navigation

navigation

Monday, April 15, 2013

DIY Dino Lamp

My little Monster, Corbin, finally has his own room. Unfortunately, since he was sharing our room he didn't really have any decorations. A week before we closed on his house I frantically started making things so he wouldn't have a bare, boring room when we moved in.

My (I should say our since David helped) first creation was this Adorable Dinosaur Lamp.

I had been searching for a Dino lamp for a while and they were all either ugly (for my tastes) or really expensive. I didn't want to spend a lot, so I came up with this idea.

At Walmart we picked up a lamp kit (about $7), Mason Jar ($1) and a Lamp Shade ($7).

For a base we bought a Decking post cap for about $1 at the hardware store. It was the perfect size and it already had a hole  drilled in it.




 For inside the jar we bought these cute little Dinosaurs at the dollar store. We actually have a million of them already, but Corbin straight up refused to give any up for his lamp.

I had David drill a hole in the top of the mason jar. Please ignore his insanely messy workspace. I'm not allowed to touch it.

 He used a dremel to create a groove in the bottom of the post cap to allow space for the lamp cord. You could probably do this with a rounded wood file or a drill if you are careful enough. 

We spray painted the base and the top of the jar. See that white stuff in the background? Yup, that's snow and ice. We're hardcore like that.

While those were drying David used a Glass drill bit (don't know the technical name, sorry) and very slowly drilled a hole in the bottom of the jar. 

Then it was time to put it all together. The lamp kit has all the directions on how to wire it and all that jazz. Just follow those, and string the cord through the jar and out the base. Make sure not to attach the top yet because you'll need to fill it.

I'm not sure what David is doing here. I just think the picture is amusing.

Once everything is put together, it's time to fill the jar up! Obviously we used Dinosaurs, but you can use whatever fits your theme.
 
Once everything is together, glue the jar on the base and the cap on the lid. Now your lamp is done. Buuut...if you want to get creative you can decorate that lamp shade too!

In hindsight, I probably should have used contact paper for a stencil instead of freezer paper. It worked well, but I did dent the shade a tiny little bit with the iron when I stopped paying attention. Oops. It's not a huge deal though. Learn from my mistakes. I just used fabric paint and stencils to create Dinosaur Silhouettes on the shade to add a little something extra. 



Corbin LOVES his new Dino lamp! We put a 15 watt light bulb in it and he's currently using it as his night light. It's the perfect addition to his new room!


 

8 comments:

  1. I Love This!!! I wanna make one. Actually, I wanna have the girls help me make one! Excellent job and super cute.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! You totally should, only put Barbie shoes in it! ;)

      Delete
  2. I love this lamp! You guys did such a great job!!! You could sell those things!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Aaaah! Thank you SO much for linking up on Creative Geekery at THE Pin It Party!! Are you on Twitter? Wanted to give you a little shout out! Hope you will come back next week! XO, ellie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for hosting it! I will definitely be back. :) I am on twitter, but I don't understand it. I need to buckle down and figure it out. https://twitter.com/S_bonn04

      Delete
  4. This is super cute (although beyond my abilities in the crafting department) - I love it!!! I am pinning to my craft board :) Hope we see you again next week at THE Pin it Party!
    http://oneorganicmama.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you!! It's not beyond your abilities. It's fairly easy except for the drilling. I didn't/don't think I would have the patience needed to drill through the glass!

      Delete

Show me some love! I love comments!