Weekend DIY Craft Project: Make Yourself a Custom Lampshade

Entry #1473, August 17, 2012

A lampshade is a decorative fixture that diffuses the light from the bulb to produce a soothing lighting effect in your room. Lampshade designs vary in so many ways to match your room design or theme. If you are thinking about customizing your interiors to coordinate in color, patterns, or more, here are tips to create a custom lampshade from Design Sponge.

Create a custom lampshade for your interiors

All images via Design Sponge

You can always find well-designed lampshades in your favorite furniture store. But don’t you adore it more if you make it on your own? You will definitely agree that creating a lampshade with your own hands is priceless. All you need is a couple of hours and extra effort to build one.

Making a custom-made lampshade only takes a few steps, here’s how:

Materials Needed

• fabric
• pressure sensitive styrene
• fabric or paper tape
• measuring tool
• pencil or marker
• pencil
• scissors
• glue
• paint with brush
• sewing kit
• tie wire
• pliers

Layout the pattern for your lampshade

Creating the template for your lampshade

Directions

1. Determine the dimension of your shade. You may use the measurement of your old lampshade for accuracy. However, you can adjust the measurement according to your preference.
2. After getting the measurement, cut the tie wire using your pliers and shape it accordingly like a ring. There are two rings that you have to make. One for the top and the other for the bottom part.
3. Attached a Y-shaped tie wire on the top ring of your shade. This part will serve as the shade hanger.
4. To secure the shape, intertwine the ends of the wire. Do this carefully so as not to damage the shape.
5. Prepare the fabric. Ensure that you maintain its cleanliness and fluff.
6. Lay down the pressure sensitive styrene. It has two sides wherein one is sticky enough to hold fabric firmly. Stick the fabric to the peeled section of the pressure sensitive styrene. Make sure that the fabric is properly attached to the pressure sensitive styrene.
7. Slowly roll the fabric with pressure sensitive styrene onto the tie wire rings to form the shade. Glue the fabric seam and tape it on the outer part.
8. Do a running stitch to seam the fabric.
9. To cover the tape and stitches, cut a piece of fabric and glue it on the edge. This will provide a clean look on your shade.

Just be selective with the pattern of the fabric. It should be able to look consistent and unbroken even after cutting.  With continuous pattern, the shade will appear elegant as the shade being sold commercially.

Watch Stagetecture’s You Tube Channel for more DIY ideas