Guest Post by Carolyn Mills...Super Easy Lamp Shade Makeover

Hello Everyone! I can't tell you how honored I am to be guest posting here at Brighton Cottage! Tricia and I thought a "How To Project" would be a nice way to kick things off. I offer you the "Super Easy Lamp Shade Makeover". This is a really simple, no-sew* 20-30 minute project. It is also easy to remove & re-do as your decorating tastes change.

Here is my current favorite...

The supplies you will need for this project are: Lampshade, Fabric of your choice, Spray Adhesive, Scissors, Fabric Glue or Hot Glue Gun, Clothespins or Binder Clips, Pins or Disappearing Ink Marker, Iron-on or Stencil of your choice and Trim of your choice.

Today I decided to use a little Ikea lampshade covered in painter's drop cloth with an iron-on monogram. Here we go...

Step 1: Measure your fabric. To do this I use a rather crude method of simply rolling my lampshade on the fabric making sure to keep at least 1" - 1.5" all the way around the top. Especially where the fabric overlaps. I have mistakenly cut the fabric too short many times.
Once you are happy with the top section, clip it in place and trim the bottom keeping the same allowance for folding under.

Step 2: Using your pins or disappearing ink marker, mark where you want to place your stencil or iron-on. Remove the fabric from the shade and work your creative magic :)

Step 3: Once your stencil or iron-on is done, using your spray adhesive, spray the shade and smooth your fabric in place making sure to keep your top & bottom allowances. This is the tedious part..spray.. smooth..spray..smooth..

Step 4: Using your fabric glue or hot glue, fold and glue the top and bottom allowances to the inside of the shade. clip as you go. I use small dabs of glue for this step which makes it is easier to remove the fabric to re-cover the shade later. Fold & glue the overlap seam. Let it dry.

Step 5: Using your fabric glue again, glue your trim in place. clip as you go. let it dry and...

Ta Da! A brand new lampshade! Aren't you crafty!!

*Quick Note: On the burlap shade above, I did a simple hand basting stitch around the top, bottom & overlap seam just to give it a more tailored look. You only notice if you look inside the shade and well...nobody should be looking up your lampshades :)

My most gracious Thanks to Tricia for inviting me to guest post! I am fairly new to blogging and have been so amazed by all of the incredible talent out there. Tricia has inspired me in so many ways and I cannot wait to see what 2010 has in store for Brighton Cottage.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this little project as much as I enjoyed sharing it.

Until next time...

-Carolyn