You may recall that I recently attempted to make a lampshade for my newly acquired vintage lamp.

The only problem was that the I ended up with a lovely “shabby chic” lamp, and no offense, but that’s just not my style.

So, I thought about painting the shade. Free hand? Not talented enough. Plus, it would take far longer than the one hour I allot to most projects of this nature. I thought about using stencils, but just imagined what a mess I could make of my $29.99 lamp shade, from Lamps Plus. So I went down the path of least resistance, using painter’s tape to create vertical stripes.

I like a project that calls for very few tools. Besides the all purpose spray paint from the hardware store, you’ll need painters tape in any width you like, scissors and a drop cloth.

Make sure the tape is spread equal distance around the lamp and that the lines are straight up and down. Place the taped shade on a clean drop cloth in the shade, (no pun intended) shake the can well, to mix the paint and spray the shade evenly from a 6-8″ distance. After one light coat, allow the shade to dry for at least 30 minutes, before applying a second coat of paint.

I won’t turn the lamp back on until it’s completely dry tomorrow. I love stripes and it livens up the guest room a bit, don’t you think?

Plain or striped, enjoy the day!