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The last week of October I embarked to South Carolina to spend eight wonderful days in the presence of my dearest friends. All of us flew in for a week long celebration of love, family and friendship. The occasion? A wedding of course! Traveling from Seattle, Chicago, Portland, Atlanta, Indianapolis, Madison, New York and even Poland, the wedding guests came in from around the globe to witness the union of a beloved couple: Natalie & Reid.
The bridal party arrived in Beaufort several days early to prepare for a grand task: Plan the ultimate eco-friendly, vegan and local wedding soiree. So in true DIY spirit, we spent hours crafting, consorting and conniving all in the name of throwing a handmade shindig for our two dearest friends.
Sometimes I get that itch to update things in my place – but I don’t want to be wasteful with my money or resources – so I’m always concocting new ways to make do with what I have.
Most recently I grew tired of the lampshade in our bedroom. It was a sweet embroidered lil’ thing, but the color was fading and the interior was cracking, giving it a not-so-cute shabbiness when turned on. So I rested on the idea of changing it up, allowing my mind to invent some potential ideas. What transpired turned out to be a subtle yet stunning piece that was given new life with a few pages of a vintage dictionary. Here’s how I did it:
1) Using the pages of an old crumbling dictionary (it was the same one I used for the Bibliophile Wreaths for Christmas) I tore out a good handful of pages and cut them into long 1″ slips.
2) Using a glue gun, I affixed each strip to the lampshade, overlapping each slightly. Also, I started on the bottom layer and then worked my way around to the top.
3) The final step is to cut any overly long and crooked strips so they align (not perfectly, but close enough) to all of the others. This will give the effect a more polished look.
And there you go – a quick, inexpensive, easy and eco-friendly way to give a lampshade a new look. You can experiment using other kinds of papers as well, or may even try fray-less fabrics. Once you create one you’ll be tempted to try your hand at more!
Do you have a suggestion on how to update a dull lampshade in your home? Share it in the comments!
Tis the season for cozying up your place for the holidays – and what better way to do it then with a little elbow grease and upcycled materials?!
One of my recent favorite DIY projects is making ultra modern wreaths using the pages of tattered books. These easy to make decor items add some cheer to your pad but are super easy to make! You can experiment with different colors and textures of book paper as well as shapes and designs for the wreath pattern. To see how I made my set of three take a peek at the Eco Etsy tutorial I created here.
Once you’ve tried your hand at them snap a pic and send me the link! I’d love to see how yours turn out.
