I am currently liking all things chevron and decided to use it alot in my baby Cole’s room.  I wanted a lamp so I decided I could use an old base my mom gave me and paint the shade myself.  I was figuring it out while I was doing it so it’s not perfect but I still think it turned out really fun.  His room walls are dark navy blue so I think it will be really cute.

My little chevron lamp shade

This base was from my room growing up.  I bought the navy lamp shade from a dollar store super cheap.  Now obviously it would be much better to buy a white or ivory lamp shade and paint the darker color on that but I was being impatient today and couldn’t wait.  The navy did work much better than I thought it would!

The first step is to find a card or paper or something with a corner so you can tape off your first zig zag.  Now using this type of lamp shade is a little bit tricky because of how it gets smaller at the top.  I would use one that was the same shape all around next time.  I didn’t measure during this project because I really don’t like measuring so this shade is not perfect but who can tell?  Use the paper or card all the way around to tape off the first zig zag. 

Make sure each corner or edge is squared.  I had to cut some of the corners with my scissors to fix it.

Once you have the whole first row of zig zags taped off things get a bit confusing but just stay with me.

Still using the tape, tape off the second row of zig zags.  These do not have to be perfect because you are going to pull them off before you start painting.  Make sure they are right next to the first row to make everything look very uniform.

Using the second row of tape as a guideline, tape off another row of zig zags at the top.  These need to be placed on the shade with a bit more care since they will stay on during the painting process.  This would be my last row but if your shade is much bigger, just continue after this step until you reach the top of the shade.

I know what you are thinking…that does NOT look right.  This is where the scissors come in again.  I just trimmed them up a bit so that the corners are sharp. 
Now this is what the corners should look like!

Now we are ready to paint.  Make sure all of the tape is pressed down really well so that the paint can’t slip under the tape.

This is my first coat.  When stenciling, you need to use a stencil brush (didn’t have one today so I used an artist sponge).  Also remember to use small amounts of paint in several coats as opposed to laying it on really think once.  It will look alot better in the end if you do light layers. 

After the first coat…as you can see several coats are a must.

After the third coat, wait until the paint is totally dry to start peeling the tape off. 

The finished product!  I had a couple of uhoh spots where the paint snuck under the tape.  I scraped them off with my exacto knife.  It’s not perfect but I’m ok with it!

This is going to make a great addition to my late night time with my little guy.