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How-to: Pleated Lampshade Redo

September 14, 2011 6 Comments

How-to: Pleated Lampshade Redo at Hands Occupied

Supplies

a conically-shaped lampshade
upholstery fabric
scissors
(optional) pinking shears
hot glue gun
sewing machine
straight pins
iron
tape measure

Directions

Carefully remove the cover from your old lampshade. This process will vary depending on the cover used, or if there’s a cover at all.

Cut your upholstery fabric. Measure around the bottom (wider end) of your lampshade using a tape measure. Measure the height of your lampshade from top to bottom. Your fabric should be the length of the circumference of the bottom of the lampshade plus an inch or so for seam allowance. The fabric’s width should be the height of the lampshade.

Begin pinning your fabric to the lampshade using one pin at the top and bottom. Pin fabric all the way around, pinning it every few inches on the bottom and every inch or so on the top, depending on how wide you want your pleats to be.

Using your fingers, flatten each wave in your fabric at the top (as shown) and pin it down. Lucky for me, my lampshade’s adhesive stayed every so slightly sticky despite removing the old cover. I still pinned each pleat, but they kind of stayed in place on their own. I think you could recreate this effect if you experimented with an adhesive spray before pinning on your fabric. Just a thought.

Using an iron on a low setting, iron directly on your lampshade to secure your pleats. At this point, I set aside my project for a few days, pins and all. When I set out to finish the lampshade, my pleats were set even more.

Next, remove the fabric from your lampshade, pinning your fabric to itself as you go. The fabric will look like a C or a half-moon when it lays flat.

Iron the fabric on a high setting. This will reduce the bulkiness of your lampshade once you’re ready to reattach the fabric cover.

Reattach your fabric to the lampshade using hot glue or a spray adhesive, being careful to keep it straight. I’d cut my fabric a little long, so I folded the end over and glued a little lip down to make the cover extra snug.

I used a little dab of hot glue at the top of each pleat as I removed the straight pins to lock them down.

I also gave the lampshade a once over with an iron on low to make sure everything stuck.

Cut two strips of your fabric, an inch-and-a-half wide. One strip should be the circumference of the top of your lampshade plus one inch, and the other should be the circumference of the bottom of your lampshade plus one inch.

Fold one half inch of your fabric and pin it to your ironing board, as shown. Iron it down. Then, fold in the other side, pin it to your ironing board, and iron that down as well. Sew the strip using a sewing machine. Repeat this process for the other strip of fabric.

Now, all you’ve got left to do is glue each strip to the top or bottom of your lampshade using hot glue. Tuck in and glue down the end to prevent fraying.

I love how this turned out. I was worried it was going to look too much like a cheerleading skirt, but I think it turned out all right!

Yes, my husband has a huge record collection (I buy craft supplies, he buys LPs. That’s the deal. ;)). And yes, the lamp pictured is a very old silver clarinet. It’s been in my family for years, and one of my grandparents made it for me. Stay tuned for more on the lamp in an upcoming edition of My Family’s Crafts. For now, check out how cool the lampshade looks with my no-sew valance at the top of this post.

Filed Under: How-to Tagged With: diy, hot glue, How-to, lampshade, pleats, Sewing

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad (she/her) is a craft book author & designer specializing in yarn crafts. Her work combines vintage and modern design elements, prioritizing color and graphic motifs. Her first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is out now.

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Comments

  1. Bianca Williams

    March 7, 2014 at 11:52 pm

    You did a really nice job. Thank you for the detailed pictures. :)

    Reply
  2. Carolyn

    April 13, 2014 at 6:50 pm

    I am trying to do the same thing to a lamp that I have. Unfortunately I am having a very difficult finding material to co-ordinate with the colors in my living room. I didn’t realize that the old plated cover was glued to another lamp shade underneath. I purchased some ribbon to go around the end of the old pleated shade but it requires more ribbon that I have on hand. Now if I could find some upholstery coordinating fabric I would be ready to complete the project….

    Reply
  3. Wendy

    November 6, 2015 at 5:01 am

    I just wanted to thank you for your tutorial on lampshades. I have searched and searched for a lampshade replacement and oh my goodness the prices. I have brought home two different shades only to return them. I came across your blog and thought Id give it a try. What did I have to lose?? Well I love it! Its in the pinned stages but I can’t wait to press it and glue it on in a few days!

    Reply
    • Heidi

      November 6, 2015 at 8:01 pm

      Wonderful! Glad you found this useful. :)

      Reply
  4. Sheri

    March 15, 2022 at 2:22 pm

    I really wanted to view this post, but the pictures quickly turned to ads before I was able to view them. This was very annoying.

    Reply
    • Heidi

      March 16, 2022 at 1:24 pm

      Oof, that’s a new ad type, and I agree it’s not ideal. I’ll email the robots at my ad network to get that kind of ad disabled. Thanks for the heads up. ✌️

      Reply

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Heidi Gustad from Hands Occupied / Craft Book Author and Knitting, Crochet, Latch Hook and Macrame Designer

Hi! I’m Heidi (she/her/hers), and I’ve been helping yarn crafters untangle various techniques on the internet since 2010. I got my start here, as a blogger, and since then I’ve shared more than a few tutorials here and on YouTube as I’ve grown as a pattern designer. 🧶 

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Heidi Gustad 🧶 knitting & yarn crafts

