Beachcomber lamp

Initially after seeing the score Laney had on Ebay scoring those vintage beachcomber lamps and realizing that I would probably never find a vintage one for myself I decided to make my own! After a good 10 hours of hard work and numerous abrasions to my hands and arms from working with bailing wire I finally completed my first beachcomber lamp - check it out!!

:drink:

Just Cool!!
JohnTiki

Aloha from the enchanted Pi Yi Lanai in exotic Bel Air Maryland!

[ Edited by: johntiki on 2002-12-31 08:25 ]

Wow, that came out really nice. What are the tapa cover pieces made out of? it looks almost plastic. I'dlike to try something like that too. What did you use for a frame? just the bamboo?
The more I look and buy, I think i've been bit buy the lamp bug myself.

oh the pretty lights.

Hey nice work Johntiki,
I have been throwin' ideas around for a lamp also, The diamond shape throws a cool twist into it the design. Tell us more about how you put it together when you have some time.

Chongolio

Nice job. I, too, have many ideas for lamps!But I'm a little nervous about all the new lamp lovers! I was watching a plastic swag on ebay (not tiki at all) but sure enough the high bidders name has "tiki" in it. Related? I don't know but don't drive up the price of my lamps on ebay. They're MINE all MINE! Laney's loony lamps!

Thanks for all the compliments – I will enlighten those who wish to build their own Beachcomber lamp.

Materials…

1. A pair of matching plastic lampshades – I found mine at the Goodwill for $.99 each.
2. One tapa print shirt or fabric – I used an Old Navy end of Season, too small to fit, sale shirt for $3.99
3. One spool of jute twine
4. One roll of .22 gauge steel wire
5. One bottle of contact cement
6. One magic marker
7. 4 small gauge bamboo poles
8. 4 sand dollars
9. 4 starfish
10. 1 drill with a tiny bit and a slightly larger bit
11. 1 saw (to cut the bamboo)

Steps

1. Cut the shirt or fabric in two long strips, coat the lampshade with the contact cement and slowly apply the fabric, smoothing as you go.
2. Once both shades are covered place bottom to bottom, using a marker place dots along border, alternating in a zig-zag pattern – using the drill with the slightly larger bit, drill out the holes (Be careful to apply pressure so as to not pull the fabric
3. Now take the twine and stitch the two halves of the shade together – tying tightly when completed
4. Now take a bamboo pole and hold against the side of the shade to get the proper angle and length and mark a line to cut off the bamboo – repeat as necessary – Now using the drill with the tiny bit, drill holes through the bamboo and two tiny holes in the shade (one set at the top, one set at the bottom) Cut off a decent length of wire, thread through a hole in the shade, through the bamboo and into the other hole – tighten by twisting the wire – repeat for each piece.
5. Now drill holes in the sand dollars and starfish with the drill and tiny bit (Be careful and let the drill do the work – don’t push!) Place the aquatic life where you want and drill holes into the shade – using the wire to thread through and fasten from inside
6. Remove the inner shade holder from one of the shades and you are complete…

I displayed the shade as a table lamp but I am planning on getting a hanging bulb fixture and making it a hanging lamp. Will post photos whenever I get a chance to hang it!

:drink:

very nice work!. now for those that dont have the time or skill level, oceanic arts has some very nice lamps and ceiling lights at good, but not super cheap prices.

First, I appologize for the low quality photo.

I built a beachcomber lamp modeled from ones in the BOT and at The Alibi in Portland.
The fake ferns make it hard to see how it is made.
Basicly you need a globe which can be spray painted. The globe is encaged in bamboo slats, which in this case came from bamboo blinds like the ones on the wall behind the lamp. The ends of the slats are bound with twine.
I also used some netting on this.

[ Edited by: mrtikibar on 2002-12-31 15:16 ]

[ Edited by: mrtikibar on 2002-12-31 15:21 ]

cool lamp

Very nice work!

Wow John-Tiki that looks great.

Very nice indeed. Love the starfish!

I would like to build my own, anyone have pics from this project they can upload and / or fix in these posts?

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=7482&forum=18&hilite=lamp

That's a nice lamp, but it's not what I'm looking for.
The one I was asking about was a jug and scrap wood with fake flora on it. I should have mentioned that earlier. This is what I was looking for:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=25185&forum=5&vpost=324919&hilite=beachcomber%20bottle

Texas Tikiphiles Unite!

[ Edited by: Unkle John 2007-12-03 08:10 ]

Yeah UJ,

I thought there was a pic of that lamp in that post. after I posted it I realized there was no pic. There were allot of pics of other lamps, but most of the links are dead.
Al