Boo Boos, Klutz Gloves & Flying Geese

I've been hesitant to admit to the world just how "klutzy" I was about a week ago.  I have been using a rotary cutter for as long as they have been on the market and never had an "oops" moment UNTIL last week.

In my excitement to get started cutting out the first pieces for a mystery quilt....it happened....the never imagined, can't believe I just did that, split second slice of the rotary cutter with my left pointer finger hanging over the edge of the ruler ever so slightly.....but just enough to.....

Yessirree....OUCH....blood pouring out....sick, gut feeling that I may have just cut the tip of my finger off....running down the hallway to the bathroom....throbbing PAIN!!!!

I'll leave the rest to your imagination.  :)  Thankfully, dear hubby was home and knowing my over the top fear of requiring medical attention, even though the cut was deep, it was clean and so he proceeded to doctor it up himself....hoping it would work and start to heal without stitches!

I have gone a week now with my left pointer finger sticking up in the air as I do anything and everything.  The constant throbbing ended after about the second or third day.  Now it only hurts if I forget and try to pick something up or touch it.  I have advanced to wearing "butterfly" band-aids in order to give it fresh air to dry out and heal.

Yesterday was the first day that I got brave enough to actually look closely at it myself. LOL  I wanted to know the extent of my injuries. :)  The cut skin looks to be healing nicely...even difficult to see....but yesterday was when I finally realized that it wasn't just my skin that was cut....that stinking brand new blade I had just put in the rotary cutter was truly SHARP....sharp enough to cut the skin, and continue cutting through the side and towards the center of my finger nail!!!!!!!!!!  NO WONDER the tip of my finger still hurts to do anything with it!!!!!!!

This little accident has left me a little scared of the rotary cutter....terrified is closer to the truth! :) :)  I started looking around and asking questions and found that there was a product on the market just for potentially klutzy quilters called.....drum roll please......KLUTZ GLOVES!!!!!!

I ordered myself one (and I ordered my mom one also because I feel responsible with her new found need to use a rotary cutter herself.....I've been dragging her into starting the mystery quilt and other projects with me).

The gloves are made using a wire mesh to stop "blades gone wild" from penetrating our delicate fingers and hands....plus there are rubber grippers they help us hold the acrylic rulers in place.  The rubber grippers are on both sides of the glove so that it can be used for both right and left handed quilters.  I bet whoever thought of this has made a fortune!!!! LOLOLOL

The package arrived yesterday!!!!  YIPPEE....I feel brave enough to use the rotary cutter again.  It's a good thing too....I really needed to cut out the required pieces for the second clue in the mystery quilt.

Thanks to my new "feel the power" glove....I am back in the groove.  All 128 purple "geese" triangles, 256 black on white print "wings", and the 64 - 2" x 3 1/2" rectangles (an advance clue for the next reveal) are all cut out and ready to sew together.

The timing couldn't be better.  Kirsten needs the use of my long cutting table to work on some more of her Christmas gift projects (photos will be shared after the holidays) and now I can sit at my little featherweight and sew up a storm while she works across the room....great bonding opportunity for the two of us. :) :)

Ta Ta for now....