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Hi friends,
Dang, it’s been a long time since I’ve participated in one of these challenges. I still have my stock pile o’upcycle items but it’s finding the time to actually upcycle them into my ideas that’s the tricky part. But I’m so happy that I found time this month to do a project that’s been whirling around in my brain for SO long!
The Rules:
- Upcycle an item(s) from a thrift store, resale store, or garage sale into a new piece of decor.
- There’s no monthly theme.
- There’s no budget to stick to.
Meet the Hosts!
Angela | Simply Beautiful by Angela
Jennifer | Cookies, Coffee, & Crafts Michelle | Our Crafty Mom Deborah | Salvage Sister & Mister
Pam | P.S. I Love You Crafts Gail | Purple Hues and Me Ann | Duct Tape and Denim Pili | Sweet Things
Denise | My Thrifty House Victoria | Dazzle While Frazzled Chelc | Inside the Fox Den
Michelle | Michelle J. Designs Marie | The Inspiration Vault Yami | The Latina Next Door
Florence | Vintage Southern Picks Debra | Shoppe No. 5 Kathleen | Our Hopeful Home
Make sure you follow our board on Pinterest for more upcycled decor inspiration!
My favorite thing to do come summertime is wake up super early on Saturdays and go yardsale hunting with Mama Fox. There are some times where we come up empty handed, but most often we find a treasure or two. Like this lamp. I remember we actually stopped at the house that was selling it because we were looking for props and costumes for a school play, but while we were searching I found this tucked away in a corner.
About a year prior to that I stopped into a World Market and found this Glass Terrarium Table Lamp and I loved it. But there was one problem…it couldn’t be a true terrarium because it was sealed and couldn’t be filled. I loved the idea of an actual terrarium lamp and added it to my idea list. When I came across this clear based lamp, I knew it was time to finally make my DIY terrarium lamp!
Supplies Used
- clear based lamp
- poster frame
“glass” / thin plexiglass sheet
- sharpie marker
- heavy duty scissors
- E6000 glue
- nail polish remover
- hot glue gun
- hot glue sticks
- various sized & colored rocks
- faux succulents
“glass” / 
Instructions
1. The first thing I did was disassemble my lamp. Took the light bulb out, took the lampshade off, and gave it a good clean.
2. I put the bulb and shade to the side since I was focusing on the base. I took apart my poster frame and removed the clear sheet from the plexiglass. I decided to buy a bigger frame than I needed because I need some extra plexiglass for a different project but you could always buy the cheaper frames at the dollar store if they fit the size you need.
3. I laid my base flat on the plexiglass and traced around with sharpie. I used sharpie so that it was easy to see where I needed to cut and so that I could remove the marks with nail polish remover later. I traced one full size shape for the back and one half-sized for the front so I could have a space to fill it.
4. Using heavy duty scissors I slowly cut out my shapes. I found that the faster I cut the more tiny, splintering cracks would appear on the edges. It definitely took some time, but slower is definitely better. I also cut off a corner so that there was a space for the cord to exit out the back.
5. Once my shapes were cut to size (and even though I traced there were still some spots where I had to cut a little more off) I put a thin line of E6000 glue around the edges and placed the plexiglass pieces in place. Wow, try saying that 3x fast!
6. I then decided to glue my cord in place on top, down the back, and in the corner. I wanted to make sure whatever I put in my terrarium lamp was the center of attention, not the cord.
7. Now it’s time to fill ‘er up! I started by creating a base for the faux succulents I was going to “plant”. I placed a layer of large, black rocks on the bottom (making sure to place one strategically so that the hole for the cord would be covered), created contrast by adding a small layer of white gravel, and topped it off with a layer of small river rocks on top.
8. To finish off my DIY terrarium lamp I picked up some faux succulents from the dollar store and arranged them!
9. I put it among the books on my shelf, turned it on, and admired the awesomeness that is my DIY terrarium lamp!
And now for more thrifty goodness!
Check out what my fellow upcyclers created below!
Loved it? Pin it!
Liked this DIY Terrarium Lamp?
Liked this DIY Terrarium Lamp?Check these other planter-inspired DIYs too!
So creative! What a neat idea and I’m so glad you found a lamp for the project. It’s awesome!
Jenny recently posted…Home Sweet Home Farmhouse Sign
Wow! That is such a cute lamp. It’s looks fantastic!
Wow, what a great idea to create a front and a back from frames! Never would have thought of that! It looks fabulous:) I actually have a clear bottle thrift store lamp that is bottomless…..now you’ve got me thinking! ha! xo Kathleen|Our Hopeful Home
Cute idea! Great splash of color on a bookshelf. Visiting from Thrift Store Upcycle.
This is so nice. I love how you created the different textures with the stones and added the succulents for the color.
Chelc, that’s pretty clever! I love the way it looks all lit up! You had a fun idea, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy that lamp for a long time to come.
I am so in love with this!! Such a creative idea and I love that you used succulents. It is just gorgeous!
you’re so talented! this is such a creative idea!@
Chelc, this is amazing! I always see those clear base lamps and wonder what I’d do with them – I love this idea!