Edwardian Lampshade Recovery - 37 Years of Experience Tested

It’s safe to say that we love a challenge. Over the years, we have restored and re-covered lampshades for some of the UK’s most historic properties. But recently, we were faced with our biggest challenge to date: restoring several rather rusty and worn out Edwardian lampshades. It wasn’t easy, but our master craftsman, Ian Holbrook, drew on every ounce of his 37 years of experience to get the job done. And, after four weeks of buffing, sanding and TLC, we’re happy to reveal the incredible results of all of his hard work and determination. Take a look through the before and after pictures below, we’re sure you’ll be mightily impressed with the results – we certainly are!

As this was such a special restoration project, we thought we’d catch up with Ian to find out exactly how he managed to achieve such a wonderful finish on the shades.

Put to the test

Upon first inspection, Ian was concerned that the lampshades were beyond repair. “To be quite honest, when I first received the lampshades I was a little unsure about how to approach the re-covering work,” Ian confessed. “The fabric and inner lining was in such a bad state, rotting, that I could not just cut off a panel to use for a template.” Never one to give up on a lampshade in need of care, Ian quickly came up with a plan of attack. “What I had to do was very carefully cut off what I could and tape it together to make a panel for a template,” he said. “However, easier said than done, because nearly every part of the fabric just disintegrated when handled.” Once Ian had successfully completed the panel templates, he came across something that threatened to bring the project screeching to a halt. “Once all the fabric had been removed leaving the metal frames, it uncovered a massive problem,” he said. “The frames were extremely rusted – some metal stays where nearly rusted 60% through.”

Care and patience

Proving that he’s one of the best in the business, Ian didn’t do what many, less experienced, craftsmen would have done in his situation and give up on the lampshades. Instead, he began the painstaking job of repairing the lampshades. “Gently using a wire wool and emery paper I removed all of the rust,” he explained. “Once I had been done this, I sprayed all the frames in a rust preventative and left them to dry. Once dry, I sprayed all the frames in our white fire retardant spray paint and to build back up the frames I taped every metal stay in our self-binding tape to give strength back to all the lampshade frames so I could re-cover them.” Next, Ian moved on to covering the lampshades. To give the frames of the delicate lampshades extra strength and support, he decided to skin-line all of the lampshades on the outside of the frames before covering with the owner’s chosen fabric, silk dupion. Ian is always happy to offer his advice regarding fabrics and trims, and this project was no exception. Before the owners of the exquisite lampshades made their fabric selection, Ian sent them suitable fabric swatches to consider. Ian is always conscious of the need to respectfully restore lampshades using era-appropriate fabrics and trims, so he used his knowledge of Edwardian lampshades to finish the lampshades in a mixture of gold, cream and green braids and fringes.

Happy customer

The restored lampshades are truly a credit to Ian’s skill and expertise. Edward Gallafent, owner of the beautiful lampshades, was truly delighted with the transformation. “The work is superb, and Ian's advice in terms of colours and finishes was invaluable,” he said. “The service was extremely efficient and the whole operation was a pleasure from beginning to end.” As for Ian? He’s incredibly pleased with the results, especially given the many challenges he faced during the course of the project. “I must stress re-covering all these lampshades tested my years of lampshade making to the limit,” he said. “However, the end result was most satisfying and the lampshades looked stunning back in situ.”

Do you have a lampshade in need of some TLC?

For expert lampshade repair and restoration, look no further than the team at Premier Lampshades. If you would like to find out more about our lampshades or our lampshade repair service, get in touch today. Simply call 01204 414366. Alternatively, send an enquiry and we’ll be in touch soon.