DIY Retro-Chic Ombre Fringe Floor Lamp

Sometimes, I feel like I was born in the wrong decade. I’ve always been drawn to the 1960’s and 70’s; from the feminist trailblazers in Mad Men Era Madison Avenue, to the groovy California love children – there’s so many things to love in era of America’s history. But as much as I love that era, doing my whole house in 60’s and 70’s decor would be a bit much. So I found a way to sprinkle in some vintage glam with some more modern pieces for the perfect amount of retro flair. We’re taking tie-dye to a whole new level with this uber-chic and happy fringe floor lamp!

Step 1:  To begin, use spray paint to make all the embroidery hoops a uniform silver to match the lamp itself. Once they’re dry, wrap the fringe around each hoop to measure out how much you’ll need for each ring. When you’re buying your fringe, make sure you’ll have enough to cover all three hoops!

Step 2: Prepare 3 dye baths in separate bowls. The largest bowl will be the most concentrated dye to create the darkest color, and the smallest bowl will be watered down to make a light rose hue. I started by using tablespoons but decided I wanted to go a bit darker in saturation. In the end these were the measurements I used to dye the fringe: For the first bath I used a 1:1 ratio, 1 cup hot water, 1 cup dye. For the second, 1 cup hot water and 1/2 cup dye. For the smallest, one cup hot water and 1/4 cup dye. Adjust more or less dye as desired for color and remember the fringe will dry a bit lighter than what it looks like wet. Submerge the fringe in the bowls and let it sit for a few minutes. Remove and set aside to dry.

Step 3: When the fringe has completely dried, use a hot glue gun to carefully attach the fringe to the outer edge of each embroidery ring.

Step 4: Cut 4 pieces of thick gauge jewelry wire, 5 inches long each. Use pliers to wrap the wire first around the smallest embroidery hoop, then do the same with the top of the wire around the mid-size embroidery hoop. Make sure that all the wires are even so that the smallest ring hangs level with the mid-size ring. The section of wire between the two hoops should be about 3 inches long.

Step 5: Center the mid-size size ring on the bottom of the lamp shade box. Trace around the hoop, then add a thick line of hot glue along the traced line. Quickly place the mid-size ring down onto the hot glue to seal it onto the lamp shade. Add a little more glue if needed to make sure it stays put! Don’t worry- the glue will be covered by the fringe of the top layer.

Step 6: Slip the largest ring of fringe over the top of the metal lampshade to complete the lamp! If you don’t have this precise lamp and you’re worried about the ring being an exact fit,  you can swap the inner embroidery ring for the outer, adjustable ring which you can screw on to pretty much any lampshade you’d like. Finally, remove the bit of string that holds the bottom of the fringe together on the ends to release the threads.

I love how happy this lamp is; it’s fabulous and feminine without stealing the show too much from other pieces in the room. The modern lines and cool metallic of the Ikea floor lamp perfect balances out the soft and swishy fringe shade. Couldn’t be happier with the newest addition to my apartment!

Do you have any cool ideas for retro-inspired DIYs? Share them with us @BeMakeful!