A Lamp Conversion!

I've had my eye on this antique oil lamp for a year or more now. I knew I had to clean it up and use it for decoration somewhere in the house, but alas, it sat and sat and sat.

It came from Josh's grandmothers home in Chicago and I have no idea exactly how old it is. All I really have to go on is when I show it to people they say it's pretty old.


So this old gal was saved from the attic, shuffled around from garage to utility room (where I anticipated cleaning it up weekend after weekend), back out to the garage, and so on...until I had my inspiration.


So I read up a smidge on how to clean it since I didn't want any of the silver plate rubbing off or to ruin it otherwise. Apparently most of these lamps (if not all of them) are brass underneath and the silver plating can be rubbed off fairly easily - and I certainly wanted it silver.


I popped in to Lowe's and picked through the lamp kit section hoping this wouldn't be too hard of a project. I knew right away that I couldn't, shouldn't, wouldn't be drilling any holes in the lamp since technically it is Josh's dad's...but it isn't doing him any good in China now is it? ;) I didn't want to alter it permanently, and low and behold there was a perfect hollow hole through the whole lamp that allowed me to string in my electrical cord.

I'm no electrician, as I think you may know. I'm more of a mommy and wife, so I am very proud of the little lamp I made! It took some rigging and spray paint (did you have to put on your sunglasses to see the bright brass lamp kit parts?!) and a good eye to follow the crazy diagram on the back of the package, but my goodness I think it's one of the most beautiful things I've seen in awhile. I think I'm so drawn to it because it's authentic and not mass produced, and it represents family which not much is more beautiful than that.


As for my inspiration...

the new nursery looks perfectly fabulous with this beautiful heirloom lamp and I couldn't be happier to have a little of Grandma Stella in baby girl's room.