2 lamps upcycled with Japanese fabric

On our trip to Japan in October this year I managed to source some beautiful Japanese fabric. Here are the two lamps that I have upcycled using this fabric.

The first lamp is called Hatome Oriental lamp. I had this vintage wooden lamp base for some time and have been looking for the right fabric to go with it. When I finally saw this wonderful thick cotton fabric in Tokyo I knew it would be perfect for the lampshade. I added some decorative cotton trimming to the edges for an additional visual impact.

 

I love the combination of red and turquoise, don't you? It is so uplifting.

The second lamp is called Hatome Happy Lamp. It has off-white vintage wooden base which originates from the 1970s. I upcycled the lampshade with this colorful cotton fabric which I could not resist when I saw it in Tokyo. It makes me smile every time I look at it.

It seemed appropriate to finish this lamp with red pompoms so that nobody has any doubts about how serious it is ;)

For the details of the lamps click on the Hatome shop link in the top right corner of this blog.

Love
Yolanta

2 lamps upcycled with Japanese fabric

Two Hatome lamps with distinctive personalities

As Winter approaches and the world descends into darkness (at least in Northern Hemisphere), good sources of additional light at home become more and more important, to safeguard us from Winter blues.

Here are two lamps I recently created. I try to give distinctive personality to each of my Hatome lamps.
This one is bold, colorful, brave. I called it Hatome Fantasy Lamp. It has an original 1970s lamp base and I recovered the lampshade with the vintage 1970s fabric.

I finished it with some very fancy decorative trimmings for visual impact. Little glass beads catch and reflect the light when the lamp is switched on and it looks really pretty.

The second lamp is called Geometric Retro Chic Lamp. This lamp is elegant, chic and warm. It has the original 1960s/70s brown ceramic base. I recovered the lampshade with a beautiful 1960s/70s vintage fabric.

If you would like to see more, go to my Hatome shop on Etsy.

Thank you for visiting this blog.
Yolanta

Two Hatome lamps with distinctive personalities

Winter blues

It is so cold today. Not below zero yet, but close, the winter is approaching fast. I have been working on the new lamp, in blue color, how suitable for this time of year. This is the story of the lamp:

Last weekend D and I went to Rayleigh, a small town in Essex, where he gets his hair cut every month. While he chats to his hairdresser about music, I use this time to rummage in the second hand shops for the materials for my Hatome lamps. This time I found a treasure:  1960s/70s blue glass lamp base, a Mid Century Ikea classic. I was so pleased with it, especially when next day I found the ideal fabric for re-covering the lampshade. Because next day we went to the Vintage Fashion and Accessories Fair in Hitchin, Herts and I bought this beautiful 1970s linen tablecloth featuring blue and purple flowers.

The blue lamp is now ready:

I also got this 1970s ceramic tea pot which goes nicely with the lamp:

As you probably noticed, I placed a new gadget on this blog, it is the link to Hatome shop. Have a look and let me know what you think. I would be grateful for your feedback.

Yolanta

Winter blues

My first steps on Etsy - Treasury lists

Recently I have been obsessed with lamps. Sourcing the materials for the lamps (vintage 1960s and 1970s), making the lamps, listing them in my Hatome shop on Etsy, editing the descriptions, then editing again. My husband has been laughing at me.... But we shall persevere....

Here is the next lamp, it has original 1960s/70s white ceramic base with a pattern of brown lines. I re-covered the lampshade with a 1960s/70s vintage yellow and brown cotton fabric depicting a pattern of honeycomb and flowers.

Here is the detail of the lamp:

 

While doing a lot of research of how other people do things on Etsy, I discovered 'Treasury lists'. If you are unfamiliar with this term, Treasury lists are basically your private collections of 16 images of products from Etsy shops, under your chosen name. How you curate the Treasury list is up to you, but it is advised not to promote your own products (some people are cheating here), not to place 2 pictures from the same seller and "spread the love".

