How to Upcycle a Lampshade with Vintage Sheet Music or Maps
Creating something yourself for your home, especially when you bring an old object back to life, is incredibly satisfying. It’s also good for the planet. Anything you prevent ending up in landfills through reuse, recycling and reinventing, is a triumph. This project takes old music sheets or maps and uses them to upcycle boring lampshades. Lamps are both useful and beautiful. They offer a practical and a mood-altering addition to your home.
Lamps can help with increasing focused light where it’s needed, such as for reading, and they ceate a subtle shift in the feeling of a space. I turn off the overhead light each night and turn on the lamps, using LED globes. We are exposed to so much harsh, digital, blue light during our days, switching on a soft lamp at night time, brings much needed relief.
Vintage sheet music, papers, letters, book pages, and maps, work well for decoupage projects and artworks. They create an historic and an attractive option for DIY decorating projects. Look for a variety of patterns, fonts and lettering, to suit the look you want to create. They can be used to upcycle cupboards, tables, as well as lampshades. You can even mount and frame them for unique artworks.
Here’s how to upcycle old lamps using music sheets and maps
The very clever Patturn Studio puts music and lamps together in this project and creates handcrafted lamp shade and lighting designs, featuring lacquered papers. She uses a range of papers such as old maps. These are stunning and unique styles which bring vintage papers into the light.
This is a guest video from Patturn Studio, taking you through how to upcycle a lampshade with vintage music sheets and maps, in particular, but you could use any old papers to create a new look on a favourite lampshade. If you don’t already have one in mind, you can pick up numerous lamps and shades at op-shops. You can also find music-sheets, maps and so on, at op-shops, garage sales and places like ebay and gumtree.
Thanks to Rachel for sharing this with us – you can follow the tutorial below and hop across to her website for more information.
Helen
xx
**updated post from 2016
: ) with thanks to Recycled Interiors
@Patturn you are welcome. thanks for sharing, your work is so beautiful
Keri! U0001f609
Oops Recycled Interiors – that’s s German sewing pattern lamp… but paper is paper, they’ll get the idea!! ; )
Yes Sharon Haydon – Recycled Interiors is quite right. The most important thing is using a standard lampshade as your base. They come with the heat-resistant plastic inner layer so the paper outer layer never heats up at all. Perfectly safe, I’ve made over 300 of these shades by now!! And as you can imagine I have many in my own home : )
To match your table Danielle Eyesinmybladder!
Uh, yeah!
Love your video and would love to give it a go… Where do you purchase your music sheets from? U0001f600
Debbie Day saw this and thought of you!! X
@Sarah Hawkins have a look in some Op Shops, or on ebay 🙂
Rachel Vinen
Richie Wilcox Aaron Collier
Could u use pianola rolls.
Just two days ago haani smahed her need side lamp. ..so I thought I’d make a new one! !!! Perfect!!!!!
We should attempt together Denise Bullen!!!!! Fun project.xx
very nice
This is really stylish and creative! You not only get to decorate your home, you get to save the environment in general. For sure music lovers will go and try this out now!
Liz Gillon
Stacey Loukis
Brilliant love it
I want one!
Love.
Alison Bailey
its a good one! Jodie Fergusson-Batte
isnt it great! Stacey Loukis
Absolutely :))
Matt Harsanyi just for you
Matthew Evans
Ooooo I really like that!!
Allira Jade Potter-Pearce
I’ll work on it for you
Lorna van der Merwe what a lovely idea
Nicholas McCarthy
Love this idea Helen!
Michelle Barnes. Thought if you.
Amazing!
Felicity Jayne I feel like you might like this.x
Oh I love it!!
isn’t it great!
wow. pretty.
Love this!! Have a recycled musical shade in my lounge.. Now to get a lamp for my bedroom!! U0001f604
Maja Pearson
Phill
Phillipa Richardson
I love lamps
I have old handwritten sheets from my grandmother. … might be time to make something.
