I'm Kate (aka the Lampshade Genie!) I'm a recently retired upholsterer, living and working from my workroom in the beautiful Jamberoo Valley, south coast NSW Australia. The only thing I love more than making - and repairing - lampshades is TEACHING lampshade making! It's a very wonderful, satisfying and exciting craft - there's a thrilling moment during the process when your one-dimensional, flat fabric-bonded-panel turns magically into a 3dimensional lampshade - and this has to be experienced to be believed! Also, it's just so satisfying displaying these shades you've created around your home - the ambient light from lampshades creates a very different atmosphere and mood than overhead lights or mass-produced boring shades. I really love seeing my students' reactions when they realise what they've created, and there's nothing better for me than receiving photos of my students' lampshades at home!

The workroom is located in the Jamberoo valley, on south coast New South Wales, Australia (about 2hrs south of Sydney, near beautiful seaside Kiama, and about 2.5hrs from ACT), but we also run events in other locations around NSW - both scheduled and on demand (see Private Events tab)

Please contact me via the Contact page (or by email) if you'd like to make an enquiry for a Custom Lampshade or Lampshade Makeover. If you'd like to book a workshop, please head straight to the Events page - or if there isn't a workshop on a date suitable, contact me via the Contact page to find out upcoming dates.

Yes, but within Australia only 🇦🇨 Details shown at checkout

I specialise in making bonded lampshades (ie: where the fabric is bonded/laminated to a stiff lining). These are a modern type of shade, and include professional shade-making materials - PVC which is resistant to heat, UV and fading; hand-crafted, powder-coated rings.

Yes I sell a limited range of lampbases, Lampshade supplies, Lampshade kits, Fabric, Gift cards. Pease see the Products listing in the Shop

Cancellations Due to the difficulties of refilling short-notice vacancies in small-group workshops there is NO REFUND of tickets purchased. However - tickets are fully transferrable to someone else to take your place. Thankyou for your understanding!

Lampshade making is definitely fiddly - but it's not hard - and all my students seems to agree that it is an incredibly satisfying craft! My workshops are a lot of fun - I demonstrate one step at a time and then having everyone follow along and complete that step before moving onto the next one. It's really useful to see other students around you doing the same thing, but with different fabrics, shapes and sizes - it's a great way of learning. I guarantee every participant will go home with a fully completed shade they are really pleased with!

Unfortunately lampshade making definitely is quite physical - most of it is best done in a standing position (but it would not be impossible to do seated, just a bit awkward). There is a lot of manipulation using your hands, scissors, large pieces of PVC, stickytapes and rings - and also takes a fair amount of focus (but yes, we do also have laughs along the way!)

Yes - minimum age is 16 years.

My primary classroom is in my home studio - the Lampshade Workroom - located in the Jamberoo Valley, south coast NSW Australia (about 2 hours south of Sydney). I also run workshops in my local region (the Southern Highlands, the Illawarra, Sydney and ACT). However, I also love travelling and am happy to travel within NSW to run workshops in further afield locations. Please get in touch if you'd like to discuss arranging a workshop near you. (If it's too far for me to come, I might be able to suggest another provider)

Yes! I LOVE making custom shades. Please get in touch to find out how to get the ball rolling

Yes! I love making new bespoke (custom) lampshades. I can make shades to your specification, or suggest a suitable size/shape to suit your lamp or situation. Please contact me including photos or any other info you have and I'll send a quote as soon as I'm able

That depends on lots of things - the shade size & shape & type - what fabric you'd like, etc. Best bet is to send me a pic of your shade and I'll reply asap

Yes! I repair bonded lampshades (these are the stiff ones, with fabric attached to the lining - not the old fashioned curvy shapes which have the fabric stretched over and hand-sewn to the frames). If you're in doubt about what yours is, please send me a pic and I'll reply

Yes! Gift Cards are perfect for someone who prefers creating or doing-gifts over more 'stuff' to clutter the house up. You can choose any value amount from $100; you can personalise the card with your own message; the card is delivered in digital format straight to the recipient's inbox; it can be spent on any of our products or services; it is redeemable for 24months after purchase. here's the link to the Gift Card page:

Students are welcome to bring their own fabrics - but because some fabrics are much better to learn with than others, I supply a list of fabric requirements to each participant when they book, including fabric qualities and quantity. The best fabrics for learning with are lightweight natural fibres (cotton, linen) - quilting fabrics are ideal. The worst ones (for beginners) are anything heavy like upholstery fabrics, stiff like canvas, slinky or stretchy like silk or lycra or jersey.

Yes - Fabric is my great passion! I have a stash of beautiful fabrics to choose from for students who attend my Jamberoo workroom, and also have accounts with many Australian fabric suppliers so can order fabrics for use in workshops or on custom lampshade projects. Some limited (very special) fabrics are also listed in the Products category of my shop.

Cancellations Due to the difficulties of refilling short-notice vacancies in small-group workshops there is NO REFUND of tickets purchased. However - tickets are fully transferrable to someone else to take your place. Thankyou for your understanding! Returns In the unfortunate (unlikely!) event you are unhappy with a product or service you have purchased - please make contact as soon as possible after collection/delivery (within 48hours) and I will do everything I can to rectify the problem to your complete satisfaction.

Here at the Lampshade Workroom I practice modern shade-making - which is where the fabric is bonded, or laminated, to a stiff PVC lining made specially for the lampshade industry. Traditional shade-making refers to techniques which pre-date the materials used in modern shade-making.. These include hand-sewing stretched fabric onto rigid frames, and usually includes sewn linings as well. These shades often feature curved shapes like bells, or tulips or fans - and usually include trimmed embellishments. Other traditional techniques include pleated or gathered shades - which are currently enjoying a very strong comeback as more makers are enjoying learning these traditional skills. Both modern and traditional techniques result in equally beautiful shades - neither is 'better' than the other. The only reason I specialise in modern shade-making is because it is so much easier, quicker and therefore affordable compared to traditional. I'm very happy to refer anyone interested to other teachers specialising in traditional shade-making.

Drum shades Where the top and bottom diameter of the frame are the same, resulting in perfectly straight sides; the height of the shade can be anything - from tall and narrow like a cylinder - to squat and very wide like a pendant shade. Drum shades are a more modern looking shade than tapered. Tapered shades Have angled sides, as a result of the top ring of the frame having a smaller diameter than the bottom ring of the frame. The angles can be very slight (as in an Empire style shade) or very wide (as in a Coolie style shade - which looks like one of those woven cane hats). There is a huge variety in tapered shades, and here at the Lampshade Workroom, we just love working with tapered shades - and consider them our speciality!

info coming soon...

We can make shades in a huge range of sizes - we stock a variety of ring sizes meaning nearly all shades can be made in the client's desired size. Because we have a specialist frame maker we can also supply highly bespoke shades in unconventional sizes. For logistical reasons, in our non-Jamberoo scheduled workshops we offer a limited choice of drum and tapered shade sizes. However, in our Jamberoo workshops, students can choose from a much wider variety of shade sizes and shapes. These can be selected in the Checkout Options for these workshops - and are easily changed on the day of the workshop if necessary.