I have always enjoyed working with different fabrics and had a variety available from clothing, pillows, and craft items. When we were first married and I was a stay at home mom, my first lampshade project was to decorate my daughter’s room. After this first project was completed, I began receiving requests for lampshades from friends and family members. My husband, Kelly, suggested that we should try selling lampshades to local antique stores. This caused us to begin receiving calls from people who saw our lampshades in various stores and place specific requests with us. Once we became empty nesters, and with the encouragement and emotional support from our children, we quit our jobs (I was running a home daycare) to pursue creating lampshades full time. We then made a serious move from Colorado to Cincinnati, Ohio with the desire to expand our lampshade business. In 1994, we officially took the name Vintage Shades for our business. We began by taking our antique lamp shades to display at antique home shows while still selling our creations to shops. Our business began to flourish and grow. In 2000 we moved to a small community in Iowa, this allows us easy travel to find beautiful material for our shades as we can reach either coast quite easily, we also found a home we truly love. The internet has really given us the opportunity to expand our business and sell our shades to a variety of customers. Not only do we continue to sell and create lampshades for clients seeking décor for their homes, we now sell to movie production companies, historic hotels, museums, restaurants, and clubs worldwide. We have been making lampshades for over a quarter of a century. During this time we have found the best silk fabrics and trims to use, both new and antique. Kelly also now makes our wire frames which has allowed us to have truly limitless design potential. We can recreate old antique frames, work with ideas from our clients, or create our own original designs. Restoration of many wonderful old and original antique lampshades has also broadened our knowledge and inspires us as we create new shades. "Matador" - An Original Frame and Design by Us We have learned so much about color, textures, and design over the years, and we have continually gained knowledge and experience with lampshades. This has caused us to continually have new excitement and inspiration for our lampshades. We love creating truly beautiful designs in a variety of styles like Victorian, Art Nouveau, Art Deco, Asian, and Edwardian. Our philosophy when creating lampshades is “Too much is never enough.” We hope you take the time to look at our beautiful shades and please reach out to us if you have any questions. Thank you so much for your time! Kathy

A small look at how the Victorians used bird imagery—and why I’ve come to love it too As the seasons begin to turn and the first signs of spring return, I find myself reflecting on how my love of birds has quietly shaped both my home and my work. Even though we’re not quite through February yet, I’m already starting to feel like spring is just around the corner. It’s my favorite season for so many reasons—the longer, warmer days, spending more time outdoors, watching new life push up through the soil, and listening to the birds as they sing in the morning. I especially love the little wrens. They may be tiny, but they can really belt out a song. Whether I’m sitting on the porch listening to one sing as it builds its nest, or watching the parents feed their babies out in the yard, I find so much joy in their presence. As the weather warms and their songs return, there’s a real sense of life and renewal in the air. Over time, I realized I’ve brought that fondness for birds into my home in many ways—through wallpaper, framed pictures, even a rug with a peacock design, and of course, in our Christmas decorating. I’ve also used bird images printed on silk as focal points on a few of my lampshades. Some time ago, I wrote a blog about an autograph book I found in an antique shop. What first drew me to it was the gold-embossed bird on the cover. That small detail caught my eye, and of course, inside were the beautiful penmanship, poetry, and sentiments that made it even more special. Because we live in a Victorian home and have decorated it as much as we can to reflect that period, I became curious about how birds influenced Victorians in their homes and even in their clothing. Bird imagery appeared everywhere. Birds were embroidered into upholstery and drapery, printed on wallpaper, worked into carpets and needlework, and even incorporated into fireplace tiles and lighting fixtures. We’ve had some beautiful bridge lamps with bird motifs, and we’ve restored older shades with bird images as well—some of those can be seen on our website in the recover section. Birds were also very present in fashion. I’ve always loved those grand hats with sweeping ostrich plumes, worn so proudly and adding such drama as ladies walked down the street. Bird motifs also appeared on brooches and hair combs. Victorians were very fond of symbolism, and birds carried special meanings for them: • Dove — peace, purity, spirituality • Swallow — homecoming and loyalty • Peacock — beauty, immortality, and pride • Songbirds — joy and domestic harmony Bird imagery reflected that wonderful Victorian mix of romantic symbolism, a love of nature, and a delight in ornamentation. They added life, color, and a sense of the outdoors brought inside. For me, there has always been a romantic feeling tied to that era—and birds only enhance that feeling.

