Dining light update

Here is a quick DIY fix to recover your lampshades!

It's no secret that I have a thing for black and white...

It is classy and it is always in style... and browns/beiges remind me of dirt and poop.  But that's my opinion. Just saying'.

I don't think I have ever shown you my little intimate dining area right off of the kitchen. 

Well, here she is!

The folks who owned the house before us had the weirdest light up there above the table... It was a little Ikea strip light that you'd expect to sees showcasing artwork. So we went to Ikea and my lovely mother purchased this chandelier for us shortly after we moved in. I thought the top of the light (where it meets the ceiling) looked kinda weird so we affixed a light medallion that I have had for years just waiting to use.

These lampshades are perfect for the space, but they were starting to look too plain, and even a little dingy so every time I walked by them they started to bug me. And considering all of the time that I spend in the downstairs of our home, I was basically bugged by these lights all of the time.

Time for an update! Bye-bye plain looking shades, you're getting a face lift!

One more before shot with the lights on:

 I found this Black and white fabric at Ikea, I loved the big writing and thought it was cool that it was numbers. Since we do constantly walk through this area and see these lights, I feel they should inspire me. I feel everything should inspire me really. 

The numbers on those shades will remind me of the number of ways we are blessed and the multitude of things that we have to be grateful for.

Since I didn't want the number words to be diagonal, I laid the fabric over my shade with the word straight and then basically cut around the fabric leaving excess around the edges for tucking...

Here is what it looked like: 

I used this first one as a template and cut out the rest.

(BTW: I can think of a million other projects I'd like to do with this black and white fabric!)

The wrapping was pretty tough. I sat there with my iron to make crisp & clean seams that lined up with the seams already on the shades. 

I used fabritac glue (my favorite fabric glue) only on the seam and the part of the fabric that tucks under/over the shade since I know that it can show through the fabric. I recommend playing with this glue and some fabric beforehand to test it out and get comfortable with it. 

There is a little lip on the inside of these shades that I was able to use my fingernail and tuck the edges of this fabric into. No need to cover raw edges!!

The frustration factor of this project was a solid 9 out of 10, but it only took about 2.5 hours total. 

And once it was done our light looks amazing, so I really can't complain!

After shot!

And with the lights on!

I love our little dining area.

The table (has 2 leaf inserts, only one installed) is from Craigslist $25, the buffet/desk from Craigslist $free, and the chairs from Goodwill $8/each painted and recovered by yours truly! 

Life happens one project at a time!