DIY Network

Lampshade Slipcovers Show your lamps in a new light. From "B. Original" episode DBOR-127

Make old lamps new again with help from Michele Beschen.

One of the best ways to change the look of a room is to change the light—but lamps and shades are expensive. You can get the exact look you want, inexpensively, thanks to Michele Beschen.

The B. Original host shows how to create slipcovers for cylindrical lampshades, giving them a new lease on life for just pennies. Michele Beschen uses stretchy knit fabric to give these "tube top" slipcovers a nice, snug fit. A little sewing and trim later, and the lamps have a whole new look!

Scroll down for her easy how-to.

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	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C

Lampshade Slipcovers

• Using a fabric tape measure, measure the top of the shade you want to re-cover (figure A). Add an inch for a seam allowance.

• Also measure the height of the shade and add an inch for a seam allowance.

• Before you cut the fabric, take a good look at how it stretches. You want your stretch to go around the shade horizontally, not vertically.

• Cut your fabric to measurement around the shade and pin for the seam. Fold the fabric so it is straight, and make sure the pattern (if any) lines up straight. Don't worry about the height of the shade; you'll be cutting it to length later.

• Fold the fabric so right sides are together, make sure the pattern still lines up and sew the ends together using a straight stitch with a seam about 1/2" wide. Turn the fabric right-side out.

• Making sure your pattern stays lined up, measure the length of the fabric and trim it down to the length of the shade plus an inch for a seam allowance. Because this fabric is stretchy, your measurements don’t have to be perfect.

• Slip the fabric slipcover over the shade and line up the seam of the lampshade with the seam on the slipcover (figure B). The slipcover should fit snugly, but not so tight that the fabric puckers.

• Finish the slipcover and cover up the raw fabric edge: Using fabric tack glue or hot glue, adhere the fabric over the top lip of the shade (figure C). Don't pull up on the fabric as you wrap it over the top of the shade. Let the glue dry, then add trim along the top of the shade. Be careful not to get any glue down below the lip of the shade; it will show through when the light is on.

• Repeat the process for the bottom of the shade.

• You can also mix up fabric for these slipcovers, giving the final shade a striped effect.
  

  
  

  ALSO IN THIS EPISODE:
  	Gourd Lamp
  	Tomato Cage Lights
  	Lampshade Slipcovers
  	Recycle Light Bulbs