Rebecca Seach
Absolutely love this
Great idea x
Leisa
Love
sharing x
Gabe Rae
Patturn makes these. (Geelong based). It’s her image shown here.
Thanks Nicole : )
Lovely comments – thanks everyone!! : )
Amy White
Sabrina Lee Walcott
Ange Hewett
Gorgeous! Thanks
Paigey Sultana…..this is MUTHERFLIPPING genius!!!!U0001f3b6U0001f646U0001f3fbU0001f44cU0001f3fdU0001f60d
I love it!!!U0001f60dU0001f60dU0001f60dU0001f44fU0001f3b6
Megan Dwyer
Philip G Roberts
I’ll add it to the list 😉
Very nice!
Its classy!!
Love this
Shanine Farley
Robyn Cochrane
James Baker
Brandy Bayntun
Heather Mercer this might appeal to you x
Kerri Colliver
you are a clever clogs
definitely! Naomi Strange would love to see what you do
fabulous! Rachel Macreadie
<3
simple and effective Rachael Punchard x
yes it is and it is all in the blog post Nicole Harman 🙂
it is a good one Bridey Gstalter 🙂
we love this maker, she is very clever Michelle Stokes Decorator
it’s a good one Anne Quatermass
<3
Georgia Stone
Jacqui Chambers David Sindel Lauren Stefanou – we should have a arts & crafts day and make this?
I wouldn’t have a clue where to find old sheet music
Graham Davis perfect for your room
Jamie Busch.. I LOVE this!
LadyRosa Vahlula Berrycake nice one x
Matt Rush this is cool
i’ve got a lampshade at the moment i’ve been planning on transforming..and i have old music…got to make it happen!
excellent! x
Pia Prevost
Chloe Baker have a feeling you’d love one of these!
Yes, so good!!
Kdawg x
Stunning x
Sharms Klein this made me think of you!
Love it! How clever & awesome!!
Thanks for the tag!
Kate Louise…. Hellooooo
Kadon Johnson
Ummm…love!!!
Wanna make it for me!!!!!??!!! U0001f609U0001f609
Yesssss…. If you want it by next year 😉 if you have any sheet music… Chuck it my way xx
I’m happy to wait!!!!! U0001f609 Would go awesome in my music room! I have stacks of sheet music!
Thought it would look great in there. kmart has those lamps too xx
Ooooohhh!!! U0001f603U0001f62c
Brenden Catchpole U0001f60d
Alice Emily Butter
Lareen McMaster
Wow Errin Mullins it’s gorgeous. Ta
So you
🙂 would love this in my house and studio
Love it
Deena Liston cool!
Chloe Louise
Need it!
Caroline Louise
Amos Cooper
Beautiful xx
Connor Lizotte
Matthew Hedrich
Jillian Weir
Alex McCann thought of you when I saw this! xx
Linda Banovich, Andrew Banovich great idea xx
Tahlia Batters – cool up cycled shade
it’s a great idea Lynne Seiler
great impact Paula Curtis
Anja Legg Sue Murphy you guys might like this!
I do like it!
Lyn Barbary
Very cool
How cool. I think I may have to make this..ta!
This looks famnastic. xxx
Love this U0001f60a
Lisa Baker-Clark how beautiful and is this…
it’s a wonderful project
Nicole, I could see this in your house 🙂
Indeed it would be 🙂
it is a gorgeous project!
would love to see it if you do!
you should have a go making one 🙂
oh that is brilliant!
Bridey you might find some in op shops or second hand stores
yes it is!
oh that would be lovely
it is a great one!
@Skips Now totally!
Kellie Harris thought you might like this one xx
Rachel Hinton next project?
Kelly Evans.. Tall one for the studio?
It would be perfect
Or a map? U0001f618
I see a map too – but I love it, I love all things map related! : )
Love that lamp
Leah Schusterthought of you
Love it Stacey. Where is it!
You can make your own with a cheap lamp then add your music notes on top
Tom O’Brien U0001f60a
me too so lovely
oh yes there is a map one too!