Gathered lampshades bring charm and whimsy to so many design styles and can be simpler to fit to the frame than a tight lampshade. I use round lampshade frames for my gathered lampshades, which are prettiest on drum, empire, or bell-shaped frames. In fact, a gathered lampshade is an easy way to disguise an exaggerated and dated bell-shaped profile, and to keep that old vintage frame out of the landfill.
Here are the materials and tools I use:
- a cleaned and bound lampshade frame (see this post)
- face fabric (usually a half a yard or more, depending on the shade style and size, and the fabric print if present)
- lining fabric (a half yard or more, depending on shade size; I typically use muslin since we only have LED bulbs at home)
- pins (ball headed are best)
- grosgrain ribbon or twill tape to match lining or face fabric (five to six inches per spider/UNO strut on the frame, so about ½ to ¾ yard total)
- trim, gimp, rick rack, and/or additional fabric cut into bias tape
- matching cotton thread(s)
- hand sewing needle
- thimble
- curved upholstery needle (optional)
- fabric glue or hot glue gun (optional)
For any shade, I start by laundering and ironing the face fabric and lining fabric before cutting. The best fabric to use for a gathered shade is something lightweight, like a Liberty cotton lawn, quilting cotton, or a length of silk. Medium weight upholstery fabrics, like those used for drapery, can be used, but will yield larger gathers, can be a little tougher to sew, and may filter the light more than you want. That said, for this project I am using some Braemore fabric leftover from the drapes and Roman shades I made last year. I wanted to bring that pattern to the non-window wall, and then found this large lampshade frame at Goodwill which was the perfect size for the floor lamp we have on that wall.
Measuring fabric for a gathered lampshade is easy and forgiving. I usually use a total width two to three times the bottom circumference of the lamp frame, and about four inches longer than the height of my shade. Smaller shades can often be completed with one full width of 44” or 54” fabric. Larger shades will require additional widths of fabric. My project required two complete widths which I aligned to each other. Aligning the pattern won’t be necessary with all fabrics, so I always experiment a bit to see what looks best using the materials I have at hand.
To create the best gathers, I need to carefully cut the fabric on the straight grain. I don’t need to sew the seams – I will just press an inch or so back at each edge. Those edges will be overlapped on the lampshade and will be covered under the gathers.
I then baste two parallel rows along the straight grain of both the top and bottom of each fabric piece, which can be done by hand or machine. The distance between the top two rows of basting and the bottom two rows should equal the height of the lampshade.
After basting, but before gathering, I use a fabric marker or small scissor cuts to mark the approximate location of each vertical strut of the lampshade frame on both the top and bottom of the length(s) of fabric. The marks will make it easier to ensure your gathers are evenly distributed around the shade, but it is more important to have the marks at the top and bottom aligned than it is to have them at precise intervals. For example, if I am using one 54” wide piece of fabric to wrap a lampshade with six vertical struts, my marks will be between 8 and 9 inches apart. If I am using two lengths of 44” wide fabric for the same six-strut lampshade, the marks will be about 14” apart. Once the fabric is clearly marked along the top and bottom, I pull the ends of my basting threads to begin gathering the fabric, which is easier to do before pinning the fabric to the lampshade.
Then I pin the cover to the outside of the lampshade, placing my marks on the vertical struts and lining the basting stiches along the top and bottom of the frame (leaving a couple of inches of fabric flapping around the top and bottom). I pull the basting stitches tighter as I pin, or I loosen them a bit, trying to keep the resulting gathers as even and natural as possible across the top. Before sewing the top, I will pin my marked fabric to the bottom at the vertical struts, to keep the vertical fit as tight and straight as possible. I continually adjust the fit as I pin my way around the lampshade.
I use the lampshade stitch to attach the cover to the binding, and I use a thimble to ease the strain of poking the needle through the thick layers and gathers. For this project, I switched to a curved needle after a while because the thickness of the drapery fabric overwhelmed my straight needle.
Once the cover is completely sewn, top and bottom, I trim the excess fabric as close as I can to my hand stitching. I also carefully trim any hanging threads from my basting stitches, including those on the inside of the shade. Then I place the shade on the lamp to see what it looks like in the room. I have no patience, so I fit this shade before trimming the fabric and my threads.
My lining will also be cut straight on the grain, but it will not be gathered. I will want a final width which is equal to or a little larger than the bottom circumference of my shade and a height three or four inches longer than the height of my shade. For a smaller shade, that might mean a single width of lining fabric, while a larger shade might require two or three widths. As I did with the face fabric, I will press back an inch or so along each vertical edge. To place the release cuts for the spider or UNO fittings, I simply need to make evenly spaced two inch cuts straight down from the top of the lining. For example, the release cuts to accommodate three spider fittings along two 42” widths of lining will be about 27” apart.
I then fit the lining to the inside of the shade, first pinning the release cuts under the spider or UNO struts, and then overlapping the lining edges with the pressed folds closest to the face fabric. Since the width of my fabric is nearly equal to the bottom circumference, I pull it straight below the release cuts and pin, then pin it straight at each of the vertical struts.
I then return to the top and pull the fabric straight at each vertical strut and pin. To ease the excess fabric at the top, and perhaps at the bottom, I will create vertical pleats evenly placed between each vertical strut and will pin and re-pin until everything looks straight and true.
Once it’s pinned to my satisfaction, I sew the lining on the outside of the frame, over the cover stitching, again using lampshade stitch. Here you can see me using the curved needle to get through all the layers of fabric.
I carefully trim the lining fabric close to the stitching, so I don’t cut into the cover fabric. Then I cut grosgrain ribbon or twill tape into five-inch lengths, one for each spider/UNO strut, and pin them to cover the release cuts, wrapping under each strut. I sew these in place with lampshade stitch, and then carefully trim the ends.
I have many options to trim a gathered shade to cover my stitches, just as I do with a tight lampshade. The quickest way perhaps is to just glue some gimp or grosgrain ribbon over the sewing, but a glued trim can look sloppy over the gathers, especially if the face fabric is thicker than cotton lawn. I prefer a hand-sewn finish, and nearly always trim my gathered shades with matching or contrasting hand cut bias tape. Hand-sewing my trim means I can carefully control the placement of my trim stitches, so I am not flattening or realigning the gathers.
