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.

Shakespeare asked “What’s in a name?” We have also been asked "Wha'ts in a name?" concerning the names given to our lampshades. Some of them were given names by the frame makers we purchased them from when we first started our business and we decided to keep those. As we began working more with original antique frames and creating our own designs, we came up with our own selection of names! Some of them are old fashioned names from an earlier time, some are the names of our relatives, and some are named for the client that sent us the frame or their location like the “Kenosha”. Another shade in a similar style is the “Madison”, both Madison and Kenosha are cities in Wisconsin. The “Boulderado” was a style chosen by the interior designer for the Boulderado Hotel in Boulder, Colorado. An Adaptation of the small pieces on this frame led to the creation of the “Aspen” shade. Some Names reflect something about the lines of the shade. We have decided to name this restoration project “Evangeline”. Evangeline is a derivation of the Latin word “evangelium” meaning ‘gospel’ from the Greek “euangelion” (good tidings). The name was brought to life by the American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in his 1847 epic poem “Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie”. This shade was brought to us to restore it to its former glory. “Ambrosia, food of the gods”, one of our favorite pieces we have made and truly a work of art.

We have several stories we find humorous from our early days in this business. One of these occurred while we went on a selling trip in the days before the internet and selling online was possible. We would carry our inventory of finished lampshades in our van and travel through towns and cities looking for shops that seemed like they might like our style and product. Kelly would carry a few shades into the store so the owner could see our work. This often was a long process as they wanted to see all of our shades before making a purchase. One such trip took place on a rather warm Ohio day. We stopped in a shop and after bringing in a few shades we spent some time talking with the lady in charge, getting an idea of colors and style she might like to see. Finally, after a quite lengthy conversation (she was having some difficulty in making a decision),  I turned to Kelly and suggested that we get Judy, one of our shades, out of the van. Many of our shades have names like this because it makes it easier for us to instantly know which shade we are referring. It took a bit of explaining on our part to assure the panic stricken shop owner that we hadn’t left a child, JUDY, in the vehicle all this time while trying to make a sale. After calming down, and a good laugh, we found her the perfect shade!

I found this wonderful autograph book in an antique shop some years back and had to have it!  The book originally belonged to a woman named Agnes Stracke.  Autograph books were popular among Dutch and German communities in the late 1800's and were a precursor in many ways to today's yearbooks. This book dates back to at least 1879 according to the date on one of the pages. The entries are often in English, but some of them are in foreign languages like German. There is so much to appreciate about this piece. The gold embossed cover caught my eye first... then I opened it! The penmanship is exquisite artwork that displays the careful detail and time involved in the inscriptions!  The poems, phrases, or just personal notations speak of an age long passed. Such heartfelt passages to a dear friend are written here. One beautiful poem reads: When this page doth meet thy gaze Mid other scenes and future days  And when thy pleasant thoughts are cast On friends and pleasures of the past Then think of me who wishes now That sorrow may never cross thy brow  But all the blessings that heaven can send  May visit you my dearest friend.   Emma  February 12th, 1882 A simple note, but one of my favorites reads: Agnes, May the snowy wings of innocence ever protect you. Your loving friend Ida September 7th, 1879 Another sweet entry from 1898 reads: My dear Classmate. May your noble life, be long, prosperous, and happy. And may your friends be as true to you; as you have been to me. Your loving friend, E.M. Baker June 23rd, 1898 Not that I want to begin using thy or doth in my everyday vocabulary, but I am afraid that technology, and perhaps some laziness, has caused us to lose the desire to spend the time and effort to express feelings by means of the “poetic” language written with obvious care and emotion.  This is a treasure that I can physically hold and read, a compilation of beautifully written expressions of friendship! ~Kathy

One activity that I have enjoyed over the last several years is browsing through antique stores, antique shows, and flea markets. It’s great to find treasures that I can use when creating lampshades. I have found beautiful trims, beads, flowers, and sometimes even a fabric or garment in pristine condition. It's wonderful to use these pieces and give them new life in a lampshade. But another reason I enjoy browsing and antiquing is that it reconnects me with the past. Many items I find are from before even the lifetime of my grandparents, but I’m beginning to see more things enter the market that I recall being in the homes of my older relatives or neighbors when I was young. Many of these items were either dispersed among other family members, given to goodwill, or possibly tossed, so I had temporarily forgotten about them. But now, I can hold an object in my hands for a moment and my memories transport me back to a time, a place, or even into the presence of someone I spent time with during my childhood. Memories are truly a gift! On a personal note, the things I kept for myself when going through belongings from my mother and grandmother aren’t valuable to anyone else (except some family members), but they are special to me. I have some costume jewelry I remember them wearing, my mom's measuring cup, and the old bowl my grandma used to make delicious popcorn balls. What treasures do you have from someone in your past?