As we surpass the 4,000 entries mark, our #memadeshade Instagram competition goes from strength to strength and we'd like to say a huge THANK YOU for all the amazing entries, as well as the inspiration you all provide for newbie lampshade makers. Our June #memadeshade winner, @daniel.k.embleton has brought a sense of natural wonder and luxury, with this stunning tiered shade. Using his own intricate botanical catcus design, printed onto a rich velvet, Daniel has cleverly cont

The glorious weather has arrived adding a bright, light feeling to our days and as usual, we've been inundated with plenty of glorious shades. May's #memadeshade Instagram competition winner, brings fun, frivolity and a bold pop of colour and who doesn't need a bit of that in their lives? Made by Kura and Mark of @the_warren_crew_at_52 from a gorgeous African wax fabric, the orange fringing was a subliminal 'Strictly' inspired addition. We love the scale and size of this prin

Yey! You've found us and now you know you can make your own lampshades with our Lampshade Making Kits, you might be asking yourself why should you? It’s the number one topic of conversation at here at Dannells (we could honestly wax lyrical about this all day 😁), and to make this easy we’ve put together our 5 reasons why you should get started with making your own DIY lampshade – and once you’ve made one, we’re fairly sure you’ll never buy shop bought lampshade again! 1. Bes

April has already been and gone (where did that month go?) and we hope you've been making the most of the new outdoor rules? It clearly hasn't stopped you all from making plenty of amazing lampshades! As our #memadeshade Instagram competition goes from strength to strength, we never tire of seeing the stream of gorgeous lampshades made from our lampshade making kit, so thanks to all those who entered. This month's worthy winner is Lucy of @the_lightpunk, with her new design o

As another month flies by, it's time to announce March's #memadeshade winner from our Instagram competition entries. This month was packed with an array of lampshades in all shapes and sizes using our lampshade making kits, but as always there is only one winner. Entered by @cottocc (COtoo), using a screenprint design by @sallyelfordillustrator, this month's winning shade encapsulates the stunning British coastline and the murmurations of starlings, which been seen during the

The nights are already lighter and there is a feeling of optimism in the air. We hope you're all feeling a little lighter and brighter too. February's #memadeshade Instagram competition has delivered a whopping amount of entries, over 300, and as always it's great to see such a wide variety if shades using our lampshade making kits. This month's stand out shade is certainly that and @emma_mckie_designs is our deserving winner and her £100 voucher to spend on our website, is a

After what can only be described as a very loooong January, #memadeshade is back for 2021! Yey! And we've got off to a great start with lots of fabulous shades, in all shapes and sizes to brighten up our #memadeshade Instagram competition and hopefully provide our makers with new inspiration and ideas for using one of our lampshade making kits. And this month's winner certainly sticks with the theme of 'bright'! This gorgeous fuchsia shade by Lauren of @juniper_and_spice is

We're finally at the end of what can only be described as a challenging year and we'd like to say a huge Thank You for your amazing entries to the Dannells #memadeshade Instagram competition, that have kept lampshade making inspiration and creativity flowing throughout the year. With nearly 2,500 entries, not only have you all had a chance of winning, but have helped create a fabulous library of gorgeous lampshades, to help inspire new and existing makers. There really is not

Our September #memadeshade Instagram competition has been flooded with entries, so read on to see our winning shade!

We chat to the winner of our Instagram #memadeshade competition, Alison Bick and show off August's Most Liked shades.

As we launch into high summer, the shades keep on coming for our #memadeshade - Instagram competition and the passion for reflecting your style and personality using one of our Needcraft lampshade making kits isn't slowing down! We've had a bumper month this month, with more entries than ever before. Our monthly #memadeshade winner for July is @shadydaisyco, who has made this amazing monstera shade as a commission for a client and she wins our monthly prize of a £100 voucher

It's been another bumper month for our Instagram #memadeshade competition and it seems that staying at home has definitely released some inner creativity making our Needcraft lampshade making kits into some proper beauties! This month the #memadeshade title goes to this fabulous bamboo print cone shade made by Carolyn of @owlandcatinteriors, who wins our monthly prize of a £100 voucher to be spent at Dannells. With an equally good eye for a shades and lamp bases alike - who w

May has brought a month of much needed sunshine, but that's not the only light that's been shining! You've wowed us again with your #memadeshades of all shapes and sizes from our Needcraft lampshade making kits. And after a month of the outdoor inspiration, it seems the iconic bees have your votes and May's talented winner is @edavisonarcher.art, who wins a £100 voucher to be spent at Dannells. Her winning screenprinted #memadeshade is just one of the many stylish hand design

It's been another month of fine #lockdown lampshades, and with more and more of you finding solace in creativity, we've had some fantastic entries for our #memadeshade April Instagram competition, using our Needcraft lampshade making kits. Your #memadeshades are brightening up our #wfh days, so keep them coming and you can find the details on how to enter the May competition below. And don't forget you can enter with any of kits, whether it's a drum, a coolie or a hexagon - t

It's been quite a month hasn't it? But we're pleased to say it hasn't stopped you from making super creative lampshades using our kits and entering them into our March #memadeshade Instagram competition. Based on feedback from all of our lovely customers we've done two things differently for March; opened the competition up to our international customers and changed the prize to a whopping £100 voucher to spend on lampshade making materials and equipment from Dannells.com. So

We're super excited about how our #memadeshade Instagram competition has captured your imaginations throughout February and we've loved seeing every one of the fantastic shades you've made and entered. But there can only be one winner and this month Louise of @sewingdaze has won our whopping 70 cm shade kit! Keen to find out more about Louise and her shade making adventures we were lucky enough to have a chat with our very first #memadeshade winner... Congratulations! You’re

Why not do something special for Valentine’s day that you can enjoy all year round and make a hand printed lovebird lantern? To WIN one a lantern kit simply enter at the end of this post Of course you can use pretty, romance-themed fabric to use with the Dannells’ kit but seeing as it’s Valentine’s how about going the extra mile and printing your own design with lino or a stamp. You can carve a simple heart shape on a block of rubber and stamp it onto fabric. A similar techni

We are feeling the festive spirit already and giving away 3 sets of fairy lights from our range of LED lights! Head to our Facebook page ‘Needcraft‘ to enter. Share this: Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window) More Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Click t

Have you heard of The Sewing Directory? Founded by Fiona Pullen in 2010 The Sewing Directory was started to make it easier for people to find sewing supplies and classes around the country. In April 2015 ex-Sewing World editor Julie Briggs joined the directory. The site is packed full of information on workshops, techniques, latest industry news, classes and regular giveaways. If you are a true sewing enthusiast it is the place for you! If you run a sewing business you can re

We have 30 tickets for Creativeworld, the world’s largest trade fair for craft, hobby and arts and crafts! 28th-31st January 2017 Enter here Be inspired in Frankfurt by over 300 international manufacturers from the creative world. Learn the latest trends and try them out in the workshops! Every year the world’s largest trade fair for hobby, arts and crafts inspires thousands of creatives around the world! This is the place to discover the latest innovations in the hobby and c