DIY lamp (58 photos): options for desktop, pendant and wall lighting design. How to make a beautiful chandelier from improvised materials Do-it-yourself square ceiling lamps

In this article, we offer step-by-step master classes on how to make do-it-yourself table lamps from improvised means that are always in the house. It would seem at first glance ordinary and unnecessary things, but you can make original and designer lamps for your desktop from them.

The most popular and simple improvised materials are: glass bottles and jars, cardboard and paper, plastic vessels, water pipes and cement. How to make lamps out of this we will show and tell in this article.

With a simple and elegant copper table lamp, you can decorate any corner of your home with your own hands. It will perfectly fit modern interior from loft style to rustic. Prostate and conciseness - this is the main trump card of this table lamp.

For this you need tools:

Roulette, marker
Pipe cutter and washcloth
Wire stripping and stripping tool
Pliers and a thin flat head screwdriver
crosshead screwdriver

M materials:

Copper pipes
Acetone and super glue
Copper corners 90 °, 7 pcs.
electrical wire
Plug and Electro chuck
Switch and light bulb

Table lamp assembly technique

To get started, take a tape measure, a marker, a pipe cutter, a rag, copper pipes and acetone.

Marking and cutting tubes

Using a measuring tape and a marker, mark the area where you will cut the copper pipes.
Do this carefully, accurately measuring every millimeter, because if the details are different, then in the end result they will not be as large as they should be.

Point the pipe cutter and adjust the diameter of the pipe with the nut. Watch the copper tube, gradually readjust diameter with nut, so that the closure goes on until the pipe is cut.
After, with acetone and a rag, you can wipe the markings from the pipe.

TIP: Our parts have: 3 cuts of 15 cm, 1 cut of 20 cm, 1 cut of 45 cm, 1 cut of 25 cm. We used 12 tubes. When designing your luminaire, please note that the size of the copper cubits will be added.

While the cable is inside, we connect the parts

Insert the pieces together and glue with super glue. In order to avoid problems in the future, it is better to glue each part and put it together.

Despite the instantaneous effect of the adhesive, it is preferable to wait a few minutes before proceeding to make sure the pieces are glued perfectly.

Tip: It will be more convenient to apply glue if you use a brush. If you want the lid to be at the very top, install it first. So the first part will be ready, and the cable will go in the other direction.

Instruments:

Wire stripping and stripping tool
incisors
thin flat screwdriver
crosshead screwdriver

Materials:

fork
electro chuck
switch
Copper pipes
electrical wire

Install electrical system

Open the faceplate of the cover and start by stripping the insulation. Connect ground (blue) and live (brown, gray or black) with the two screws you find inside.
Repeat the same process in the plug and switch.
In the switch you will find two pairs of small screws, a cable that you must cut to the height you want the switch to be and connect to the appropriate sockets by going inside the small screws.
All you have to do is screw in the light bulb to make your copper table lamp.

Finally, put the lamp in a corner or place you like, and you will see how it will become a wonderful addition to your interior, illuminating the space!

Master class: Table lampfrom paper

When I first saw the Robert Delta table lamp, it was love at first sight! The shape is amazing, it comes in a variety of bright colors, just the way I like it. Recently I thought, since the accessories were amazingly durable, why not use them for the lamp?

Here are all the materials used:

old lantern or lamp kit
template and thick cardboard or paper, you can take polypropylene sheets
glue and putty
sanding block (medium + fine)
wood block (add weight to base)

Instruments:

artistic tapes
metal ruler / xacto knife
drill (can optionally replace xacto knife)

Lamp manufacturing technology

First, print the pattern (6 of each triangle) (1 of each hexagon).
Cut out the shapes so that they fit snugly on the board. Then use glue to attach the pieces to the back of the mat.
Using a metal ruler and a Xacto knife on a cutting board, cut through each shape.
Put them together.

Next, glue the bottom (shapes 2 + 4) to the base (shape 6). The triangles fit together nicely and if you did everything right, they will just fall into place.

Then use small pieces of art tape to stick them together and wait for the glue to dry completely.

TIP: Use super glue, it dries instantly (we used Aleene). Apply glue lightly, and wipe off excess.

After gluing the bottom half (forms 2 + 4 to the base, form 6 turn upside down (open end down), place the square on a flat surface and let it dry overnight, this will help preserve its area.
The next day, start working on the top of the lamp. Glue the 1 + 3 shape, leaving a little hole to insert the lamp inside. The top one (form 5) was glued along with the art tape, but it is not glued to the form 1 + 3 yet.
Then reinforce the seams with glue from the inside.

Then start working on the base of the lamp.

The level at the bottom of the lamp needs to be made a little bigger, so cut a few 1×4 pieces to raise it a bit. Additional weight will also be added, which will give it more stability. Use screws to attach 1×4 to existing metal base. (We swapped the existing stem with one from another lamp to get it to the correct height).

Next, drill a hole for the cord and insert the plastic sleeve from the old lamp. The lamp should be disassembled, and pull the cord and wire through the threaded rod of the hole in the new base. Glue it in the center inside the lamp.

At the top (form 5), mark the center and drill a hole for the center rod. Then glue it in place.

After applying the adhesive, wipe off excess, and if necessary, lightly and apply a second coat after sanding.
Medium-grit putty and fine sandpaper, finish with a sanding block. At this point, you will notice its strong base.

When you've finished removing the dust, apply paint! To cover the top of the threaded rod, use the top of an old lamp - it just slides over the rod. Then return back to the nest!

Everything, a handmade table lamp is ready.

Bottle table lamp

Tin lamp

Such a lamp is perfect for a home desktop, both for a student and a schoolboy. Boys will especially appreciate it, it looks more like a transformer and a robot from the future. You can paint or decorate the jar itself with paper, thread, or make it more embossed. How right.