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Knitting & yarn crafts designer 🧶
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POV: Showing you how my new Bevelled Tank pattern POV: Showing you how my new Bevelled Tank pattern fits with no ease vs. 4” of positive ease. There’s a bit more length to the cotton (brighter color) sample, but both are cropped and feature shoulder seams designed to sit an inch back onto the shoulder instead of on top, giving it a little swing. Length is easily adjustable for folks looking for less of a crop. 
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Pattern: Bevelled Tank by @handsoccupied for @pompommag x @hobbii_yarn summer 2024. Available for free from Hobbii at the 🔗 in my profile.
Yarn pictured: @kelbournewoolens Skipper and Camper. 
Dress form is adjusted to a 36” chest and ~5’3”ish in height. 
Human has a 40” chest and is 5’5”.
Both skirts are vintage.
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#pompomxhobbiisummer2024 #handsoccupied #intarsia #handmade #knitting #colorwork
Let’s talk about fit and ease! . During the Beve Let’s talk about fit and ease!
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During the Bevelled Tank design process for @pompommag, I knit 2 samples using 2 different @KelbourneWoolens yarns. One was in Skipper (100% cotton, second photo) and the other was in Camper (100% 2 ply wool). The Skipper sample was knit for a 36” bust, which measures in at 40” with 4” of positive ease. And I knit the Camper Sample for my 40” bust with a 44” finished measurement. (BTW, I’m 5’5” for folks that find that measurement helpful in visualizing fit.)
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Based on the size chart for the Bevelled Tank, that means I knit one size 3 sample and one size 4. As designed, I conveniently fit a size 4 as intended with 4” of positive ease. When I wear the 3, there is no ease at all because the garment and my body are both 40” in size. Comparing the 2 garments, you can see how the fiber content (cotton vs. wool) and fit (no ease vs. 4” of positive ease) makes a difference in the look and feel of the finished garment. 
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These samples are a great way to compare what ease looks like on different bodies. While I can fit both a size 3 and 4, the garment with no ease feels more like pajamas or a bralette when I wear it. On the other hand, when I wear the one with 4” of positive ease, I feel comfortable enough to wear it to work, even as a crop top. Plus, it leaves me with enough room to layer it with a nice button down if I’m not feeling the cropped look one day. 
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I’m curious - how would you style this tank? Would you modify it with a few stockinette rows for added length? I’m so curious now that this pattern is finally out in the world. :) 
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#pompomxhobbiisummer2024 #bevelledtank #handsoccupied #knitting #intarisa #handmade #kelbournewoolens #croppedsweater #summerknits
After a 6 month hiatus, I am happy to say I’m ba After a 6 month hiatus, I am happy to say I’m back with a brand new pattern in 9 sizes, and it’s FREE as part of @pompommag x @hobbii_yarn’s summer design collection! (Link is in my bio.)
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In my December newsletter, I announced that I was soliciting test knitters for a pattern that had originally been selected for the summer ’24 issue of Pom Pom Quarterly magazine. However, the magazine ceased publication after its spring ’24 issue, leaving in-progress designs unpublished. (It happens.) As a result, I’d begun the long process of editing, testing, and photographing the pattern for independent release through the Hands Occupied pattern shop and Ravelry.
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Before I was done with that process, Pom Pom Quarterly’s former editors reached out with an exciting proposal for the pattern. Post-magazine, they’ve begun to partner with yarn companies to produce high quality pattern collections. They wanted to include designs from the would-be current issue of Pom Pom Quarterly in a new collection for Hobbii yarn, including my Bevelled Tank. I worked with the same technical editors I would have for the magazine on this one, and as you can see from the photos, Pom Pom’s team did an amazing job of styling the garment to the beautiful standards they’re known for.
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You can learn more about the pattern on my blog and get the free pattern from Hobbii yarn - links to both in my profile. I’ll post sizing info in the comments for quick reference too. 🧶
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#pompomxhobbiisummer2024 #knitting #intarsia #sponsored #colorworkknitting 
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Photos: @dianascarrunz 
Model: @angel.jade_
Here’s a nice throwback for you: my take on a vi Here’s a nice throwback for you: my take on a vintage knitting pattern from 1938 called the Fernlace Pullover. A pattern so nice, I knit it twice.
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Yellow version 💛: knit with Despondent Dyes’ Vintage Vixen Sport after attending a @squidneyknits vintage knitting retreat in 2019 & learning *so much*. Paired with a self-drafted circle skirt pattern. 
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Blue version 💙: knit with @eweeweyarns Ewe So Sporty in Sky Blue. Paired with the 1940s Boardwalk Duet sewing pattern from @decades_of_style 
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Head to my stories for 🔗🔗 to the handmade wardrobe blog posts I wrote about each take on the Fernlace Pullover, working with a vintage pattern, where to find vintage patterns (including the one I used), & some thoughts on sizing. 
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Image descriptions available in alt text. 
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#handsoccupied #handmadewardrobe #fernlacepullover #vintageknitting #vintageknittingpatterns #knitting_inspiration
Frogging is a word in the knitting world that mean Frogging is a word in the knitting world that means to rip out your knitting. It’s called frogging because frogs say “ribbit,” and when you’re tearing out your knitting, you will “rip it” out, and that sounds like ribbit. No really. 🐸 Did you know this fun fact? 
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P.S. I did like this design concept, but to make the pattern more knitter friendly as well as more wearable, I am making some tweaks to the construction. Excited to share when it’s ready! 🥰🧶
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Yarn: @blueskyfibers Woolstok North in Morning Frost & Highland Fleece 
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#handsoccupied #knitting #frogging #blueskyfibers #knittersofinstagram #blueskymakers #knittingvocabulary #bsfmakers #knitdesign
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