Recently, a customer came to us with a chance to do something we love: restore a treasured piece of family history. Back in the 1940s, this customer’s mother purchased a beautiful fairy lamp — very likely with the money she earned from her first paycheck. Now, our customer wanted us to bring it back to its original glory. 

The story alone made us excited to bring the piece back to life. But when we saw its delicate curves and minimalistic cream-and-taupe coloring, we were smitten with it. 

After we updated the lamp’s electrical components for the 21st century, we began to recreate the stunning double-layered shade. First, we made a shallow, round-corner rectangular drum for the lower half. Then, we turned a race-track oval shade upside down and affixed it to the drum. We finished the design with a simple gimp along the edges and cream-and-taupe beaded trim from Samuel and Sons to match the coloring of the lamp. 

With the shade complete and a fresh bulb screwed in, the lamp was ready to light up our customer’s home just as it did for her mother over 80 years ago. We relish opportunities like these to help our customers reclaim pieces of their family history and keep the stories surrounding them alive for generations to come. If you have a lamp or lampshade you would like restored, please click here for a quote. We can’t wait to see what more stories you have to share!