Table lamp made of plastic bottles

Plastic bottles can always be found on the farm, so decorating an old table lamp is not difficult. Usually, when restoring old lamps, the bases are left and plastic is used for the lampshade. The lampshade mount is usually used the old one. When working with plastic bottles, remember that cutting them is easier. paper cutter or construction knife. Glue is used for rubber or special for plastic.

Table lamp made of branches and cuts

Wood in the interior is always a classic - it is always fashionable and relevant. By decorating a table lamp with a cut of wood or an old driftwood with your own hands, you will get a designer item that simply has no price.

To do this, we need to pick up any piece of wood we like, process it properly namely, dry it, apply impregnation from pests and cover it with varnish.
The second stage is to mount the top from the old floor lamp into the base. If this is not the case, it does not matter, in stores everything for light usually sells bases for lampshades.

Other original ideas

The basis for a table lamp, in principle, can serve as any object that you do not need: these are children's toys, sewing machines, unnecessary socks, and so on. Experiment and create beauty!

Handmade items fill the house with special warmth and comfort. Plus, they are exclusive. We offer an overview of lamps that will completely change the atmosphere in the room, turning into an object of envy from the groans of friends and relatives. Moreover, they are made from everyday items that are usually thrown away.

A cardboard bag for juices or other drinks is a common thing in most homes. Most of the time it gets thrown away. But the Malay designer Edward Chu spent a lot of time to cut them into hundreds of strips and build amazing lamps from them without a drop of glue, a simple origami principle.

Yaroslav Olenev suggested making lamps out of disposable plastic spoons and became the winner in the Ecology and Design nomination from the Future Now magazine.

No less original application was found by Natalie Simpson for ordinary wooden hangers. But they look amazing in the form of a chandelier.

Kevin Chempeny must be given credit, not everyone has the strength and patience to string 14 thousand bears to get a chandelier.

Tira Hilden and Pio Diaz have their own vision on the problem of housing lighting. Thanks to their lamps, the room becomes like a forest. All walls come to life and turn into trees.

Talented welder Matt Ludwig was also an excellent designer. For JJ's Red Hots restaurant, he made an incredibly original chandelier from an old drum kit.

Texan artists Joe O'Connell and Blessing Hancock made stunning lamps from old bike parts and hung them in a tunnel under the track.

It will probably be difficult to find a more original chandelier than a pumpkin from a Polish artist. It carves stunning patterns on the peel that do not repeat.

Felt hat lampshades from Jeeves & Wooster look original and stylish.

Once Heather Jennings saw an amazing Rhododendron chandelier in the store, only it cost more than $ 800. Then the designer decided that she could do just as well with her own hands. To do this, she needed paper molds for cupcakes.

11. Chandelier in the kitchen

A chandelier made of ordinary metal tetrahedral graters will look incredibly beautiful.

Still fresh in my memory are vases and candy bowls made from openwork napkins. Now it's time to knit chandeliers.

Fansois Lego offers a strange option, he believes that the best way to store cutlery is a chandelier.

A large cloud is cut out of wood, but the rest and the switch are made of cardboard.

A few globes can make a wonderful cascading chandelier, a great way to light up a flight of stairs.

A chandelier is an important element of the interior. Handmade lamps look especially original and beautiful. There are many ideas for creating unusual chandeliers that outwardly are in no way inferior to expensive designer products.

However, in order to create a high-quality beautiful thing, you need to decide on the materials, style, and choose the most appropriate technique for creating a lamp. In order for the work to meet your expectations, follow the instructions without missing a single item.

If desired, the master can make a design with a remote control.

The frame is the basis of the lighting device, on which the ceiling or decorative elements are located. It must be durable. You can make it yourself or use a frame from an old chandelier. As a homemade base, thick metal wire, wooden slats, hoops, a basket, a plastic bottle, etc. are used.

The choice of material for the base depends on the weight of the ceiling, the materials used. If you are creating a chandelier from paper or light fabric, then a plastic or wooden frame is enough; for models with heavy shades (metal, glass), it is better to use metal bases.

We reanimate the frame from the old chandelier

If you have an old chandelier with a metal base in your pantry, feel free to use it to fulfill your fantasies. If the material is a little rusty or the paint has peeled off - it does not matter. Alkyd enamel, acrylic paint or spray enamel will help to solve this problem. Simply repaint the base any color you like to give an old chandelier a new lease of life.

Alkyd enamel keeps on metal for a long time, but it has a pungent odor. In addition, several layers will need to be applied to the base so that there are no bald spots. Acrylic is great to lay down, but to keep it, after drying, you need to apply a layer of varnish. It is very easy and quick to paint enamel from a spray can, but it is better to do it on the street or cover all surrounding surfaces with paper in advance. The choice is yours.

After drying, decorate the base with decorative elements or put on a homemade cover.

How to make a new one with your own hands: options and step-by-step instructions for making

Wooden chandeliers look original and natural. The finished frame can be decorated or left in its original form.

Step by step instructions for creating a wooden frame:

Take 12 rails (length - from 30 to 45 cm), sand them with sandpaper.
Make holes for the wire.
Make holes in which you want to fix the shades.
Treat the workpiece with paint with a touch of natural wood.
Connect the planks with self-tapping screws into a suitable design, for example, a hexagon.

To create a wire frame, a strong carbon wire (diameter 1.5 mm) is used. If not, then use a material made of aluminum, cast iron or copper.

First, a thick wire base is created, it can be round, geometric or fantasy designs. It is desirable to supplement the base with stiffeners. You should also make a mount under the cartridge.

The frame can be made from a plastic eggplant with a volume of 5 liters. To do this, cut off the bottom of the container, and then decorate with decorative elements.

What are the techniques for making ceiling lights

Ceiling lamps can be created using the technique of origami, carving, embossing, decoupage. Lamps made using knitting or weaving techniques also look very beautiful.

Original origami chandeliers will be a great addition to a modern interior.

