Illuminate your lamp shades

Hands-on time: Less than an hour for a large lampshade.
Total time: Add drying time.
Skill: Easy.
Cost estimate: Approximately $3.00 for the materials used to decorate a large lampshade (cost of lampshade not included).

Materials & Tools

• Newspapers
• A plain paper lampshade of any size, preferably in a light colour (This project is for matt or gloss paper types of lampshades; paints will bleed on fabric lampshades or on more fragile papers like rice-paper lampshades)
• Lint-free cloth
• Antiquing medium (I used the colour amber spice)
• Glaze
• Acrylic paints in 2 colours (I used the colours cashmere and straw)
• Small paint trays and stir sticks (to mix the paint with the glaze)
• Silver, gold or a darker colour of acrylic paint for contrasting splatter accents
• Old toothbrush with straight and even bristles (to make splatters)
• Paper towels
• Satin or matt varnish spray by Krylon

Conventional plain paper lampshades can be adapted to jazz up any décor in a few simple steps. The objective of this project is to simulate the look of handcrafted rice paper with a marbleized textured finish. This texturing ragging technique can be achieved in less than an hour. It's a lot less expensive than buying a new shade and you don't even need a paint brush. How simple is that! This is also a great way to cover defects in a shade, or to cover artwork done by children who draw on everything but paper, like mine did.

Cover your work area with newspapers. Simply dust the shade with a clean cloth, or to remove children's drawings, wipe with a mild cleaner (or a Mr.Clean magic eraser) and a damp cloth and let dry. The ragging technique will cover up hard to remove smudges, just apply similar tones to the lampshade.

Choose an antiquing medium colour and two paint colours in a similar hue to compliment the lampshade. Apply the antiquing medium as your base coat with a rag in a circular motion all around the shade even on the border trim, and wipe off with a clean rag again in a circular motion. Smudge more medium on and repeat this step if a darker look is desired. There is no need to let it dry, antiquing medium dries quickly and you want to blend it with the next two colours.

For the glaze and acrylic mixture use a ration of three parts glaze to one part acrylic mixture for each colour. Dab a cloth with the lighter colour mixture; remove excess paint on a blotter paper and apply it lightly and randomly in half-moon upward motion all around the shade. Be sure to apply the glaze going in the opposite direction of the antiquing medium frequently refolding the cloth and varying the broadness of the strokes. To soften any harsh edges, use a damp cloth to smudge and dab around the shade. Repeat the same process to apply the next colour glaze mixture and let stand for about 10 minutes.

To add splatter paint accents, apply silver paint to a toothbrush, at a distance of about 10 to 12 inches away flick the bristles horizontally to splatter over the shade; repeat until you have achieved the desired amount and effect all around the shade. Use the toothbrush to apply silver to the top and the bottom borders, the straight and even bristles make it a breeze, remove excess paint and brush on all around the edges.

To protect the newly created finish, spray it lightly with a satin or matt varnish spray, and let dry.

Put the lampshade back on the lamp base and with a simple click you will see the illuminating results.

Tips

• You can also incorporate other faux-finishes to a shade like faux leather, tortoise, to create a woven look use a comb or brush with the glaze mixture. You can also use a sponge instead of a rag or cloth to create unique texturing effects. For a dark colour shade use lighter colours or metallic paints to create a contrast. To alter fabric lampshades, I recommend you use fabric paints to prevent colour bleeding. Keep it simple for larger shades in order not to overpower your décor; decorative trimming accents work best on smaller shades.

Variations

Lampshades are so versatile and can easily be transformed to suit any style or décor:

• For a shabby-chic look why not try covering your lampshade with fabric prints or lace, trim with beads, fringe, satin cords or feathery trimmings, tassels, or appliqués.
• For modern shades incorporate gold, silver or copper leaf foils in geometric shapes.
• For pleated lampshades try incorporating small bamboo lengths in each of the pleats for a summer tropical look.
• For a rustic or country look try adding brown leather lacing or natural string in holes punched along the borders of the lampshade. Use stencils to trace designs onto a lampshade and cut the shapes out with an X-acto knife or with a piercing tool. Rubber stamps and wall paper borders also make interesting lampshade designs.
• Finally, for a fiesta look, incorporate pom-poms; yes they are back in style.