Lamp Shades

I was recently helping my mom make decorative pillows for my sister's new house.  Biz had picked out the fabric before she left for Alabama, so mom and I went out in search of embellishments (ribbons, trims, buttons, pins, etc.)

While we were shopping, we found some adorable pom-pom trim at Hobby Lobby.  For Biz, we bought it in pink, green and cream, but it also came in green, brown and cream.

Our guest room is decorated in brown, light green, teal and cream, and about a year ago I had purchased two of these crystal lamp bases from an antique store for $3 dollars (for the pair).  My dad re-wired them for me, and they have been sitting in my close ever since - waiting for me to either find acceptable shades or make ones to match the room.

Over a year ago, I made curtains for the guest room using a brown satin material and cream and brown toile print.  I checked my fabric stash and did not have any of the brown left over - so I headed to Hobby Lobby hoping they would have something similar to use for my new lampshades - and believe it or not, they had the exact same fabric!  I loaded up with everything I needed and headed home:

I think the shades turned out really well, and now, we finally have reading lamps for our guests!

In case any of you are interested in doing this at home (and I totally recommend it) I have included instructions below:

Time Required: 30 minutes

Expertise: Novice

Supplies:
Adhesive lampshade from local craft supply store
Fabric of your choice (the lampshade should tell you how much is required to cover it)
Glue (I used a hot glue gun)
Heat & Bond (this is a roll of tape that become sticky when activated with an iron)
Pins
Scissors
Iron

Steps:

1. Peel template off lamp shade, pin to right side of material and cut around pattern, leaving a 1" allowance
2. Lay cut fabric on table wrong side up, and position lampshade so that the seam on the lampshade is facing you, then place lampshade in the center of the fabric. (Your goal is to have your fabric seam at the same place as the seam in the adhesive shade - this will make the finished product smoother.)
3. Wrap fabric around lampshade smoothing out all wrinkles (you can pull it off and reposition if needed).
4. Trim excess fabric at seam, leaving enough to fold over (approximately 1/2" of overlap), providing a clean seam.
5. Cut a strip of Heat & Bond the height the lamp shade, place under folded seam and press with warm iron.  (You may need to hold the iron on for 3-5 seconds to activate the head beads.)
6. To finish the top and bottom, trim excess fabric to approximately 1/2" and snip vertical cuts toward the lampshade leaving 1/8" uncut.
7. Apply glue to the inside of the lampshade, and fold extra fabric over onto glue.
8. Apply trim, beginning at the seam using glue.  When you get back to the seam, glue trim up to seam, then cut 1/2" outward, fold in half, and glue down.

Congratulations! You have now completed your own lamp shade!

Variations:  There are lots of way to customize these lampshades below are just a few ideas:

• Use two trims, one on the top and one on the bottom
• Glue buttons to the shade, either randomly, or making flowers or other shapes
• Make flowers out of ribbon and place on shade
• Glue strips of ribbon around the lampshade, could overlap for layered look 
• Use home-made patch-worked, or strip-stitched pieces as material
• Weave ribbon, stitch to a muslin backing, and use as material