Important! When creating an origami ceiling, do not use very thick paper, as it will not transmit light well.

If you are into crochet, then use a few doilies as the base for the lampshade. This chandelier looks amazing and can be hung in the bedroom to create an intimate atmosphere.

Homemade chandeliers with a pendant lampshade consist of a frame and decor (paper butterflies, beads, wax paper, artificial flowers, etc.). These elements are attached to the fishing line with glue, and then fixed on the base.

Very popular among home craftsmen are chandeliers, which are created from a certain material (threads, glue, special paste, ropes, etc.) and a balloon.

Ceiling lamps made of fabric can be painted with acrylic paints, decoupage technique can be applied or any decorative elements can be placed on the material.

What can you make a chandelier at home

A do-it-yourself chandelier is created from different materials:

paper;
threads;
CDs;
bottles (plastic, glass);
cardboard;
napkins;
tree, etc.

The chosen material must have the characteristics you need: safety, aesthetics, practicality, ease of maintenance, strength, durability, etc. In addition, the chandelier must match the interior of the room. Also consider the size of the room and the height of the ceiling. If the ceiling is low, then mount the lamp on the bar, but if its height is from 3 m, then a suspended structure that needs to be hooked is suitable.

For a homemade lamp, an energy-saving light bulb is more suitable, since it does not heat the body as much as a regular one. An added bonus is energy savings.

Advantages and disadvantages of materials for decorating a do-it-yourself chandelier ceiling

When choosing a material for a chandelier body, focus on aesthetic properties and technical characteristics. It is recommended to use materials that do not contain toxic substances, as they spread when heated.

Give preference to materials for the ceiling, which are easy to care for. For example, fabric lamps collect dust faster, and plastic is easier to wipe with a rag. And the paper case can be quickly replaced.

The choice of material also depends on the degree of illumination of the room. Transparent glass transmits light best. And for a bedroom or a children's room, it is better to make a chandelier with subdued light.

In this article we will figure out how to make a complete and safe lamp with your own hands. In the initial publication of the cycle - - the general quality requirements were considered, how to form a luminous flux, as well as how to choose a light source and - safety first - the rules for connecting a stationary lamp to the mains. From the previous article, we learned how to make the main lighting parts of the lamp -. Now it's time to take on the solid, reliable and beautiful constructive basis of all this.

About LEDs

LEDs as lighting sources are becoming increasingly popular: they are very economical, durable, almost do not heat up, which provides ample opportunities for self-construction and design. In addition, low-voltage power makes LED light sources safe. Therefore, in this article a significant proportion of the material is devoted to how to make an LED lamp yourself.

However, the quality of light from LEDs has not yet reached the ideal: his spectrum is pretty tight. You can soften it with various lighting techniques, which was discussed in previous articles. But thanks to the low-voltage power supply, a street or garden LED lamp can be made independently without special precautions, and also be autonomous; then bulk earthworks and cable laying on the site disappear. In this section, we will focus more on LED lamps.

Some examples of what can be achieved by taking on lighting equipment with your own hands are shown in the photo. A similar selection “for ideas” or “for inspiration” will be compiled by anyone who knows how to use the Internet. And here we will deal with things that are not so aesthetic: how to embody all this in the material. Cheap, reliable and practical. Preferably at home, on your knees.

Materials, tools, equipment, technologies

To make a good lamp, expensive and / or hard-to-find materials are not needed. Former technologies focused on incandescent lamps, which are very hot and consume a lot of current. The current homemade ones have housekeeper lamps and LEDs that emit little heat, which makes it possible to simplify the design.

To manufacture a lamp that is not inferior in appearance or quality to industrial designs, we will need scraps of metal tubes, steel wire with a diameter of 1.5-2.5 mm, galvanized steel sheet 0.4-1 mm thick and pieces of plastic or inexpensive plastic products, see below. And in many cases, to achieve the desired result, it is possible to get by with unnecessary trash. Wood processing for a complex lamp is a special case, and we will not bypass it.

Note: good old glass also should not be discounted. Take a look at this tutorial for example: diy.ru/post/3916/. That's what can be achieved by working at home with such difficult material. Only one small "but" - what the author of the product (a man, no doubt, very skillful and quick-witted) calls cutting, in fact, edging. However, how to call it is the business of letter-eaters, and it is enough for the master to make the contraption good.

Very simple but tasteful

Examples of excellent lamps made from improvised materials, namely, scraps of wood and paper, are well-known Chinese lanterns, see fig. When using modern light sources, their fire hazard is negligible, much less than that of an electric kettle. The basis is most often a rack frame, pasted over with paper, pos. 1. For the frame of what is in pos. 2, thin bamboo sticks are better (you can split an old rod into strips), or the ends of modern fiberglass rods; sold in fishing stores. The joints are wrapped with thread and glued. Paper (preferably rice) after pasting is lightly sprayed with water from a spray bottle. When dry, it will stretch. After that, the paper is varnished for strength.

A Chinese lantern can also be made entirely of wood: chopsticks or table skewers (wooden twigs on which barbecue and kebab are served at the table). Both are made of light, fairly well-reflecting light, wood. And its slightly rough surface effectively scatters light, which softens it.

From chopsticks, placing them with broadened heads alternately to the left, then to the right, side light-transmitting panels are gaining, pos. 3. And from table skewers you get a good ceiling lamp for the kitchen or hallway, pos. 4. The ends of the sticks (they are made of soft wood) are simply pierced with a sewing needle with a fishing line threaded into it.

Plastics

But back to the materials, they are not finished yet. Excellent details of chandeliers, table lamps and floor lamps (cups, caps, see below) are obtained from reusable plastic utensils - bowls, glasses, saucers: the rim on the bottom is carefully cut off or sanded off. Then this place is passed 2-3 times with increasingly fine sandpaper; the last pass - "velvet" - and polished with felt with GOI paste. The decorative, lighting and technological (ease of processing) qualities of such parts are very good.

