A lamphade change can make a major impact in a space (but it’s all about finding one that is sized right for your lamp base – more on that in a second). Lampshades may seem like insignificant details in the scheme of an entire room, but they carry a lot of design bang for the buck. Case in point, I recently swapped out the white drum shades on the lamps in my bedroom for patterned, pleated beauties, and this one little change gave the whole room a more traditional, sophisticated, collected vibe.
The white drum shade that came with the lamp wasn’t bad at all. But, it was a bit boring and bland. The patterned, pleated, empire lampshade makes the lamp feel a bit more high end. It compliments the color palette of the space and brings more of a custom, intentional look to the room’s design.
Sizing matters. A good general rule of thumb: a lampshade should be about twice as wide as the base of the lamp and one third of the height of the lamp (give or take an inch). But there are always exceptions to any rule, so just go with what looks good to you. Just be sure the lamp harp is completely concealed under your shade, that’s really the only hard and fast rule.
I’m currently crazy for pleated shades, so I rounded up a few favorites! Thrifting friends, one of these gorgeous lampshades could make a Goodwill lamp find an absolute treasure!
- Serigraph – 13.5 inch diameter – $160
- Sage – range of sizes (14 – 18 inches) – $75- $95
- Marine – range of sizes (14 – 18 inches) – $75 – $95
- Montjoi – 13.5 inches – $50
- Pattani – 14 inches – $95
- Black/Gold – 15 inches – $73
- Warna – 14 inches – $160
- Floral – two sizes (12.75 or 16 inches) – $98 – $128
Shop Pleated Shades
