8 Stylish Lampshade Resources
A good lampshade is hard to find. A great one can transform a lamp and, possibly, an entire room. Here are six resources I particularly like.
1. Gracious Home
This company, Gracious Home, offers a wide variety of chandelier or sconce shades. Their feathered versions are unique.
2. Lit Shades
Dawn Bassett makes bespoke shades in her own shop, Lit. Read my interview with Dawn and find out how she does it, plus some tips on how to choose the proper shade. You can order from her online, too.
3. Vaughan
Interesting pleated shades are beautiful and hard to find. No longer! Vaughan has a wide variety of pleated options, as well as “normal” shades. You can also choose a variety of trims and fabrics.
4. Hannah Nunn
Esty lampshade artist, Hannah Nunn, makes the shade and the lamp. My faves are the party shades custom made with your name or holiday.
5. Jocelyn Warner
Likewise, Jocelyn Warner sells a tripod lamp along with her shades, which are crafted from her line of wallpapers.
6. Ashling Rustics
Here in Michigan, many people summer in the upper mart of our mitton. It’s called going “up north.” These styles from Ashling would be popular there. They also offer a southwestern styles.
7. Alluminare
I’m always writing about Alluminare. I’ve become friends with their owner – even though she lives in Hawaii and we’ve never met in real life. (I love the Internet.) Her company has grown remarkably from its birth at her kitchen table. I admire her gumption. They sell ready made shades. But the best thing is you can create your own with the pattern, style and color that’s all your own.
8. Porta Romana
If you want a sophisticated shade, Porta Romana is the place to go. Origiinally only in the UK, they now have trade locations in the US.
Interview with LitShades’ Dawn Bassett
Lampshades are important. They spell the difference between a ho-hum lamp and one that looks beautiful when lit. A good one, one that starts with a good quality fabric, is amazingly hard to find. Lampshade designer and fabricator, Dawn Bassett, feels my pain. Dawn is the owner of LiT, a Seattle shop devoted to the creation of beautiful lampshades.
Dawn became interested in making lampshades while working as an interior designer. The lack of interesting options caught her attention. She knew she could make something better and so LiT was born. Dawn creates ready-made and custom shades. We recently had a chat about her craft. Here’s what Dawn had to say.
DH: I often find the shades on lamps in shops are pretty inferior. What are your thoughts?
DB: Generally, they’re just not well made. First, they’re smaller than I recommend for the size of the lamp. And the sizes are too limited. They’re tapered or conical shaped, which makes them stackable and less expensive to ship. Sometimes conical is okay. But often a different shape, such as round, would suit the lamp’s style better.
Another problem is that the average shade is made using cheap materials. They use plastic backing and paper tape at the top and bottom. The fabrics are poly-rayon blends instead of silk or linen. Also, “hand-sewn” shades often aren’t really hand-sewn. They’re held together with rubberized glue.
DH: With so many people shopping on-line, what advice would you give shade shoppers?
DB: When shopping for a shade, measure the lamp first. For a tapered shade, I¬†stick to 3/4 of the lamp’s height¬†with a¬†bottom diameter twice that of the lamp base.¬†For a drum shade, go between 13 – 15″ diameter and between 9 – 11″ in height for a mid-sized table lamp.¬† These are very subjective guidelines, but I hope they help.
DH: Are there any lampshade guidelines?
DB: What I like people to be aware of is that a lampshade is a functional object. Pay attention to the size and material of the shade to determine how much and what color of light will be diffused.  One other pointer is to buy a harp or a shade extender to make sure the shade fits the lamp correctly.
DH: How can a shade be spruced up on the cheap, i.e.: DIY?