The second type of plastic, which allows you to make a very original lamp (see Fig.) - polymer clay or just plastic. In terms of lighting properties, it is not inferior to light wood, and in a thin, 2-3 mm layer, it is translucent, like milk glass, i.e. softens the light very well.

Polymer clay is available in various colors immediately-plastic in plastic bags and bars, like plasticine. The latter are quite hard at first, but soften when kneading. To speed up and facilitate softening, put 3-4 drops of vegetable oil on the bar, and start kneading when it is absorbed.

Lampshades are molded from soft plastic on a mandrel lubricated with petroleum jelly. Immediately, if necessary, they fill the texture with a brush, at the bottom right in fig. To obtain an openwork ceiling, the tip of the package is cut off and the mass is squeezed out with a sausage. After about a day, the product dries up, then you can, without removing it from the mandrel, cut out figures, scallops, frills. Completely the product dries up in 3-7 days.

Bar plastic is used for the manufacture of lamp stands. Having molded the workpiece, it is baked in the oven at 120-130 degrees. When a brownish crust forms on the product, the gas is covered to a minimum and “baked” for another 1-3 hours, depending on the size of the part. It should cool completely in the oven, which is undesirable to open. The baked workpiece can be cut, sawn, drilled, polished, painted. In this way, lamp cases are sometimes not only original, but also quite spicy (see the figure), or even frivolous on the verge of decency, or even beyond it.

Ceramics

Since we are talking about coasters, let's try to make a lamp out of a bottle. Ceramic vessels for drinks, worked out by company designers, deserve a better use than garbage, moonshine or recyclables for pennies.

There are 2 problems here: stability and holes for cable entry and a switch. The first is solved with sand, poured into the bottle by 2/3 or 3/4. To solve the second, it would seem that a tubular diamond drill is needed, which is expensive, wears out quickly, and requires a high-speed drilling machine. And we can do without all this:

We will select a copper tube of a suitable diameter.
We will securely fix the vessel that we will drill so that the drill enters along the normal (perpendicular) to its surface in this place.
Around the place of the future hole, we will fashion a roller 4-6 mm high from plasticine.
Let's rub a couple of pieces of fine skin against each other over some pallet to get about a teaspoon of corundum powder.
Pour it into the hole and drip 3-5 drops of engine oil - you can drill.

For drilling, it is better to put a drill with a copper tube clamped in a chuck into a bed that turns it into a desktop drilling machine. Such beds are sold in tool stores; the prices are divine, the benefit to the artisan is invaluable. Moreover, you can buy a turntable with a degree scale to the bed.

They drill ceramics with copper and corundum in jerks: slightly pressed - raised - pressed again - raised. Abrasive particles first eat into copper and drill, but then they break out and crumble. Pulse drilling constantly renews the corundum “plating” on copper, and the oil prevents the powder from scattering and speeds up the work. The main thing is that the tube, with each feed, falls exactly into the already selected groove.

Electrical fittings

For a novice lighting engineer, it is best, perhaps, to use cartridges for lamps for a regular E27 base with fastening with union shaped nuts (threaded flanges); its designation begins with E27H, and the drawing is shown in fig. It will not work to mount such a cartridge, or a regular one with a skirt, with a threaded fitting in the lid: if there is an M10x1 or M12x1 die, then at home, with a manual wrench, cut the thread on a thin-walled tube without cutting it and not rolling it, very difficult, even with grease. Under mounting with flanges, you will have to make a mounting ring, as described in the article on lampshades, it is much easier.

Note: if a wall lamp is made in which the lamp is located along the base, then cartridges with a side bar are usually used, see fig., but they are more expensive. In this case, you can also get by with a flange cartridge: an Ω-shaped clamp is bent from the wire and fastened to the base with self-tapping screws.

The second thing you need is a screw terminal connector, or a terminal block, or just a terminal block, to connect the lamp to the wiring. For a chandelier, it is mandatory not only for the sake of ease of installation, but also according to the requirements of safety regulations: suddenly the chandelier breaks, its thinner wires break out of the terminal block, and the ceiling wiring is not affected, which will prevent an accident and ceiling-grooving repair work.

It is better to take a terminal block of the “comb” type, see Fig.:

Such are compact, reliable, exclude accidental short circuits, and by biting the jumpers between sections, it is elementary to get a connector for the required number of wires. It is allowed to enter no more than 2 stranded wires with a copper cross section of up to 1.4 square meters into each terminal. mm in total and not more than 1 single-core, regardless of the cross-sectional area of its conductive core.

About wooden lamps

The tree, on the one hand, is easily processed and looks solidly finished. On the other hand, to make an elegant wooden lamp, you will have to use some special technological methods. Which we will consider.

cable channels

The first problem that arises in the manufacture of a wooden lamp is how to make channels for the cable in long parts. To do this, without special equipment, “on the knee”, you can use a wood drill with a narrowed 6-sided shank, see fig. A metal tube is tightly put on it, crimped, and the opposite end is bent in a T-shape to make a manual collar; to facilitate and greater accuracy of work, it is better to take a two-band drill.

Through axial holes in long wooden parts are drilled in advance, before bending:

At both ends of the workpiece, blind holes of the desired diameter are drilled, with a depth of 30-40 mm, trying to ensure that they go as accurately as possible along the axis of the part;
They are drilled with the described manual wrench alternately from both ends, each time passing no more than 3-4 thicknesses of the part;
The chips from the holes after each pass are carefully removed;
After the jumper is broken, the hole passes through twice, from one and the other end. This is necessary to remove the step inside, which the cable can catch on when tightened.

How to bend a tree?

