one nightstand

Practically none of the furnishings in our house were bought new. Some were bought secondhand, an embarrassing number were found on the curb, and quite a few came to us through a sad but serendipitous circumstance: an old college professor of J's passed away just as we were moving into our house. Since her family lived in California, most of her things went to her friends, including J, who was close to her.

Obviously one has mixed feelings about a windfall under such circumstances, but not a day goes by that we don't think of her as we sit on her chairs, take clean clothes from her dresser, put books on her bookcases, admire her prints on the wall, sleep under her blankets... the list goes on.

Until it gets to a certain lamp. The lamp itself was the most minimal of objects, a simple chrome pipe on a plain round wood base. But this, my friends, this was the shade:


Can you tell it is made of concentric circles of corrugated cardboard?

Ingenious? Yes. Ugly? Heck yeah.

We used it, because lamps are useful, but always hoped one day we could elevate it to that golden combination, useful and attractive.

And now, at long last, one new lampshade plus one lamp conversion kit later, here is my "new" bedside lamp:


On my new (secondhand) nightstand.


Big plans for tonight: reading in bed!

PS. If you like the old shade more than I do, and you're not afraid to admit it, just let me know in a comment or an email. I'll be happy to send it to you!