My toddler's room is nearly done!
It still needs some minor updates and baby decor to make it her own fun room, but all the
In an effort to get the ball rolling on decorating the room, I decided to do a small project with the lamp that sits on her dresser.
Hardly a lamp for a girl's nursery/toddler room, but I could never find a lampshade I loved for a reasonable price. So, I found some pretty fabric at Hobby Lobby and transformed this black shade into a fun, cute, baby-approved shade. ;)
First, I bought a yard of fabric (on clearance) and laid it down on the floor, back side facing up. I placed the lampshade on top, and rolled it to either side to trace it onto the fabric, using chalk. Like so...
Chalk is more forgivable for mistakes than a marker and easier to wipe off so nothing shows through on the right side.
Once your pattern is drawn, cut 1'' further from the line so that you can fold this part under the shade rim. Since this was my first time working with fabric, I cut about 3'' past the line and had a big mess of extra fabric getting in the way.
TIP: A friend told me to first cut out the pattern on a newspaper, wrapping the shade with it, just to make sure it would fit... and I didn't. And I regret it. Friend, you were right. Not even halfway through, my fabric wasn't lining up and I was making a big mess of my shade.
So, after you test the shade with a "practice pattern" (ahem), now it's time to glue on the fabric. I used super glue but I'm sure fabric glue would work just as well.
Start at the lampshade seam and glue small sections at a time, using something (clothespins) to secure the fabric. Work the top and bottom at the same time to ensure your fabric is smooth and wrapping around correctly. I also cut slits every half inch to make the fabric easier to fold around.
If you failed to do a practice run with newspaper first, like me, this might happen before you even get halfway...
Point of no return.
The fabric was shifting up and when I tried to correct it, I pulled off fabric from the original lampshade. It was either start over, and put new fabric over the first attempt, or throw it away.
So, I started over and secured the fabric all over (top and bottom) with clothespins FIRST, then glued very small sections at a time.
It was an inexpensive project and took about an hour to complete. Even though it looks cute, the backside didn't line up right...
Do I care? Not one bit! That side is facing the wall and no one will ever know. :)
For future reference I know not to buy fabric with stinking stripes.
Before:
After:
With the light on...
Cute!
Total project cost:
$4.89 for the fabric.
HOLLA!
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