"I came across this old shade and I’d like to have it restored” We hear this quite often in our business and we are always anxious to see what they have.  Many amazing frames arrive here in  shapes and styles we have never seen before! Often we fall in love with the antique shape and are able to reproduce the frames for our "collection" of future shades to make. When restoring a shade we try to come as close to the design of the original as possible if that is what the client wants.  It’s great when we can save the trims and beads in order to reapply them. Fabrics can be a challenge, as they change often and disappear from the shelves, this applies to both colors and patterns. But we have been fortunate to come very close most of the time! We had one come to us with painted images on some of the panels. They were worn and a few torn beyond repair. We were able to reproduce them and recreated the same look as it must have had previously. The customer was amazed but bewildered as to how we mended them so they didn’t even show the tears and holes!  We were so glad that they were happy with the restored shade! But my favorites are the requests that are made by a grandchild (or great), with the intent of returning the shade to their still living grandparent. "This shade was on my grandmother’s lamp for as long as I can remember. I now have her lamp and would like to have the shade restored." Restoration becomes even more important to us then! A couple of years ago we were fortunate to be able to work with a woman that lived a hundred miles from us and she hand delivered the lampshade to us. It was her grandmothers shade that she really wanted it restored as close as possible to the original look. Fortunately there were actual fabric panels we were able to carefully remove and reuse. Some of the trims were still on the shade, and in good enough condition, to show us what to look for with the final touches. We were proud to show her the results when she made the trip back to pick it up after completion. Both she and her grandmother were excited and happy with the final product! We are pleased that we include restoration or replication in our work. A wonderful old lamp looks even more spectacular when an original style shade adorns it. We LOVE the follow up emails, sometimes hand written thank you cards and pictures. Hearing the compliments from the client that the shade is back in its rightful place, on the lamp and in their home, and that it looks just like they remembered it from back in the day are some of our favorite things to hear.

Antique lampshades are often too old and worn out to use. We restore and repair antique lampshades to their original beauty. RESTORATION & REPAIR Restoring Antique Lampshades To Their Former Beauty Restoring antique shades to life again is always a joy! We repair each fabric antique lampshade using as many original fabric and trim pieces as possible. Our expertise in antique lampshade restoration has been acquired by the many different shades we have restored over the years. On this page are some before-and-after examples of our antique lampshade restoration. We try to reuse original elements when possible. When original elements are no longer usable, we can recreate an original shade with vintage or vintage-looking fabrics and trims. Not all shades can be restored, but many can. We are always glad to look at photos of your shade and let you know what we can do! Give Us A Call Email Us My restored lamp shade arrived yesterday and it is absolutely gorgeous - expert workmanship. It is just what I had in mind and every detail is perfect. It was certainly well worth the time and price. I am so grateful that I found you online. I am so pleased to have it back and will certainly enjoy it for many years to come. Bird Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Bird After Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! After Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Evangeline Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Evangeline After Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Evangeline Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Evangeline After Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Chandrika Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Chandrika After Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! After Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Curl Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Curl After Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Curl Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Curl After Amelia Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Amelia After Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Amelia Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Amelia After Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! After Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Pleated Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Pleated After Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! Before Need a shade to be restored? Email us a photo of your shade to see what we can do! After This restoration came to us with a very plain and simple design. We added beautiful new beading throughout the shade to make it a stand out shade! Have a shade you would like restored? Email us!

We made beautiful vintage lampshades for the Mad Hatter Shop in Disneyland. Can we make a custom lampshade for you? Specializing in Victorian, Art Nouveau, Art Deco, and Asian style lampshades, we create beautiful handmade pieces to light up any room. Vintage Shades at Disneyland! Lampshades for Disneyland and all the other Happy places Disney artists contacted Vintage Shades to make several shades for their Mad Hatter Shop in California and later for the Florida Mad Hatter. Thanks to all of you at Disneyland -- It was a pleasure working with you!! We would love to partner with you also. Please reach out to see how we can partner to make your store the happiest place on earth! Give Us A Call Email Us Customers

View great examples of our past work. Many are one-of-a-kind creations. Contact us for more information and design suggestions. 951-326-9610. Main Gallery GALLERY Bedlamps Bridge Shades Floor Shades Table Shades Chandeliers / Shields Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link 1/1 Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link 1/1 Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link Go to link 1/2