DIY and Crafts

How to make your own colourful Hay Bonbon light shade

Article by Your Home and Garden

Gear up with embroidery thread and a vintage lampshade to create your own rendition of the popular Hay Bonbon light

What you will need to create your Hay Bonbon Light:

• Wire lampshade frame – if you can’t find a new wire lampshade frame, visit your local op-shop. Vintage lamps are often made with these frames, or try etsy for options
• Embroidery thread –for a 30cm x 20cm lampshade, we used 48 embroidery threads (eight for each of the six colours)
• 6 embroidery floss cards
• Scissors/snips

Before you start your project prepare your materials. If you are using a vintage shade, remove the existing fabric and wrap each embroidery thread around a floss card to prevent the thread from getting tangled.

1. Secure one end of the thread to the lampshade frame with a simple knot. Try not to tie this knot too tight as you will undo it at the end. If you do find the knot slipping, securing it with a peg or small bulldog clip can help. Wrap the thread around two parallel wires until you have reached the desired width of colour.

2. To attach the next colour thread, knot the two ends together on the inside of the frame. Snip the loose ends and continue to wrap this around the frame.

3. If your wire frame lampshade has tiered layers, like ours, each layer of thread will be woven into the one above or below. To do this, secure the end of the thread to the frame as we did for the first layer. Separate the threads on the completed layer and weave the new layer of threads in between these as you wrap.

4. When your lampshade is fully covered, secure the final two ends by knotting them together on the inside of the lampshade.