It is quite possible to make a lamp from bent wooden parts with your own hands: seasoned thin-layer wood softens under heating, without delamining, but when cooled down, retains the shape given to it. Bamboo, walnut and soft woods are the easiest to bend, e.g. Linden. Harder - wood of medium hardness: maple, ash, hornbeam. For bending oak, beech, mountain ash, and other hardwoods, it is better for a novice cabinetmaker not to take on. MDF also bends well.

The wood is bent either steamed in boiling water, or heated dry to more than 150 degrees. The first method is simpler, but suitable, except for bamboo, for a few species. The second is more difficult, but more accurate, because. wood does not swell and when cooled, respectively, does not shrink.

To bend wood, you need a piece of steel pipe: with a welded end for steaming or with both open for dry bending. The pipe for steaming is installed obliquely, a workpiece is placed in it, poured with water on top and boiled. Boiling water must be violent so that the workpiece is bathed in steam bubbles. The process is continued for 10-120 minutes, depending on the thickness, species and condition of the tree. You can take out the workpiece for a few seconds to check its readiness, but you only need to add boiling water instead of boiled water. Dry bending, blowing the workpiece in the pipe with a building hair dryer. First, on a sample of wood, you need to check what temperature it can withstand without charring and cracking.

How to tighten cables?

The cables are tightened into the tubular parts of the fixtures using a guide rod - "fishing rods" - made of copper wire with a diameter of 0.5-0.7 mm. "Fishing rod" should be completely flat; a smoothly curved wire wound from a reel can also be crumpled in a narrow channel. The wire of the “fishing rod” is straightened, stretching it through a rag tightly clenched in a fist. The best guides are made from enameled winding wire, which is smooth and slippery.

"Fishing rod" is introduced from the far end. Before that, its tip is tightly bent, see Fig., To be rounded. The thrust is pushed into the curved channels, slightly feeding and turning. When moving from channel to channel (see below), the running end is directed with thin long tweezers or a screwdriver.

When the end of the rod appears from the opposite side, it is cleaned by 20-30 mm and tinned. The cable wires are cleaned and tinned for the same amount, up to 3 per 1 "fishing rod". Then everything is twisted together and soldered. The twist is folded opposite to the direction of tightening so that it does not cling. Tighten by alternately feeding the cable and pulling the guide. When tightening, the cable in the channel must not be taut all the time! If it is hooked, they pull it back a little, turn it a little and pull it again.

Note: up to 4 2-wire double-insulated cables with a cross-section of copper conductors up to 0.5 sq. m. can be pulled into a straight metal tube with an inner diameter of 12 mm. mm. In a channel of the same diameter in a tree - only 1 of the same cable.

Starting from the ceiling

Suspension of the lamp to the ceiling or wall is the most critical and vulnerable node. Hanging fixtures at the 1st point is allowed only if the base is a viscous durable material, for example. oak beams, pos. a) in fig. In other cases, you must either use at least 2 suspension points, or the luminaire anchor must press on the material from above, i.e. the ceiling must work in compression, pos. c) - e).

A chandelier weighing up to 5 kg is suspended using a mounting plate, see fig. on right. The distance between the centers of the mounting holes in the plank should be, for a concrete ceiling, at least 9 of their diameters. If the ceiling is plasterboard, or suspended, or stretched, then the suspension is lowered from the main ceiling to the level of the decorative one using wooden or metal crosses or plywood boards, at the top there. How to make a suspension in some other cases, see below.

The main requirement for the suspension is that the lamp should never hang on wires. It should be held either by a rigid bar, or a strong cord / rope, or a cradle made of chains or the same cords. Under the top cap of the gimbal, the power cable must lie in a loose loop, and must not be pulled, pinched or pinched anywhere.

How to make a lamp?

Now he will try to reduce the information received into a single product, at the sight of which the guests will gasp as sincerely as the master expressed himself while working. We will be guided by the following principles:

Complex and / or technological operations requiring special skills are avoided in every possible way.
Adhesive or solder joints are used only auxiliary, holding the parts to be joined from displacement. The product assembled without gluing and soldering should, in the absence of external influences, remain intact in its normal position for an indefinitely long time.
From an additional tool, we will try to get by with a hand-held electric drill and a small removable bench vise with a screw clamp for attaching to the table.

Let's start with a chandelier, as the most complex type of household lamp.

Chandelier

On a cord

The simplest suspension of a chandelier weighing up to 5 kg is on a cord, pos. 1 in fig. In this case, 4 additional holes will have to be drilled in the lampshade mounting ring (see article on lampshades); marked in green in pos. 1a. Cord knots must be knitted that do not slip or unravel, for example. any fishing hooks. Cord - any non-rotting cross lay (eg linen) with a diameter in an unstretched state of 8 mm or more. Cords and ropes of spiral lay are not intended for long-term tensile load!

The most critical part is the suspension hook (red CP). It must be bent from steel wire with a diameter of 4 mm; a hook made of 6 mm wire rod can withstand weight up to 35 kg. Of course, if you buy a ready-made hook for a chandelier, it will not be worse.

Suspension rods with the same weight - from 4 mm wire; with a weight of up to 5 kg, you can get by with 1.5 mm, and with a weight of up to 12 kg - 2.5-3 mm. The ring is made of galvanized sheet 0.4 and 0.8 mm, respectively, or, for weights up to 35 kg, 1.4 mm.

Note: steel soldering technology at home is described in.

In this case, it is better to fix the upper cup from slipping with a rubber ring, because. the spring washer can crush the cable passing under it. A good pallet is obtained from a computer disk. Depending on whether the lamp is in the lampshade or in the ceiling, it is turned down, respectively, with the painted or mirror side. Radial cuts are made under the stretch marks of the lampshade in the pallet.

The top cup and cap are made of plastic utensils, see above. The cap lies freely on the pallet. Glue - any assembly.

Note: the lower nut of the cartridge must enter the hole in the pan, and not press it. Otherwise, it may be difficult to repair or clean the chandelier.

