Feeling Lampish

Well, this weekend has turned very lampish and it's only Saturday!  As you may have gathered by now I have a severe lamp problem.  Is it really a problem?  I guess that depends on who you ask.  Most folk would say "yes, it's time for an intervention".  So, without further hesitation here is the haul from the last two days....

 

 

The first find is the gold TV lamp.  This little gem was filthy when I found it yesterday at a garage sale.  I LOVE that it has a built-in planter!  I paid $1 for it and giggled when I saw that it is stamped '24K Gold' on the bottom.  It cleaned up well, shining so bright now.  I can't wait to get some fake greenery in it!  I rewired the lamp but will need to tweak it a bit as the shade doesn't want to sit straight.  I'm thinking a cardboard washer may do the trick.

 

 

 

Lamp #2 was purchased this morning at the local American Legion Hall.  They were having a rummage sale fundraiser for the veterans programs.  I spotted it right when I walked in the door just sitting on the floor. I wasn't super in love with it, more of a strong like.  It has jewels embedded in the porcelain base and I don't have any jeweled lamps yet.  At $9 it was a little bit more then what I wanted to spend on it.  However, it was raising funds for a good cause and this is where the problem comes in...I needed to 'save' it.  Do I have room for it in my house?  No.  Did I already have a shade for it?  Yes (I have a small pile of lamp shades laying around the house).  So off I went with it.

 

The base was in poor shape with corrosion and rust.  After some quality time with some #0000 steel wool and a can of gold spray paint it was looking pretty good.  The black jeweled base sparkles after a good scrubbing.  I rewired the lamp and added a vintage shade. 

 

The final lamp I actually picked up a few weeks ago at an estate sale in Minnesota.  A beautiful little black cat lamp with a planter!  I paid $5, which I thought was a steal.  I added it to my little lamp rejuvenation party today giving it a good cleaning and new wiring.  The shade was in my lonely shade collection.  I've been looking for the perfect base for the pale pink venetian lamp shade.  I think they look fantastic together! 



 

We all have our "things".  For some folks its jewelry or purses.  For me it's lamps, lots and lots of lamps.  What's your weakness?  Do you have any collections?

 

'Til we meet again,

Ms Adventure

 

 

DIY "Retro" Lamp Shade

Earlier this year I picked up a great vintage lamp sans shade.  As you all know, vintage lamps are my Achilles heel.  This beauty depicts an Asian boy and girl on a boat.  I originally wanted a red venetian lamp shade but was unable to find one at a price I was willing to pay.  So it was time to get creative. 




I hit the local Target store and picked up a rectangle shade that would compliment the lamp nicely.  I think I paid about $12 for it.  Nice shape but boring, boring, boring.











I happened to have some vintage bark cloth curtains at home that I've been planning to make pillows out of for some time.  I picked them up at a local antique shop last year.  I love the colors and the pattern looks to be an oriental bonsai motif.



Step 1:  Wash and iron fabric.

Step 2:  Cut fabric for each side of the shade.  If using a drum shade you can cut one piece to cover the entire shade.  If the top of the shade is tapered then your fabric will end up more of a 'C' shape.                                                      Step 3:  Attach the fabric to the shade using spray adhesive.  Follow the directions on the can.

Step 4:  Attach bias tape to cover the edge of the fabric that was folded over the inside of the lamp shade.  This will give your shade a clean, finished look.  I used a product called Liquid Stitch to secure the bias tape.

 

Oooooh, doesn't that look nice!

 

Step 5:  Lastly, I added great chartreuse trim to cover the seams where the fabric meets at the corners of the shade.  I used Liquid Stitch to attatch the trim.

 

So overall, I ended up spending about $25 for the shade and all of the fabric, trim, bias tape and adhesives.  I think it turned quite stunning for a quick weekend project.

 

 

'Til we meet again,

Ms. Adventure

From Drab to Fab!

