Neutral Bespoke Lampshade
As 2021 comes to an end, I’m definitely reflecting on another interesting year(!). My year has been a bit up and down, but with lots of happiness along the way. I’ve done lots with A Crafty Den, and yet I always feel there is more than I could have done or is still left to do. That’s just life!
One of my favourite parts of A Crafty Den is when my customers send me their own fabric and I transform it into a lampshade. I love it because it feels like the fabric is part of a story, or a customer’s life, and I get to bring that to life in my own, simple way. As with all good news stories, there are times where it doesn’t go well. This happened when a customer wanted me to make two new lampshades using her own fabric - which I loved doing - and then the courier service I use (98% reliable) lost the parcel. Normally, if something like this happens - which is SO frustrating because it’s the only part of the process completely out of my control - I do what I can to resolve it for my customer. This usually involves making a new lampshade at my own expense. When a customer sends me their own fabric (of a finite length) however, this is impossible. This was honestly the biggest low/disappointment of ACD 2021 for me, but these things happen and we have to move on.
Now, less of the doom and gloom, and on to more positive Bespoke lampshade stories! Someone local to me in Cheltenham learned of my lampshade making business and she was very excited at the prospect of me re-covering/making a new lampshade to replace an existing one. The lamp base was really personal and important to her as her father brought it back from Kashmir post-war, and it’s a truly ornate and exquisite base.
The lampshade on the other hand was not in a good state! When it was handed to me, it was held together with tape and paper clips! Well, I can only improve this situation, I thought to myself. She wanted a similarly neutral fabric and a matching trim at the top and bottom of the lampshade itself. Off I set to my local treasure trove of a fabric shop, and soon found a good quality neutral fabric and a simple neutral trim.
The lampshade was a tapered design which normally I don’t make because it requires specific templates, however, I was able to use the existing lampshade as a template and the existing ringset to recreate the lampshade. It was a real joy to create something that will sit atop a piece of someone’s personal history - and now the lampshade is befitting of the beautiful lamp base that it sits atop!