On the tube

In a chandelier suspended on a rigid tubular rod (pos. 2), firstly, it is not necessary to bend the suspension rods so that it is convenient to knit a knot on their crosshairs. Secondly, the number of pulls can be anything from 3. Accordingly, the ring can also be made without an additional row of holes, such as is described in the article on lampshades.

It is preferable to fix the cap in such a chandelier with a shaped (decorative) spring washer. It can be obtained from a thick plastic button by drilling a hole in the center of it 0.5-0.7 mm narrower than the outer diameter of the tube and making an oblique cut at 45 degrees to the axis of the washer, a round link of a plastic chain with the same cut, etc. P.

An eye for a hook in the suspension bar is obtained by flattening the tube and drilling a hole in the resulting lamella (petal). After that (and not before), a hole is drilled for laying the cable, otherwise dangerous mechanical stresses may remain in the material. A bar for a lamp weight of up to 15 kg can be made from pipes of the following types:

Seamless steel - inner diameter from 6 mm, wall thickness from 0.5 mm. Finishing - painting or covering with a heat-shrinkable tube (HERE) of the desired color.
Steel with a seam - vnutr. diameter from 8 mm, wall thickness from 0.7 mm. The finish is the same.
Copper gas in a plastic sheath - vnutr. diameter from 8 mm, wall from 1 mm. Finishing is not necessary, and so it shines with copper for years. You can not solder, under the adhesive connection you need to remove the plastic coating in that place.
For air conditioning systems made of oxygen-free copper - int. diameter from 10 mm, wall from 1 mm. Very easy to solder and glue. To preserve the copper sheen, the finished rod should be coated twice with a water-based clear acrylic varnish, diluted by half with distilled water.
Simple red copper - int. diameter from 12 mm, wall from 1.5 mm. It is soldered after stripping, you need to use flux paste with borax. It darkens with time and under coating, so it is better to make lamps in retro style from such tubes.
Plumbing propylene - very durable, but do not stick and, of course, do not solder. It is useless to finish, the design in any case turns out to be terrifying.

many-horned

From the tubes, you can make chandeliers with brackets-horns for individual illuminators. The device for connecting the horns with the rod is shown in pos. 5. The horns, with their even number, are connected in pairs with through threaded studs M2.5-M4 with nuts and spring washers. Pairs of holes for the studs are located at different levels, this must be taken into account when calculating the height of the straight part of the horn and making markings on their blanks. You can horns, incl. with an odd number of them, fasten with pairs of small self-tapping screws for metal, however, then the cables must be tightened very carefully so as not to tear the insulation on the sharp ends of the hardware protruding inward.

Note: complex / extended tube bends are formed section by section, gradually moving the manual pipe bender along the length of the future bend.

If the free ends of the horns are without squiggles (sorry - volute), etc. curls, then it is better to cover the knot of their connection with the barbell with a cap lying on the lower cup (shown by a dotted line in pos. 5). In addition, then cable laying will be much simpler: a terminal block will fit under the cap, in which the cables from the horns will converge, and only one 2-wire will go up in the bar.

Multi-track chandeliers are most often made with switchable light. The diagram for connecting lamps to a 2-section switch is shown in pos. 6. Do not forget - SB switches (switches) must be included in the phase wire! And yet, it is extremely important: if the house is equipped with protective grounding, never use a ground wire as a neutral (zero, N) regardless of the power supply scheme (grounded or isolated neutral)! The earthing switch is always in yellow insulation with a longitudinal stripe, and the neutral insulation in properly arranged wiring is black. But in any case, before starting electrical work, you need to find zero and phase with a phase indicator!

About phases, zero and earth

The safety regulations (PTB), electrical installations (PUE) and the Code of Practice (SP) for the production of electrical work for related industries (for example, construction) unambiguously regulate the color of the insulation of only ground wires - yellow with a green stripe; colors for phase conductors A, B, C and neutral are only recommended. The reason is that in countries where the only acceptable power supply system is an isolated neutral (Germany, Japan, etc.), it is customary to designate phase A in white or light gray. without a hitch" is not always possible.

The chandelier is heavy...

For ceiling lights weighing from 15 kg, fastening on the 1st rod or cord is no longer considered reliable enough. These need to be hung on a chain or rope cradle of 3-4 branches. 1 branch should support the full weight of the luminaire with 3 times the margin.

The cradle is fixed to the ceiling using a triangular or square carrier plate made of steel with a thickness of 5 mm or more, pos. 7 in fig. The number of attachment points is 4 or 5, respectively. An attachment point in the center is mandatory: without it, if one of the corner fixtures is excessively loosened, the mechanical load will “slam” onto the next weakest one, the suspension will break out like a domino and the chandelier will “all of a sudden” collapse.

Corner attachment points should be located on a conditional circle (red dotted line) with a diameter in centimeters of at least 0.85 of the weight of the chandelier in kilograms. In any case, the smallest distance between the centers of the holes in the concrete ceiling must be from 9 of their diameters, as with a 2-point suspension on a plank, see above. Eyelets or hooks under the branches of the cradle are welded to the carrier plate. Homemade eyelets can be made from 6mm wire rod.

… and ultralight

Fans make a lot of lamps from disposable plastic tableware, PET bottles and paper. Their weight is negligible, therefore, firstly, it is permissible to mount the cartridge in the lampshade / ceiling lamp from the same kebab sticks, see fig. In this case, the cartridge is taken E17 or E10 with lugs, see fig. left. The "ears" of the cartridge with the help of a sewing needle are simply tied to the crosshairs of the sticks with threads, thin copper wire or fishing line.

Secondly, the suspension of an ultralight lamp can also be made cradle, but from a fishing line. Its branches are inserted into the ceiling cap along with the cable, as for a chandelier on a cord. Such a suspension is almost invisible. If the cable (we recall that it should not be stretched, pinched or pressed anywhere) is twisted or twisted into a spiral, then an ignorant guest may at first be dumbfounded: levitation? telekinesis? superconductor and magnets?

