 (2.75X).
$10 - $20
I don't need reading glasses to read (at least not yet), but they're great for magnifying itsy bitsy needlework! If you don't need glasses to find your way across a room (or use contact lenses instead), a strong pair of over-the-counter reading glasses makes an excellent magnifier. When I'm wearing my contact lenses, these are what I prefer. My favorite pair is 3.25X, but your mileage may vary -- try them on in the store and see what gives the best magnification for the distance at which you prefer to crochet. If the glasses are too strong, you can find yourself working close enough to give yourself an accidental nose piercing...
$12
These are close kin to those clip-on flip up sunglass attachments for eyeglasses, except they magnify instead of cutting light. I use the Magni-Clips brand, but there's another kind called Flip & Focus. They come in a variety of strengths, from +1.0 to +4.0. I happen to prefer +3.0 to +4.0, but your mileage may differ.
These are what I use most often. I get better astigmatism correction from my glasses than my contacts, so glasses plus these clip-ons give me the clearest picture of what I'm trying to look at.
Be sure to pay attention to the strength of the magnifiers that come with these lights, because many of them are not very strong. Because of minimal magnification and maximal prices, I finally decided that I prefer to keep my magnifiers and lights as totally separate entities. OTOH, I know other people like them combined, plus those fancy light & magnifier combo's can be great fun to covet, so I've gone ahead and described many of the possible options below.
To see a full range of these magnifier/light products, type "magnifier" into the search box at Herrschners or Joanne.com. Herrschner's also has a magnifiers and lights section, which gets you a slightly different range of products than the "magnifier" search (neither one contains everything, so do both if you want to see it all).
$$$ If you have to ask, you can't afford it!
Just in case you've spent the last 10 years wandering the wilderness and living on insects and berries, Ott Lamps are these wonderful full spectrum lights that give you daylight-perfect vision of color and detail. Alas, they're quite expensive, so a lot more people want them than have them!
What really tempts me is the Ott light floor lamp with a magnifying arm, but that's a setup that costs $250 - $300 (or more!). If you already have an Ott floor lamp or flex-arm lamp, there's a $90 - $130 magnifying attachment you can buy for it. Actually, I have a growing interest in the flex-arm option...
There is a more affordable Ott desk lamp with a built in magnifier ($100 - $130), but I can't recommend it. The setup is all wrong for me -- I like the light to be above my head or behind my shoulder, and the magnifier between my eyes and my work. The Ott desk lamps tend to make people hunch over in order to get their work down underneath the small area that it lights, and if the magnifier is fixed down under the light, that's how you have to use it -- you can't stick it on a shelf above your shoulder, for example. In general, I don't recommend this unless you always work at a table -- and even then, many people find it uncomfortable to use.
$60 - $70 for swing arm versions
$175 - $200 for floor lamps
There are various compact fluorescent (CF) lamps with magnifiers, some swing arm, some floor lamps. The swing arm ones can have the magnifier and light on different bendy arms, or together on the same arm. Some of the floor lamps have pattern holding arms as well. The new thing is that now (presumably as a result of Ott-mania) these all come with "daylight" CF bulbs, which give more natural light than normal CF bulbs. Some of these lamps are very industrial looking, others at least attempt to look like interior decor. This seems to currently be the hot product category -- I've seen many different variations on this theme, so you should be able to find one to suit your tastes (but I still think Ott lights give better light!).
$90 - $130
This is a halogen light with a magnifier, all on the same arm. It's quite stylish looking, actually...
My roommate asks that I remind people that halogen lights run very hot, and present a significant fire hazard should children or pets knock them over into paper, yarn, upholstery, etc. I thought UL and folks like that had instituted rules to make them safer, but I really don't know...
$50 - $90
This older old kind of lighted magnifier had a circular fluorescent bulb with a magnifying glass in the center. You can get a version that just hangs around your neck and sits on your bosom (that sounds kind of heavy to me), or one with a swing arm (more expensive). I think these take the older, non-daylight fluorescent bulbs, so you'd probably have better light and easier bulb replacement if you got one of the newer kind.
$ 10 - $20 (plus any old swing arm desk lamp & your favorite magnifier)
What I do is to put a full spectrum incandescent bulbs into an ordinary swing-arm lamp, and attached it to my favorite easy chair. I put on my clip-on eyeglass magnifiers, turn on my full spectum light, and I can see my work in the darkest of winter evenings. This leaves me free to experiment with various inexpensive swing arm lamps, and just put my fancy bulb into whichever one works best for me.
$7 - $12
There are incandescent bulbs that fit into normal lighting fixtures. I love the light they give, so I use them all over the house. If you're planning to put one into a swing arm lamp, be sure to get a lower wattage (60 or 75), because these bulbs run quite hot, and they can melt your lamp hood and be a fire hazard if left on and forgotten. One can get these bulbs at groovy natural food stores, Trader Joe's (a west coast alternative grocery store), or at environmentally groovy home supply places. To get the real thing, it should say "full spectrum" on the package, and the bulb should be heavier than the usual bulb, and an interesting pale misty purplish color of glass. They can cost from $7 to $12 each, but they last quite a long time, and give lovely light.
$20
Full spectrum compact fluorescants are about twice the price of ordinary CF bulbs, and are often available only via mail order, or from extra-groovy home or lighting supply places. Don't be fooled -- Home Depot or other big chains only carry the normal kind of CF bulbs, not full spectrum ones (though maybe if enough of us complain, they'll change their minds). If you want to put a CF into a swing arm lamp, make sure you get the kind that are safe for recessed fixtures -- the other kind can overheat (or simply not fit!).
For those who've slept through the last few years, compact fluorescant bulbs are fluorescent bulbs that screw into ordinary light fixtures They use far less electricity than ordinary light bulbs, and last for years and years. Unfortunately, the cheap ones hum and give truly hideous light. Mediocre ones don't hum, and give soft light very similar to ordinary light bulbs. Fancy full spectrum ones give wonderful light, but cost $20 each.
JoAnne.com and Herrschners carry something called a "Daylight" bulb, but I can't tell if it's a real full spectrum bulb or not. It's costs $20, which is the normal price for a full spectrum CF, the packaging is suspiciouly coy -- it doesn't use the phrase "full spectrum" or any of the technical lingo that serves as the secret handshake of the full spectrum lighting crowd, so I'm not sure about this one...
Write to me at noelvn@teleport.com with suggestions, complaints, links, patterns, reviews, etc.
© Copyright 1997, 2000 Noël V. Nevins