Sunday, February 24, 2013

how to cover a tapered lamp shade...

Before I show you how easy it is to cover a tapered shade, I have to share a little fun
 from my weekend...I had a first! I met this adorable blogging friend, in person!
She is the cutest little thing, and every bit as delightful as I expected. She was visiting CO
 and her husband and son agreed to a couple hour detour on their way to the airport so we
 could have coffee. Thanks guys, so, so nice of you!!! She generously surprised me with a
 beautiful gift which has inspired a soon to come fashion post. :)

On to the lamp shade...  

Covering a lampshade is an easy diy, even if you think you're challenged in that area!
A tapered shade is just as easy if you know one simple trick.

I spied this floor lamp at HomeGoods, but the shade had a large rust spot on it,
perfect! I was planning to customize it with my own fabric anyway and I knew they'd
lower the price. I wasn't expecting them to come back at $36! Woo hoo!


How to:

First test your fabric to be sure it's heavy enough to cover the original pattern when a light
 is shining through. Mine wasn't so I did a quick paint job to cover the existing pattern.


Line up the seam on the lamp shade with the edge of your fabric. 


Make a pattern:
Roll the shade and follow along the edge, making a light pencil line,
 first at the bottom of the shade, then at the top of the shade.  
Stop when you get to the seam, you'll want to add an additional half inch
to fold under, where the seams meet on the shade.
Add an additional half inch to both the top and bottom pencil marks, this is the
extra fabric you'll fold over the top and bottom of the shade.
Cut the pattern out (oops forgot that photo).


Using your glue gun and hot glue attach the fabric,
 using clothespins to secure as you work your way around the shade.
When your seams meet fold the excess under and glue down the edge of the seam.




Since the amount of fabric you'll need varies depending on the diameter and height
 of your shade you can estimate by using the same procedure to make a pattern
 on a piece of newspaper. 
I used 1 1/4 yards of fabric 54" wide, and my shade was 11 1/2 " height, the 
perimeter of the bottom was 52".



Super simple custom shade!

This is a reading corner in one of the girl's rooms I designed a few months ago.
Did you notice a couple of my Ikea favorites? The chair and throw. 
The rest of her girly-teen room coming up tomorrow.


26 comments:

Linda {Calling it Home} said...

Fun on both. It's nice to be introduced to a new blog. Love the shade.

Julia@Cuckoo4Design said...

The lamp shade looks beautiful! I've only covered a shade once and it was with a solid fabric.

~ rooms FOR rent ~ said...

LOVE!! Great tutorial.. thanks for sharing, and it looks fantastic!! Love the fun pop of yellow :) ~Bre

Unknown said...

So cute! I need to cover a lampshade and it's a first for me, so thank you so much for the tutorial..great job, and great impact for such little time.It is great you got to sit down with a blogging friend! I sure hope we can some day!
xo Nancy
Powellbrowerhome.com

Unknown said...

Going now to check out your blog friend, how fun to meet up! (still sad ours didn't work out!) Love the lampshade and the sneak peek at the room!

Dana Frieling said...

Nice little tease for tomorrow. Looks fun! I'm sure you worked your magic and pulled off a few other amazing DIYs.

Cindy @ a curious gardener said...

Thank you, pretty Pam! We will have to spend a day together next time, would love for you to show me your favorite places in Denver.

I am so glad you decided to show us your lampshade tricks. I have always wondered about it and have been curious about your technique since you revealed your son's amazing room that I love. Going to give a try one day...

Julie Taylor and Danni Greenwalt said...

Great idea and it looks fabulous...

Alexa said...

Oh it's gorgeous! And love the fabric that you chose!

ℳartina @ Northern Nesting said...

The lampshade looks fabulous! Love the whole look of that corner!

Matters of Style said...

This looks so good! I made the mistake of trying to paint a shade once- looked horrible when I turned on the light!

A room with a view said...

Thank you for this tutorial, Pam! I have been looking around the house recently realizing that I need to do this to at least one lampshade..it happens to be a scalloped edge one which might be trickier. Have to go visit your new friend...

Cassie Bustamante said...

thank you for this! because i have always wondered! seriously.

Joanne B. said...

Have done this myself quite often- breathes new life into a tired lamp! Here's an extra step that is easy and makes it look 'finished'- get some flat braided trim in a white or cream color from a fabric store and hot glue it onto the inside top and bottom edges of the shade to cover over the raw edges of the fabric you used to cover the shade. This way, when you glance into the top of the shade it will look neater. It's an easy step for not that much effort. Of course you could add to the design by adding trim on the outside top and bottom edges as well!

Katie {Miss Dixie} said...

This is such a good skill to know! What if I want new lampshades and a new lamp base? haha. My master needs help!

Calypso In The Country said...

Very nice. I have never tried that before but I think that is one project I could probably handle! I just visited your friend's blog and became a follower...I must follow all golden retriever owners! Enjoy the rest of your week!
-Shelley

Anonymous said...

LOVE it!

Lisa @ Shine Your Light said...

Great tutorial, the clothespins trick is fabulous! Cute fabric that you chose too!! And how fun to meet a bloggy friend in person, I am so jealous of her! One day :)

Gypsy Heart said...

Well, I'm a jealous wreck 'cause she was able to meet you and I'm not. :) Seriously, I think it's great when bloggers can meet!

The lamp shade is gorgeous. Thanks so much for the tutorial. Love the black & white along with the yellow.

xo
Pat

Jennifer @ Dimples and Tangles said...

Love this color combo! Covering a lamp shade...one of my absolute favorite updates!

Sew a Fine Seam said...

Lovely! Great tutorial!

Danielle said...

Such a fun idea! Haven't done this before.

Shirley@Housepitality Designs said...

Thanks for the tip...love that fabric!!!

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