Floor lamp

A floor lamp based on the same design and technological principles is, in general, an inverted chandelier on a rigid rod with some differences, pos. 3 in fig. above with fixture designs. First: the bar (which is already a stand) is made of a steel pipe with an inner diameter of 10 mm and a wall thickness of 1.5 mm. Ring - galvanized from 0.7 mm. Second: all joints of steel parts are soldered.

Further, in the lower support of the floor lamp, a sufficiently heavy and extensive structure should be provided for attaching the bottom of the rack. Under the floor lamp of the usual type, a cross will go from about 450x450 mm from an oak beam 100x100 mm. A blind hole with a depth of 75-80 mm is drilled in the center of it along the outer diameter of the rack, and it is glued into the socket with mounting glue. Also glue the rack into the shelf of the floor lamp. It will be useful, both in design and strength, to apply a polished washer with a diameter of 60 mm and a thickness of 2 mm (steel) or 4 mm (aluminum) on the glue. The described design allows the amateur to do without custom-turned parts in the manufacture of a floor lamp.

Table lamp

A working table lamp based on our principles of construction is even simpler than a floor lamp, pos. 4: a fairly massive and durable base (wood, plastic) with a stepped through hole along the axis. A lampshade ring is laid on the step and fastened with self-tapping screws. Then at the same time it will press the whiskers of the lampshade extensions and it will not hang out.

Note: for the base of a table lamp made of ceramic or glassware, you need to make a pommel-knob with a stepped hole mounted on its neck. The most suitable material for this is plastic.

For outdoor lighting

Let's leave outdoor lamps for 220 V purchased: it is impossible to make a "forever" sealed cable gland for mains voltage and also a sealed case with glass at home. We will work with voltages up to 12 V, then the cable entry is quite simple, see fig. And if the light source is powered from a current stabilizer, then no short circuit will be scary.

However, things may not come to electricity: for temporary lighting in the garden or at a picnic and in the 21st century, an ordinary candle is often more convenient and cheaper, it is also more romantic. And you can make a candle lantern with your own hands from a coffee can in just a few minutes, see the video:

Video: do-it-yourself candle lantern from a coffee can

Such a lamp is suitable for a light bulb; then there is no need for ventilation holes and the carrying handle can be fixed on the lid, which is more reliable.

A permanent outdoor lamp should already be electric. The main problem with this is reliable sealing. Here again, glassware with a screw-on lid comes to the rescue: an outdoor lamp works well from a can. In this case, since a more powerful light source is required, it is better to take a vessel from under conservation. The cable entry pipe is made by breaking through the cover with a round pointed rod. For complete tightness, aquarium silicone is applied once and for all to the rim of the lid from the inside before screwing.

The lamp "once and for all" involves the use of very reliable and durable light sources. Requirements for its quality and spectrum fade into the background, because. non-living or working premises are illuminated. Taking into account these conditions, it is better to make an outdoor lamp on the porch or, say, at the entrance to the garage from an LED strip: it will give quite bright lighting with a negligible consumption of electricity. An example of the manufacture of such a lamp, see:

Video: do-it-yourself garden lamp in 15 minutes

In the garden and in general on the site, high brightness of lighting is no longer needed, here, in general, if only you don’t get off the path and see the door to the bathhouse, cellar, barn or bathroom. On the other hand, it is very, very desirable to have a garden lamp autonomous: here the point is not the cost of electricity, but the cable, and who would like to make trenches in a well-groomed area?

Garden lights powered by solar panels (SB) and a buffer battery (battery) are commercially available, but they are either expensive or short-lived. Let's try to figure out whether it is possible to do it on our own, especially since it is quite possible:

4 white LEDs with a current of 20 mA each in a milky glass or frosted plastic bottle cover will more or less acceptable for garden needs illuminate a circle with a diameter of 4-5 m. With a current of 10 mA each, in the light spot you can still see where the stone is, and where is the pit. Total average 60 mA.
The battery, taking into account the weak recharging in winter and the decrease in capacity in the cold, should give the maximum current of the illuminators for at least 30 hours. Finger batteries for 2500-3500 mAh, frost-resistant up to -20, are on sale. We take the minimum allowable battery capacity of 2500 mAh.
Voltage drop across the luminous diode approx. 2 V. In order to stabilize the total current consumption and the battery discharge mode, on which its resource significantly depends, we give twice as much to the quenching resistors, for a total battery voltage of 6 V.
The SB, taking into account the energy efficiency of the Ni-Cd battery of 74%, should give a current of approx. 75 mA. Based on the winter in the middle latitudes, we take a rated current of 100 mA.
Also, taking into account the efficiency of the battery in terms of energy and voltage losses during charging, we take the SB voltage of 9 V.
In order for the battery resource not to fall from overcharging, the recharge current through it should not be more than 5% of the hourly discharge current. With a battery capacity of 2500 mAh and a short circuit current of 100 mA, this condition is met, even more so with a 3500 mAh battery. That is, instead of an expensive and complex charge controller, you can simply put a silicon rectifier diode.

A diagram of an autonomous garden lamp, built taking into account the described conditions, is shown in the figure:

Despite its simplicity, the battery in it is never brought to degradation of the active medium due to overcharging, and only in exceptional cases can it reach a deep discharge; therefore, its resource remains normal when operating in harsh temperature conditions. "Zest" here - SB. Their internal resistance is large and non-linear, according to a power law, grows with increasing load current, as a result of which the short-circuit current of the SB is only slightly greater than the nominal one. From this point of view, it is more profitable to use less expensive polysilicon SBs in this circuit.