While thrifting with my friend Sam last week, I picked up a poor lonely lamp.  It was sadly neglected after being painted entirely black years ago.  It had been sitting in a local antique shop for quite a while.  The owner was anxious to get rid of it and offered it to me for a song.

You'll have to excuse my pictures.  I am having a difficult time with finding a new photo editor!

First, I cleaned the lamp really well and boy was it dirty!  Next I applied spackle the chiped areas and sanded smooth after it had dried.  A few quick coats of paint followed by some new wiring and voila!

'Til we meet again,

Ms. Adventure

In the genes perhaps?

The other night I was going through old photos while making a picture book for my Grandmas birthday.  Shhhhhh....don't tell her.  It's a surprise.  I was pleasantly surprised to come across this photo

Check out that lamp!

I am not sure why my grandmother (in the blus dress) looks horrified.  Surely it's not because of the lamp.  If I had to guess, I would say that my father or one of my uncles had just done something truely inappropriate!

Indeed, they appear to be up to no good!  From L to R, Uncle Mark, my father and Uncle George.

I suspect these photos are from 1956. 

'Till we meet again

Ms. Adventure

Wild Wednesday adventure!

So I decided to take the day off of work.  I have been desperately trying to cut down on the amount of time I spend at my job.  My plan for today was to get my oil changed, clean my car, get equipment ready for a beekeeping class I am doing tomorrow, go to the bank, etc, etc... 

Well, while waiting to get my oil changed I realized it was indeed Wednesday, a fact I knew but had not had the "Aha!  It's Wednesday!"  moment yet.  What's so special about Wednesday you ask?  My friend Samantha (read her blog here) and I have been trying to go to this antique store in the middle of nowhere all winter.  Their winter hours are Wednesday 11a-1p.  Hello, two hours in the middle of the week??  Needless to say, when I realized it was Wednesday it was 10:40am and I just had to start my trek.  The store is about 40 minutes from where I was.  I immediately texted Samantha.  She texted back something about working.  What?!  So I did what any good friend would do.  I went without her.

The store is not heated and actually occupies two buildings, the old bank and an old 7-Up distributor.  The town it is in most likely has a population somewhere around 400-700 people.  I didn't find too much in the old bank so I headed next door to the soda garage. 

I spotted what would become Daddy-O's birthday gift.  Even though his birthday isn't until June, I just had to buy it.

Daddy -O has always wanted a floor globe.  This one is fantastic with its smart mid century design.  It lights up too!  Bonus!  Because as I will fully admit, I have a lamp addiction.  The only major flaw is a crack that runs through Africa.  My plan is to try to glue it from the inside to stabilize it.  I may try to apply some touch up paint to the exterior to minimize the crack.  It's really only noticeable when the light is on.

   The soda garage is two floors, so after careful inspection of the items on the lower level, I headed upstairs.  There were no lights in the garage but many windows including a large (6ftX5ft) opening in the side wall that has no glass.  It is literally open to the elements!  The upper floor is somewhat "L" shaped.  When I came around the corner and nearly fell over.  This is what I saw...

The proprietor of the store was right behind me and I think I did a very good job of containing my enthusiasm.  I said flatly, "Wow.  Those are big AND purple".  He immediately dropped the price by 30%.  He said he was told by the dealer he got them from that they would be "hot" in Chicago.  Well, the upper peninsula of Michigan is a long way from Chicago and they have been sitting there for what sounds like several years.  In an unheated garage, unprotected, 20 feet from the  outside world.

The lamps were made by Reglor in 1953.

I just brought them home and plugged them in.  I haven't cleaned them yet.  Boy are they dusty!  They are very large measuring 35" from base to finial.  The shades measure 22.5" at their widest point.

There is a small chip in the bottom of the male lamp and two small areas of paint loss.  The female lamp has a small hole under her left arm.  The dark purple paint on the faces is cracking and needs repainting.  The shades have some small spots on the underside but otherwise are in fantastic condition. 

I hope I can do as nice a job as Hepcat.  He has restored some fabulous finds and is kind enough to detail his work in his blog.  Thanks Hepcat!