Ruffled Lamp

There hasn't been much to post the past couple of weeks. Life has been busy and even though I have still been working on things here and there, it has been one of those lulls in my creativity. I have had a couple of project flops, or haven't been able to complete projects to the point where I want to post them. But then last night I had an idea of something that I could work on today. The stars aligned, I was able to run the errands I needed for supplies, I ignored my messy kitchen, and my project actually worked out, so here is the rundown. 

I had wanted to find a drum lamp shade for the lamp in Baby Girl's room, but I didn't really want to pay $15 for it, which is what I had found it for. About a month ago at a thrift store, I found this shade. 

For the $2 price tag, I was more than willing to look past the design because I already knew what I wanted to do with it. Bug was sad that I wanted to cover it because she really liked the stars on it, but I convinced her that I could make it even more fancy, so she said I could cover it. I had seen a cool tutorial on The 36th Avenue where Desiree had covered a lampshade in variegated yarn to create a striped look. I loved it and wanted to try it.

My attempt was not my favorite. Part of it could have been the lamp. Maybe if I had a bulkier lamp, I would have liked the shade better, but I was frustrated that it didn't turn out and so it just sat for a month.

Then last night I had an epiphany. I found an old glass and brass lamp last year for Bug's room. I had always intended to spray paint the brass part white, but ended up really liking the vintage feel that the lamp had. So, I decided to try and see if I could find a similar lamp and cover the shade in something besides the yarn. I found this little lamp for $5 today, and decided to go for Makeover Round 2. I really like the shape of the lamp and the glass part, but it was just a little bit too shiny brassy for me. I still wanted a brassy look, so instead of painting it, I decided to use glaze instead.

I lightly sanded to try and get the glaze to adhere better, and then wiped it down.

I ended up using a combination of these two glazes. I loved the gold one, but it was just a little bit too subtle on its own. Combined with the antiquing glaze, it worked perfectly to tone down the brass, but still leave the vintage feel. 

This is what it looked like after two coats of glaze.

I actually chose something more "girly" than I normally would for the lamp shade. I bought pre-ruffled satin ribbon and glued it on in layers. I asked Bug what she thought of it, and she told me that it looked like a "swirly twirly princess dress," which is a huge compliment coming from her.

This is what it looks like in the nursery. I am really happy with how it turned out. I like the size and shape of this lamp better than the one that used to be there. It is also another project to cross off the list for updating the nursery for Baby Girl. I am hoping that my project rut is over and that this lamp turning out today is the start of another streak of successful projects. I guess I can hope. :)

-Mandi


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