Recently, my coworker gifted me allowed me to snag two, matching lamps from her trunk on the way to Goodwill. I offered to pay her but she gave them to me for free. Mark the start of a great, inexpensive DIY project!
I knew I wanted to use these on the nightstands in our master. We want to give our room a mini-makeover and this is a great first step. Since I’d already picked out fabrics for the makeover, I quickly knew the colors I’d use for the lamps. If you remember my fan redo, you know I’m not afraid of a little color. 🙂
What you’ll need:
- Ugly lamps. Ha!
- 1/2 yard of fabric for each lampshade
- Aluminum foil
- 1 can of spray primer
- 1 can of spray paint
- Paper – large sheet or roll of contact paper
- 1 can of spray adhesive
- Hot glue
The Base
Step 1: Put aluminum foil on all the parts you want to keep paint-free, like the electrical areas and parts of the lampshade that may show in the end. (I didn’t quite accomplish this as you’ll see in later pictures.)
Step 2: Prime your metal base and the metal on your lampshades. I prefer to use a gray primer when covering with any color.
Step 3: Spray away! Dry. And spray away again. Side note: This project was the first time I used Valspar “the perfect finish” gloss interior/exterior spray paint with “easy-spray technology”. I have to say I loved the application the nozzle gave. First, I didn’t have to battle with a cap that you “squeeze and pull off”; instead, you just turn it. It might not be ideal for all applications since it gives a very wide almost mist-like application. I loved it though because it prevented me from getting streaks and gave a much more even application.
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The Lampshade
Step 1: Prep the shade by removing any trim.
Step 2: If your shade has a paper or plastic shade with fabric already over it, cut the fabric being careful not to damage the shade. The fabric should then peel off fairly easily. (In my case, I had a plastic shade with pleated fabric that was stuck on with spray adhesive.) If your shade is only fabric or doesn’t leave you with a shade to work with, this blogger offers a great tutorial on making your own shade with the top and bottom rings only.
Step 3: Make the pattern for your new fabric. (This is the point I found the most difficult.)
- Layout your paper. I found that contact paper worked well because I needed a wide paper and it was heavy enough to layout and not require pinning.
- Place your shade on the paper and carefully trace the top ring as your roll the shade around completing a full rotation. (I used the seam as my start and end point.)
- Place the shade back at the starting point and trace the bottom ring as you did for the top.
- You now have two curves (top and bottom rings) that you should connect with straight lines essentially creating a “C” shape.
- Cut out your custom pattern. (And pat yourself on the back!)
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Step 4: Place your pattern on the wrong side of your fabric. Cut around the pattern giving yourself .5″ to 1″ extra on all sides.
Step 5: (Having removed the pattern) Spray the wrong side of your fabric with spray adhesive.
Step 6: Place your fabric around your ‘naked’ lampshade. I found it very helpful to have an extra set of hands at this point. Thankfully, my husband was a willing helper.
Step 7: Fold over the unfinished edge and glue down with hot glue to create your seam.
Step 8: Around the top and bottom rims, fold the unfinished sides over and up inside your shade. Use hot glue to secure.
I couldn’t love my finished product more! It has dramatically improved my nightstand that went from this…
(so honest it hurts), to this…
- Shade fabric: Joel Dewberry Napsack in “Timber”
- Base color: Valspar Gloss interior/exterior spray paint in Hacienda Tile
- Jewelry Tree from Selina Vaughan Studios