grandma7

Thank you, QuiltE, I never thought of being higher than the table, to help alleviate shoulder fatigue. I agree that an adjustable chair is invaluable. I'm gonna try this.

QuiltE

You're welcome!

But YIKES .... I said
........So be careful you do undo your new shoulder with all of this activity.

That was supposed to be ... NOT UNDO ..... ..... Sorry! that I got that wrong!


You might want to mention your quilting to your PT.
S/he may have some suggestions as to how to make your set-up more ergonomically friendly.
Also, could give you some stretches/exercises to help when you are quilting.

Prism99

Wow! With that shoulder surgery, I recommend that you implement *all* of the suggestions for reducing stress on that shoulder. Yet another thing you can do, which I highly recommend, is quilt standing up. My dh made a large surround for my sewing machine out of a styrofoam sheet purchased at the hardware store. By placing my sewing machine on my cutting table and positioning the styrofoam around it, I was able to quilt for much longer periods of time because my shoulders and back were much less stressed.

Here are links to the Youtube videos that showed me how to make a styrofoam surround. She quilts sitting down, but I found standing up to be much better.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g14govA4pIM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAS25v3ZTk0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0lk7UBQgZY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwrA...F28BF9&index=6

And here is a link to her video about sewing ergonomics:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbmQ...F28BF9&index=4

In my opinion, it's very important for quilters (especially those of us who have gotten up there in years) to pay attention to our bodies. I am careful not to do any one thing for too long a period of time, as I don't want to be hampered by repetitive stress injuries. In your case, with a joint replacement, it's even more important that you pay attention to the stresses in your upper body.

Suz

I find that if the humidity is up, my FMQ has more drag despite being careful of the support from a table and ironing board.

grandma7

Thank you all for your help. Prism99, I watched these videos. The light bulb came on! I have some of the plastic she shows. I'm gonna try that. Hopefully, the flannel will not drag so much.

Claire123

The gloves really help me also. I use them sometimes when my hands get tired, even if I am not fmq.