Thursday, May 6, 2010

a lamp shade goes time traveling.

in my previous post, i introduced you to this drum lampshade that i fell in love with and inspired the shade decision for my new bedside lamps.

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i didn't end up using this shade because i couldn't find a matching one, but i loved it so much, i didn't want to abandon it. i had a great lamp in my office at work and ended up bringing it home. i love this lamp. i got it for a steal on clearance at target, so the price was right, plus i love the hammered silver finish. anything silver gets me going. once i finished my bedside lamps, it occurred to me that the original drum shade could look great with the silver lamp, if i could bring it into the 21st century.

so, here's the lamp that i looooooove. isn't she a beauty?

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after all the work that went into recovering my other drum shades, i decided to try and go as simple as possible this time. the shape of my shade was fantastic, but the color was dated and aged in a bad, bad way. strangely, bringing it into the 21st century actually involved taking it back a decade or two with paint! i decided to paint it a beautiful pale aqua. i knew it would look great with the silver, i knew it would go with my color palette, and most importantly, i knew it would be easy!

the color i used is krylon's blue ocean breeze. it looks like a great retro aqua that you might see on a 50's stove, or countertop, or even car!



i masked off the hardware of the shade, because it was already silver. who knew that the 60's or 70's would have it right, while the 2010's still go with vile brass?? then i spray painted it, inside and out. no primer this time, because i didn't think it needed it, and because i was lazy and wanted it done quick. the inside took the color very easily, because it was shiny (and possibly plastic, but maybe a coated paper instead?), but the outside, since it was paper, took a lot of coats to cover. it soaked up the paint like crazy. even though it was a gloss paint, the outside of the shade is very matte, given that it is paper and soaked up the paint.

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in hindsight, i probably should have primed the inside of the shade with a plastic/high adhesion primer, since it could be plastic, but i didn't think about it. it won't get touched often, so hopefully it won't be an issue.

also, i am using a fluorescent bulb in this lamp for 3 reasons: 1, since i painted the inside of the shade, i wanted to go with the cooler running temperature of fluorescent (as opposed to traditional tungsten) so that the paint wouldn't melt or give off an odor or VOCs. 2, this particular bulb (a daylight bulb) gives off a sort of bluish cast, which i thought would look nice with the aqua of the shade. and 3, and most importantly, i already had that bulb in the lamp. ;)

here's the finished product. i'm in love with it. it sits on a series of cube book cases from ikea, at the entrance to my bedroom and its light and color are so soothing and beautiful.

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i love how the color of the shade looks with the insulator's aqua and the aqua of the bird vase.

(in the background you can see the abacus i made (to help me count in my knitting and crochet) from hobby lobby wood supplies, craft paint, clear satin spray paint and hot glue. it's a little "crafty" but i like it. next time i'm spray painting everything for a smoother look and going glossy all the way.)

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