The CU control device closes the switch S when the SB voltage drops to the "twilight" level. VD1 will close by then and the battery will stop charging. It is connected to the battery only for power supply. Switch - diode or transistor optocoupler or electromagnetic relay; in this case, the reed switch is better, because a conventional one with a low voltage coil will take more current than all LEDs. In this case, it is impossible to use a thyristor optocoupler as an S: in order for the opened thyristor to close, the current through it must drop to a very small value, almost to zero. Since the current is constant here, the thyristor, once opened, will not “quiet” until the battery is completely planted.

About aquarium lighting

For lighting aquariums, special linear fluorescent lamps are used. Unlike flower shelf phytolamps: the spectrum of aquarium lamps is tailored to the optical properties of water and the vital needs of aquatic plants. Both lamps are unsuitable for general lighting of premises: the light that favors photosynthesis is by no means always useful for human vision.

Do you want to transform your interior, adding a touch of originality and modernity to it? It's time to learn how to make a lamp with your own hands, because thanks to this piece of furniture your home will stand out from the rest and become unique. The creative process itself will be very interesting and useful, so if you wish, you can invite children and create your masterpiece together. Dekorin has selected for you the most beautiful lamps and lampshades that can be made from paper and other improvised means.

1. Paper lamp: how to make it yourself?

From such a simple material as paper, everyone can make incredibly beautiful and modern lamps with their own hands. In the photo below, we presented several unusual options for homemade paper lamps. Happy viewing!

Chinese lanterns: do-it-yourself paper lamp

Thanks to such a simple and at the same time interesting piece of decor as Chinese lanterns, you can add some brightness, lively colors and a sense of celebration to the interior.

The materials you will need for this:

Colored or white paper;
A cartridge that you can remove from an old lamp or buy;
LED light bulb (note that you should not use a heated light bulb, because we make the lamp out of paper);
Pencil and ruler;
Stationery knife;
Thread;
Awl.

Making a lamp with your own hands (step by step with a photo)

First, on the back of the paper, you need to draw lines that will create the relief of the lamp. Below is a drawing according to which it is proposed to make markups.

We fold the paper along the marked lines in order to get a kind of accordion. At this stage, it is important not to rush and do everything carefully so that the lamp comes out smooth and beautiful.

Now we create a lampshade for the paper lamp around the cartridge. At the junction, the sheet can be glued with ordinary PVA glue or joined in any other way. Please note that without gluing the edges, it will be easier for you to change the light bulb in this lamp.

Our Chinese lanterns are ready! In the photo below you can see what happened in the end.

For more ideas on how to make a paper table lamp or pendant lamp, see our article.

2. How to make a wooden lamp with your own hands?

From such a simple material as wood, you also have the opportunity to make a very creative lamp with your own hands. It is enough just to look around: nature itself inspires us with its extraordinary forms for creativity. Each of us at least once in our lives noted the beautiful shape of a branch or snag. Dekorin proposes to reflect their beauty in interior design as an original and functional lamp.

Using a branch, you can make a lamp out of wood yourself without the use of special tools and skills. You can easily find the necessary material in the forest or near the house. The main thing is that this snag should be already dry, but not too rotten, because it will have to hold the weight of the shades and at the same time last you as long as possible.

DIY floor lamp from a wooden branch (photo)

In fact, depending on your wishes, you can make a floor, table or ceiling lamp from a branch. Here we will consider the option of manufacturing a floor lamp.

First of all, you need to make a solid base for the floor lamp (for example, pour cement mortar into any container and insert our branch for a wooden lamp into it). After a while, the container can be removed, after which a reliable and stylish cement base and lamp leg will remain. Also read how you can make a simple cement mortar.

At the next stage, it is necessary to attach a cord with a cartridge and a light bulb to the snag using improvised means. Our floor lamp is ready!

Ceiling and even wall lamps from a branch will also look very beautiful in the interior. You can decorate them with both ordinary light bulbs and vintage shades or lampshades. Examples are in the photo below.

3. How else can you make a lamp with your own hands from improvised materials?

Do you have a favorite lamp that you do not want to part with, but the appearance of its ceiling leaves much to be desired? Don't worry, we'll fix it! Dekorin will tell you how to make a lampshade for a lamp with your own hands. Just look at the photo: what original and even intricate lampshades for lamps you can make yourself!

Also read:Do-it-yourself vases from glass and plastic bottles

How to make a lampshade for a lamp with your own hands from threads

Such a lamp will become a creative and unique decoration of your interior. It will easily fit into both the kitchen and the bedroom with the living room.

So, what you need: a balloon (you need to take into account the size and shape of the inflated balloon, because the shape of the lampshade will depend on this), thick cotton threads (twine is better), PVA glue about 250 gr., A cord-suspension that will hold the lampshade, an energy-saving lamp, scissors, a needle, any cream, a brush, a cotton pad, and a cotton swab.

Step 1. Inflate the balloon to the desired size and tie it securely.

Step 2 Using a cotton pad, lubricate the ball with any cream so that later it is easier for the threads to detach from the base.

Step 3. Thread the needle and pierce the glue bottle through. Wind the thread around the ball as you see fit, however, do not pull it too tight.

Step 4. When all the threads are wound, go over the glue a little in those places where it is not enough. Now the lampshade is almost ready and should be removed to dry overnight.

Step 5. In the morning, take a dried lampshade and start pressing the ball with a cotton swab to help it separate from the threads. Carefully and most importantly, slowly blow off the ball, because by doing it quickly, you risk creating a dent on the lampshade with your own hands.

Step 5. Mark the future hole and make 4 cuts in all directions so that the bulb with the cartridge can enter the lampshade.

Finally, you need to insert a cartridge with a light bulb, and carefully attach the lamp holder between the threads. The lampshade is completely ready, now it remains only to hang it in the room that you have chosen and enjoy the results of your creativity.

How to make a lamp with your own hands: 15+ ideas and photos updated: March 27, 2017 by: Oksana Krutsenko

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