How to cover lampshades with fabric

One of the things I did this weekend was dress up these lamps I got at an antique store. Check out their new outfits!

The lamps didn't come with shades, so I don't know what the original shape would have been. I searched high and low at Target, HomeGoods, and any stores I could think of that sell new shades, but couldn't find a size that wouldn't look silly on these slender bases.

So I Googled online places that will make custom-sized shades, and finally selected Fenchel Shades. You can choose the shape and exact dimensions of your new shades and they'll make them for you. Since I was kind of paranoid about getting it wrong, I had Alex hold a cylindrical wastebasket upside down over one of the lamps for reference while I walked across the room and eyed it from afar. I measured the trash can and then determined how much narrower and taller I would like the shade to be. Then I made a hasty paper replica with taped-together pieces of printer paper and Alex held it up for size. (Measure 68 times, cut once, as the saying goes.) The template was approved!

I ordered simple cylindrical shades with plain white linen since I loved the pretty pottery bases so much, I wasn't sure I wanted to overpower them with a crazy patterned shade. I figured as long as I had the shade itself, I could monkey with it later if I changed my mind.

Each new shade cost $29, but shipping and handling was a little steep, so the total for each custom shade ended up $38. It was worth it to me.


And then of course I decided the white was too boring against pale walls and wanted to crazy it up. I ordered a yard of this African diamond fabric from Etsy. The pink will go with the parlor chairs, and I can't resist a geometric print.


I've read tutorials where you sew a sleeve and slip it over your shade. Or sew bias tape to the top and bottom of the shade before you adhere the fabric. Unfortunately sewing usually makes me want to throw my machine through a window, so I went the no-sew route and used Krylon Easy Tack repositionable adhesive (purchased at Michaels) and Aleene's Tacky Glue (purchased I forget where, but it's easy to find).


First I pulled off the trim from the top and bottom of the shade so the new fabric would lie flat.


Then I cut a piece of fabric to fit the shade, with about 3/4" extra at the top and bottom and roughly 3" extra width, which I planned to trim later. My shades are perfect cylinders so I cut a rectangle, but if you're working with a cone-shaped lamp, you'll need to cut an arc shape. Make a pattern by rolling your lamp across a large piece of paper (the back side of wrapping paper works), tracing the top and bottom edges with a pencil. Then add the extra for overlap and cut your fabric using the paper pattern as a guide.

I folded over 1/4" of fabric and pressed it along one of the short edges of my rectangle. This hides the raw edge where the fabric ends meet on the shade.


I sprayed the back side of the fabric lightly with the repositionable spray adhesive and rolled the lamp shade on it, making sure to keep the fabric's print lined up straight. If it started to go crooked, I peeled the fabric off and tried again. (This adhesive is wonderfully forgiving— you can do this over and over until it's perfect.) I cut off some of the excess overlapping fabric and smoothed down the seam.


I figured out how much fabric I wanted to wrap over the frame at the top and bottom of the shade, then trimmed off the excess there, too.


This shade has a spider fitting with spokes that intersect the shade, so I cut a slit to help the fabric fit over it.


I applied Aleene's Tacky Glue along the exposed fabric edge and wrapped it over the shade's rim.


This particular fabric doesn't ravel easily, so I left the edge raw, secured by glue. A lot of folks cover the edges with bias tape, or cut the fabric even with the rim of the shade and hot glue decorative trim along the edge, but I liked the simple, clean look with no trim. I'm super happy with how these turned out!


If you're not into fabric, here's another idea. Cut silhouettes, lettering, or a pattern out of vinyl contact paper and stick it inside the lampshade. It will magically appear when you turn the lamp on. You could change the shapes for holidays, amuse your kids with different silhouettes, or cut beautiful lacy patterns. (How removable the shapes are depends on the surface of your lamp and how you adhere them, obviously. Flammability also will vary!)