|
Lamp Shades Aglow
 |
|
Creative
embroiderers love to add their
stitches to everything. Unless it's
moving faster than we are, we'll try
to embellish it.
This trait is demonstrated fully in
this tutorial. Let your talent shine
with custom-made lampshades!
This will put the craft of
embroidery in a whole new light.
Read on to see how it's done!
|
|
|
|
|
It sounds basic, but start
with a lamp. I found two at Target: one is a lamp with a
traditional shape to its shade, and one is a more
contemporary box lamp. Once you have found the lamp that
you like, gather the supplies to make a custom fabric
shade.
|
 |
Supplies
Needed:
**Thin woven fabric
(muslin is an excellent choice. The
amount varies depending on the size
of your shade
**Water
soluble stabilizer
(I prefer Vilene)
**Temporary
spray adhesive
**Air-erase
pen
**Large
piece of paper or tag board
**Fabric
glue
**Craft
knife
**Clothespins
**Tape
measure
|
|
|
|
Lampshades are usually made of
paper, and I'm going to replace
that paper with embroidered
fabric.
I made a pattern piece by
tracing the original shade.
First, I'll demonstrate this
using the traditional
cone-shaped shade.
Place the shade, seam side
down and the shade upright, on
the left side of a large piece
of paper or tag board. Mark the
paper at the top and bottom of
the seam.
|
|
|
|
Then, roll the shade to the
right and trace as you go. Stop
when you reach the seam again.
Return the shade back to where you
started aligning it with the
original seam marks and trace the
top of the shade just as you did the
bottom.
|
|
|
|
Draw lines connecting the ends
of the traced lines.
For a seam allowance, measure
and mark 1/2" out along each short
end and one inch out along the top
and bottom edges. Draw lines
connecting the marks.
|
|
|
|
Next, plan where to position the
designs. I'm added four designs to
the shade, so I divided the area
into four quadrants.
|
|
|
Measure in between the two top
corners and divide by two, mark the
paper along the top edge and then
draw a vertical line down from the
mark. Next, measure in between the
center line you just drew and each
top corner. Divide by two and mark
the paper along the top edge. Then,
measure in between the center line
and each bottom corner. Divide by
two and mark the paper along the
bottom edge. Draw lines
connecting the top and bottom marks. |
|
|
Lay the pattern piece on the
fabric. Pin in place, and using an
air-erase pen or other marking tool,
trace the shape.
Mark the
fabric at each segment line along
the top and bottom of the pattern.
|
|
|
|
Remove the pattern and draw
lines connecting the segment line
marks.
To get the proper positioning, I've
made paper templates of the designs.
See these
handy instructions for more
information about making and using
templates.
|
|
|
Position the templates on the fabric
in between the lines - leave at
least one inch of space between the
edges of the designs and the lines.
Also, leave at least 1 1/2" of space
between the edges of the designs and
the top, bottom, and side edges of
the fabric. Poke holes in the center
of the templates and mark the
fabric. Mark the horizontal
and vertical axis points. Remove the
templates and draw lines connecting
the marks. |
|
|
Spray a piece of water-soluble
stabilizer (I use Vilene) with a quick shot of
temporary adhesive. Smooth the
fabric on top and hoop the fabric
and stabilizer together by aligning
the marks on the hoop with the lines
on the fabric. Attach the hoop to
the machine and load the first
design.
Move the hoop so that the
needle is aligned with the center
point on the fabric. Embroider the
design. When the design has
finished, repeat the hooping and
embroidering process for each of the
designs.
|
|
|
|
When all the designs have completed,
trim away the excess
stabilizer on the backside of the
embroidery.
Cut out the shape. Remove the stabilizer
according to package instructions.
|
|
|
After removing the stabilizer, blot the
fabric with a towel or paper towels
and allow it to air dry. Press
the fabric to remove any
wrinkles. You may use a bit of
starch if you wish. Trim any
long stitches from the backside of
the embroidery. |
|
|
In this photo I'm making where I'll
cut the shade. My intent is to leave
strips of the original shade behind
to support the fabric and keep the
shade's shape.
Measure and mark
1/2" out from the seam along each
side at the top and bottom of the
shade. Then, draw lines connecting
the marks. Next, mark the shade at
the top and bottom at the opposite
side from the seam (the front side).
Mark this side of the shade just as
you did the seamed side.
|
|
|
Using
a tape measure, measure and mark the
shade at the top and the bottom half
way around in both directions in
between the seam and the marks you
just made at the front. Then, mark
the shade along the sides just as
you did the seamed side and the
front side. |
|
|
Using a craft knife, cut
along the outer lines and just under
the top wire and just over the
bottom wire - leaving four one inch
wide strips remaining.
|
|
 |
To
prepare the back piece, lay the embroidered fabric piece
on top of the fabric, right sides together, pin in
place, and sew a 1/2" seam along the top and bottom
edges only - leave the ends open for turning. Then, make
slits in the seam allowances about every 1/2". Turn the
fabric right side out and press the seams with an iron.
Top stitch a 1/2" seam along the top and bottom edges
only.
|
|
|
Next, align the short ends
together with the right sides
together, pin in place, and sew
a 1/2" seam along the pinned
edge only.
|
|
|
|
Place the shade onto the lamp.
Then, turn the cover right side
out and place it over the shade
- align the seam of the cover
with the seam of the shade. Wrap
1/2" of the top edge of the
cover over the top edge of the
shade and using fabric glue,
glue the cover in place. You can
use clothes pins to hold the
fabric in place as the glue
dries. Next, flip the lamp over
with the top of the shade laying
flat. Pull the fabric tight, and
fold the bottom edge of the
cover over 1/2" and glue it in
place along the bottom edge of
the shade.
|
|
|
|
And here is the result! A
custom-crafted lamp shade.
There's no better way to
coordinate with your home decor
- and show your skill and
prowess with the embroidery
machine.
|
|
|
|
Next I worked with a square
shade to see how the process
differed.
I skipped the paper pattern and
traced the shape directly onto
the fabric.
|
|
|
Lay
the shade directly onto the
fabric (at the left side of the
fabric) and trace the first
side. Then, roll the shade to
the right and trace the next
side. Repeat this for each of
the four sides. Then, measure
and mark 1/2" out along each
short end and one inch out along
the top and bottom edges. Draw
lines connecting the
marks. There is no need to mark
the four segment lines for the
designs, as the sections are already drawn.
Mark the templates,
embroider the designs, and
assemble the cover as instructed
earlier. |
|
|
To prepare the shade, measure
and mark 1/2" out from each top
and bottom corner. Draw lines
connecting the marks and cut the
shade along the lines and just
under the top wire and just over
the bottom wire - leaving the
corners of the shade remaining.
Add the cover to the shade as
instructed earlier. Light up
your shade and you are done!
|
|
|
|
Stitcher Debra showed us
pictures of lampshades that she
has been making. She used the
Eiffel Tower Toile design,
and the
Inky Cat. Both are terrific
choices for this project.
Beautiful work, Debra, and thank
you for sharing photos of your
work!
|
|
|
|