We're thrilled that this month's #memadeshade winner is @bridget9696, who has been a regular in our 'Most Liked shades' throughout our Instagram competition! Her winning lampshade is a cyanotype 'Allium', which is beautifully highlighted against its indigo background. Just the lampshade for this time of year it symbolises not only the end of the summer but also reminds Bridget (and us!) of autumn fireworks! Congratulations, @bridget9696! Your £100 voucher is on its way to you

As our Needcraft Lampshade Making Kits hit American shores, to say we’re excited is an understatement! Already hugely popular in the UK and Europe, US customers will now be able to purchase our US Lampshade Making Kits directly from Amazon.com and we can’t wait to see what fabulous lampshades our state side customers will create! For newbie American lampshade makers, we've ensured that everything you need to make up your first lampshade is in the box, leaving you to simply ch

As the autumn rolls in your #memadeshades keep coming and we've loved browsing through September's entries. As well as a source of pure inspiration for our new lampshade makers, each one shows a little bit of personality and we really enjoy getting to know you thorough your shades, as well as admiring them! September's deserving #memadeshade winner, @thenakedweaver may be a newbie to lampshade making but is definitely no stranger to crafting. Our huge congratulations go to El

Adding extra shine to your lampshades has just got that bit easier with our TWO new and exciting metallic trims! Choose between our elegant Metallic Contoured Profile Trim, or purpose made Hockey Stick Decorative Trim, either of which can be used with any of our Lampshade Making Kits to create some extra lampshade bling! In this blog post we’ll walk you through the gorgeous and glitzy colour ranges, as well as share our step by step instructions on how to apply and use each o

With summer in full swing, sunshine has not stopped play, or lampshade making to be more precise! So, it seems very fitting that August's #memadeshade winner is a beautiful coastal scene, made by Ben of @studio.goldfinch, depicting the very pretty town of Port Issac in Cornwall, using his original lino print design. Ben's win scoops him a £100 Dannells voucher and our congratulations go to him on his winning with his lampshade prototype. We're sure that by adding shades to hi

It's great when you make or find a shade that fits all seasons, brightens up a corner and adds a touch of sophistication to your home too. July's #memadeshade winning lampshade ticks all of these boxes! Made by Neringa of @chantier.studio, the contrast circles of green, blue and yellow certainly make this shade pop. Huge congratulations Neringa and your £100 voucher to spend on our Dannells website is on it's way! Based in Lithuania, Neringa's passion for lampshade making has

Spanning both fashion and interiors, Cottagecore started to gain traction in early 2019, evolving as an internet and social media trend, due to it’s popularity with the younger generations, particularly in the US. Cottage Core focuses on aspirations of rural lifestyles, romantic home styling, cosy country cottage vibes mixed with crafts and lifestyle hobbies, such as flower arranging, baking and gardening. A homely life is essentially at its core. A well adopted trend during

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

With indoor get togethers now possible we're so pleased that Lampshade Making Workshops can start to take place and you can share your passion for lampshade making once again. Whether you’re a kit maker, professional lampshade maker or even a wholesaler of our Needcraft lampshade kit range, behind the scenes we’ve been developing useful ways to support you, particularly if you run or are planning to run workshops in the very near future. Teaching others how to make lampshades

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

Via our #memadeshade Instagram competition we’ve seen our lampshade makers use a variety of art and craft skills, as the basis for making beautiful lampshades. Today we wanted to shine a light - sorry, no pun intended ;) - on free machine embroidery and introduce you to the principles, techniques and some of our talented makers who create stunning lampshades, using this imaginative textile art. So what is free machine embroidery? Also known as free motion embroidery, free mac

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

Pimping your lampshade is easier than you think. There’s the DIY route, that we all know and love, using one of our lampshade making kits with beautiful fabric, sophisticated trims or coloured, metallic or even neon PVC's, to bring your shade to life. Or you could use one of our 3 creative services, to really enhance your shade making and take it to the next level. Pick from designing your own fabric, creating your own bespoke shade dimensions or trying out one of our excitin

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

February is the month of love and we thought we’d "Share the love" by celebrating our incredible independent lampshade makers and small businesses. Always ready to support our maker community, whether it’s a simple question about a product, helping you design your own fabric or making up trade packs in our warehouse, we love helping you expand your business; side hustle or main source of income. Shape, size, style, trims, fabrics and creative additions make every shade except

Happy New Year! We’re finally in 2021 and we’re hoping it’s a better and brighter year for everyone. To celebrate our craft and your passion, we'd love you to kick off your lampshade making year with a bang and encourage you to try something new and exciting in 2021. Whether you’ve been considering making your first Dannells Lampshade Making Kit for your home or are already an accomplished shade maker, take inspiration from and get creative with, our 5 resolutions to take you

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