No Sew Ruffled Lampshade {Tutorial}

Do you have a REALLY ugly lampshade
that you're thinking about pitching in the garbage?

Don't do it!

You can totally save it, like the one I found in the attic
and used in Eva's room.





Or maybe you have plain lampshade and are thinking about
replacing it with something a little more chic.

Wait!

Save your Money!

You can totally give your lampshade a fresh new look
with very little time and effort!

Unfortunately, I did not take "In the Process" pictures.

It was just one of those things that I wasn't sure would work out.

But if you bear with me, I'll tell you exactly how I did it.

Believe me, SUPER EASY!

First, you're going to need a lampshade.  

Old...  New...  Doesn't matter.

You'd never know by looking at this one, 

but it had seen A LOT better days.

Like...  EWWWWW! 

Secondly, you're going to need about 15 or so strips of scrap fabric.  

I ripped the strips about an inch or so wide, as I needed them.

Start off at the top of the lampshade and glue the end of
your first strip of fabric at your starting point.

For the first two or three strips, 

do your best to try to get them to lay flat.  

They won't be completely flat, but try.  

In the end, it all works out.  

Put a dot of glue every inch or so.

Overlap your strips slightly.

When your strip ends, start another one, 

but fold the start of the strip under so it blends in 

once you start to make it look gathered.

For your 3rd or 4th strip, as you wrap the strip around the shade, you're going to begin to twist it just slightly 

so that is begins to gather up.

It's actually very similar to what you do 

when you make a fabric rosette, so if you've ever made those, 

you'll find this is a snap.

You just don't twist as much.  

You kind of fold the top of the strip over and twist it just a little bit.

Put a dab of glue at the end point of every twist, 

working your way around the shade...

Try to stagger where your twisting, 

so all the gathers don't wind up at the same place.

You do this until you reach about a 1/2 inch from the bottom.

It's the same concept as a fabric rosette...

Twist, turn the shade, glue.

When you get to the bottom, you're going to make your ruffle.

For you seamstresses out there, I'm sure it's a cinch to make a quick ruffle on your sewing machine.

However...

I don't sew and I confess I don't even have a sewing machine.

{Cue flashback of failing the sewing portion of Home Ec.}

For a non-sewer like me to achieve a ruffle, 

I just took a needle and thread, 

folded the strip of fabric accordion style, 

and threaded the thread through it.

It will take about triple of the length of the strip of fabric 

to be sure the ruffle goes all the way around.

My ruffle does not because I ran out of long pieces of fabric.

I just overlapped the edges and you can't even tell.

:D

Then, attach your ruffle just above where 

the bottom seam of the lampshade is located.

Next, you'll go back and repeat the steps 

of making the gathers above,  

to cover the top edge of the ruffle 

with another fabric strip.

Finish it off by gluing a piece of ribbon 

to the top seam of the lamp shade and that 

will cover the top edge of your first strip of fabric.

And that's it!

Done.

It took me about an hour - 

and only because it was a trial and error process.

Super easy once you get going, I promise! 

And better yet, it's a much cheaper alternative 

than trying to achieve the same look and buying 

an expensive one at the store!

And that, my friends, is why I love it.

Cheap, Easy, No Sew.

It's a triple win!

:D

P.S.  Recently, I had someone leave a comment asking how I had managed to transform Eva's bedroom for $40 when I listed the prices of what everything cost, which was obviously more than that.  Unfortunately, they were a No-Reply Commenter :(.  

So I thought I would clarify...  

Everything that is in Eva's room, I ALREADY OWNED.  Between the furniture that I have picked up at auctions and stuff I have stashed in the attic...  Believe me, I could open up my own 2nd hand store.  Some items I moved in from other rooms, I just painted them to match the scheme.  I made pert-near (There's my southern for ya!) everything on the walls - and if I didn't, believe me, it's been spray painted.  And I ALWAYS have a stash of paint and spray paint on hand.  The ONLY thing I bought specifically for her makeover was 1 Gallon of Primer and 1 Gallon of Floor Paint.  I realize this is not the normal case for everyone, but it really is possible to take what you have and use it in new ways.  :)

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

Just wanted to clear that up.  :)