Lampshade Makeover from Jennifer of Dimples & Tangles

I am so excited to have Jennifer here from dimples & tangles. She is super talented, and has amazing taste when it comes to interior design. She really doesn't need much of an introduction, so here's Jennifer...


Hello to all of you fellow a Commoner's Castle readers!  I have so enjoyed Lauren's blog and am thrilled that she invited me to share with you today.  I'm also a fairly new blogger and have been so blessed to become a part of this wonderfully supportive blogging community.


This is the very first project that I posted on my blog, and I thought I'd also share it with you.  I bought these lamps several years ago at Hobby Lobby for 80% off.  

Loved them as they were and they were the perfect size to flank my mantel...I love using lighting on the mantel!  I have enjoyed them but am gradually moving away from so much red in the family room, so I put them away for a while.  When the time came to pull them out and use them again (I have a big stash of accessories that I switch out all the time, do you?), I searched high and low for new shades.  Not an easy task, being that these shades are very tall and narrow. 


Usually I just recover a shade that I'm tired of, but this one had curvy lines that would have made it really difficult.  I couldn't walk into Ross or Target like I normally do and pick up a replacement.  I'm sure I could have found some online or from a fancy lighting store that would have been the right size, but I wasn't willing to shell out the big bucks that I knew I'd have to pay. 


I finally pulled out the scissors ready to snip off the old shade and try use it as a pattern to fashion some sort of new one, when a thought popped into my head.  Paint fixes everything, right?  Especially black paint!  Why not try painting them?  I was originally looking for a white shade, but knew that white wouldn't work over the red fabric.  I use a lot of black accents so I decided to try it.  


First, I snipped off the X cross pieces.  I didn't want to work around them.

I used a bottle of Fabric Medium from Hobby Lobby and mixed some with my black acrylic paint.  The medium helps the paint spread on more smoothly and evenly.

Using a foam brush, I applied the paint with a light touch as evenly as possible, being careful around the edges to get a clean line.  I did discover that if I pressed too firmly the paint soaked through to the white silk liner underneath. 

After the first coat I placed the shade back on the base with the light on and could still see the red showing through, so I painted a second coat.  

Perfect!  All it took was less than two dollars for the paint and about 20 minutes.

I think the darker shades add a touch of sophistication and 
are a nice contrast to the brick. 

In my opinion they look better than any replacement shade I might have found, and were much more budget-friendly!  Do you have an easy fix for tired lampshades?

  

Congratulations Lauren on your one year anniversary of blogging!  Keep up the good work!


Jennifer, Thanks so much for being a part of our blogiversary celebration, and for always being encouraging and inspiring.
I really hope you will all stop over to her site, and say hello! She has a beautiful home, and always has something amazing going on.