- welcome back to engineer your space. i'm isabelle. today i'm going to show you how i made these beautiful wallsconces with nothing more than a drill and a few hand tools. (upbeat music) i came up with this designfor wall sconces as a way to add more lighting andend tables in my living room without taking up any floor space.
now i also wanted to makethem using simple materials that you could find at thehardware store or online, and also just using simple tools like a drill and a handsaw. it took a lot of tinkeringand experimenting, but here's a quick look at how i did it. i built each part of the lamp separately to make things easier,starting with the lamp base. first i cut two embroideryhoops to make semicircles.
then i cut square wood dowels into pieces using a miter box and saw. i glued the longer dowel pieces on the foam board first and let that dry. and then glued the smaller dowel pieces, waited for them to dry, and then glued the embroideryhoops using bar clamps to hold them in placeuntil the glue dried. i used a utility knife to cut out the base
and then sanded the edges. there's many different lamp kits that you could use with this project, but i had these pre-wiredlamp kits already, so i decided to use them. i cut out a piece of foam board big enough to let the plug through. drilled a pilot hole toattach the light kit. then cut a hole in thewood dowel at the back
wide enough to let the cord pass through. with all the cutoutsmade, it's easy to attach the light kit and run thecord through to the back before gluing the base toanother piece of foam board to complete the base structure. i used two-inch iron on wood edging to finish the sides ofthe base and then used three quarter inch edgingto finish the top and bottom of the base, making a staggered pattern.
once the base was covered,i gave a quick sanding to smooth out the edges,reattached the light kit, and glued a four inchembroidery ring onto it. and that will be used tosecure the lamp shade. to make the shade, i usedflexible chopping mats that i cut to the width of nine inches. then i formed the shade arounda four inch embroidery hoop, sealing the seam in placewith double-sided tape. then i glued the embroideryhoop to the edge.
i experimented with a couple of options to finish the shades. for the first one, iused a wallpaper remnant with a beautiful texturethat reminds me of the beach. for a more finished look,i attached wood edging to the bottom of the shade. and to fill in the gaps, i used spackling. the wallpaper gives a really nice soft glow when the lamp is on.
for option two, i experimented with mica fragments, or flakes, and mod podge. i applied some mod podge andthen sprinkled on the flakes using a brush to stickthem onto the shade. i let that dry and thenrepeated the process to fill in the gaps. i also added poster board on the inside to diffuse the light. it gives a really niceglow and lets a bit more
light through than the other version. now onto the next step,which is making the shelf. i built it the same wayi made the lamp base, but this time using oneby two furring strips with the foam board. i finished one side using wood edging just like the lamp base. and for the top i used mica flakes, covering the entiresurface with a thick coat.
to protect the surface, i useda pour-on high gloss finish. i had never used this product before, so i followed theinstructions on the package and it turned out waybetter than i expected. to complete my wall sconce, i needed three pine boards for the back. and that's to attach everything together. one for the top, one for the bottom,
and one in the middle. the back piece that willconnect to the lamp base needs to have an opening cut. that's to let the cord ofthe light kit pass through. it's going to be hidden so it doesn't need to be pretty. the nice thing about these wall sconces is that you can easilychange up the back pieces to make completelydifferent looking lamps.
like these lamps here that i made when i was experimenting with having the shade facing up andnot having a shelf at all. and no matter whichconfiguration you choose, putting the lamp togetherwill be pretty much the same. i screwed the back piece to the lamp base, drilling a pilot hole first. then i attached the shelf toits back piece the same way. to finish the back, i glued on
three quarter inch square dowels and i used painters tape to hold them in place while the glue dried. next i glued quarter inch prime moldings at the edges of the middle back board and attached the lamp baseand the shelf to the molding. i first drilled pilot holes to prevent the wood from splitting. the last thing to finish the back
was to glue on more threequarter inch square dowels. and then i add two keyholes to hang the lamp. having two makes it morestable for the shelf. to protect the woodand give a softer look, i applied a couple ofcoats of semi-transparent stain from behr in acolor called pinto white. the last step to finish the lamp was to glue the shade to the lamp base. i recommend only usingled light bulbs like these
for this lamp because of the narrow shape. they don't produce a lot of heat and they use less energy thatincandescent light bulbs, so it'll save you money in the long run. now it is a bit difficultto get to the switch here because of the type oflamp kit that i'm using. but i ended up running mycables behind the wall panel so that i could plug them into an outlet that's controlled by a light switch.
these wall sconces turned out to be the perfect lighting solutionfor my small living room. and they were a lot of fun to make, too. if you want to make your own version, i have lots moreinformation on this project on my website, engineeryourspace.com. and that includes a listof everything you need, a template to followthat you can download, and lots of extra tips that will make
building the lamp even easier. so go check it out if you'replanning on making these lamps. well that's it for this video. thanks for watching, andi'll see you next time, (light music)