A ModernTake on the Doily
$850 Lamp for less than $50? Yes Please!Hello Pretty people! We are so excited to share a project we did this past weekend. A few months ago, I came across a ceiling lamp, I absolutely loved. It was $850, and I just couldn’t justify the spend, being it was simply made of doilies. I can’t claim the quality of the lamp we DIYed is the same of the more expensive one, but I can say, we are pretty darn happy with the results!
If you want to make your own doily pendant, keep reading fellow DIYers, it’s a rewarding and messy project!
To get started, you are going to need a few things to make this project successful. Here is a list to get you started:
- corn starch
- balloon (we used a 40” blown up until completely round, as pictured)
- upholstery thread (but any thread will do)
- twine
- drop cloth
- school glue
- cheap paintbrush
- petroleum jelly
- lamp kit
- 24+ doilies
- stiff stuff
We sewed the doilies around the balloon with the upholstery thread, very carefully. We simply sewed edge of one doily, to the edge of the next, with some random overlapping. Our puppy Rocket, was very curious about what we were up to, don’t mind him.
Make sure to create a space to place your bulb socket. We used some twine, and coiled it inside of a circle we cut out to create a custom fit. The image below is after we coated everything with the solution, but we wanted you to see how we prepped the space.
Once you have sewn about ¾ of your balloon, stop and do the last ¼ separately. You will join the two parts together, after you have saturated them together in the solution.
Lay down your tarp and hang your balloon from some twine above the tarp. We placed a large pipe across our kitchen, placing each end on the counter. We have seen people do similar projects using a curtain rod and chairs – it’s up to you. We do suggest however, making sure you have a large tarp laying under your hanging balloon.Rub the balloon down with the petroleum jelly. This feels totally weird, and wrong. It kinda made us giggle.
Mix 5 oz of the school glue with 4 tbsp of the corn starch and ¼ cup of warm water together until it’s not lumpy. I got this recipe from ruffeled.com, from a string lantern they created, and it worked great!
After your solution is smooth, take a cheap paintbrush, and coat the inside of the doily clothes you just created. Try not to use more than ½ of the solution. This is the point where it’s going to get messy, very very messy.
After you have painted the inside of both the doily sheets you have sewn together, place them both on the balloon and line them up to where they connect. Sew the two sheets of doily together. Now, you are probably all dirty from the jelly and the solution, but now you are going to get realllllllly dirty. Use your fingers to cover the whole entire exterior of the doilies with the solution. Yep. Dirty.
When you are complete, let your doilies dry for about 24 hours, the pop the balloon!When you are complete, let your doilies dry for about 24 hours, the pop the balloon!It should look something like the image above! Use a clear coat to cover the inside and outside of your brand spanking new doily globe! Pretty neat!? Once the clear coat is dry, give it a few hours, you can connect your lamp kit, and hanging it where you like. We decided to cover the cord with twine, to give it a neutral color story, but you can do what you like! Perhaps paint it a variety of colors? Hot pink? Black? So many colors would look great with your new pendant!It should look something like the image above! Use a clear coat to cover the inside and outside of your brand spanking new doily globe! Pretty neat!? Once the clear coat is dry, give it a few hours, you can connect your lamp kit, and hanging it where you like. We decided to cover the cord with twine, to give it a neutral color story, but you can do what you like! Perhaps paint it a variety of colors? Hot pink? Black? So many colors would look great with your new pendant!
Way cool! One day, one day.
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