My first 2 Treasury lists were done completely following the rules. I collected some images according to the colors and moods. I enjoyed this very much and it reminded me that I am a graphic designer by profession. Then I had a thought that I should be putting together images that are somehow related to the product I am trying to sell: vintage 1960s lamps. And I created the treasury titled: Modern Vintage Home. I admit I placed the picture of one of my lamps there, it was in such a good company...

Treasury lists are a great way to connect to your Etsy community and they help to promote your own products too. If you want to see my 3 Treasury lists, go to Hatome shop on Etsy, click on 'Profile' under my name, and you will see the 'Treasury Lists'.


Best wishes
Yolanta

My first steps on Etsy - Treasury lists

Work in progress, studio in transition

I am working on my next Hatome upcycled lamp today. Here is the glimpse of it, sitting on the dining table in our living room. Yes my dear friends, this is how I work now, surrounded by the packed boxes, getting ready for our move back to London....

We almost moved several times, there were some delays (the buyer of our flat changed his mind just before the exchange of contracts, then the owner of the house we were buying died of old age). But we couldn't bring ourselves to unpack and for the last few months we have been living very simply using just a few unpacked things. It is a proof that you really don't need many things....

So I have been using our dinner table for a studio. I am not even planning how my work room will look like in the new house, just trying to stay detached from this whole subject. I am having fun with the lamps, that's the most important thing :) This lamp should be ready tomorrow.

I wonder how other people work? How many of us are using just a table for a studio?

Yolanta

Work in progress, studio in transition

My new Hatome shop

At last! My Hatome shop on Etsy is opened.

It is just the beginning, only 3 products are for sale in my little shop, but I keep on producing them and the shop will grow. I sell funky upcycled lamps and cushions with 1950s/60s/70s flavor.

I am passionate about 1950s, 1960s and 1970s designs and I use vintage fabrics or new fabrics with distinctive vintage look. I am also passionate about recycling, upcycling and reusing available materials.

Apart from selling ready made products I will accept commissions. If someone would like me to make a lamp or a cushion using their own favorite fabric - they can contact me to discuss the details.

Please visit my new Hatome shop on Etsy. I would be grateful for your feedback.

Yolanta

My new Hatome shop

How to upcycle the lamp

I have just finished upcycling this lamp and I will share with you how I did it.

On my usual treasure hunt in the local charity shops I found a little lamp with an interesting base and a vintage tea towel, probably from the sixties. I liked the boldness of the patterns and thought I could use this fabric for a lamp shade.

The existing lampshade was covered with some sort of artificial suede which was quite opaque so I stripped it off using the pliers, leaving the plastic layer in place. If the lampshade you are using is made from a white or light colored fabric, which is letting the light through, you can leave in on and glue your chosen fabric on top of it. 

After deciding which part of the tea towel I am going to use, I put the lampshade sideways on top of the fabric and cut a strip of fabric which was about 2cm wider on each side of the lampshade.

 

I wrapped the strip of fabric around the lampshade. The length of my fabric strip was too short to cover the lampshade so I cut an additional piece from the tea towel to cover the gap. I arranged the fabric pieces on the lampshade and made sure that when the fabric overlapped, only the finished edges of the pieces were visible.

Now I had all the things I needed for upcycling the lampshade, including a strong PVA glue and a binding tape which I would use for the top and bottom edges of the lampshade:

After spreading the fabric face down on a clean protective surface I applied the PVC glue. Avoid using a newspaper as the base protection because the print may transfer on to the moist fabric.

Next I wrapped the fabric carefully along the bottom edge of the lampshade and gently pressed the fabric to the lampshade while forming several folds to accommodate the narrower top of the lampshade. I kept on pressing down the fabric and smoothing the surface and then I left the lampshade to dry. 

After the lampshade had dried out, I cut off the excess fabric along the top and bottom edges. I applied the glue to the binding tape and glued it to the top and bottom edges of the lampshade. 

Here is the detail:

After cleaning the base of the lamp with white spirit, I mixed artists oil paint to match one of the colors in the fabric's pattern and painted part of the lamp base with it. I left the base to dry. 

After several days the lamp base was dry and I added the lampshade to it. The lamp is now ready. Here is the back view:

Happy lamp upcycling.

Yolanta

How to upcycle the lamp