My desk started life as an industrial sewing machine table, and bares the scars of a long working days in this guise. Local artisan, Lloyd Kellett of One Man’s Trash, turned it into a kick ass desk lit by a beautiful Edison light bulb. It creates a wonderfully warm glow for my workspace but I always felt it needed a lampshade.
When I bought a couple of 1940s vintage flash units to replicate the lightsaber props from Star Wars, I thought one of the reflectors was a perfect solution to my lampshade dilemma. I pulled it apart, cut off the stem and used the Dremel to smooth out the rough surfaces. Then I slipped it over the socket and screwed it into place. Job done.
Making something new out of old stuff does not have to be difficult, a simple job like this can take less than an hour with basic tools (hacksaw, screwdriver and a file). In the past, most people kept their things working or created the new things they needed to live a good life. Consumerism and mass production led to a rapid loss of those skills but the maker movement is starting to revive old skills and develop new ones modern technologies.
Search the Web for makers and you find a massive community building everything from stools to small houses, from massive mechanical sculptures to miniature dioramas. Makers come in all shapes and sizes but all share a passion developed by picking up some tools and building something simple. Starting with something simple allowed them to make mistakes, develop new skills and find satisfaction in making things.
As their skills grow they move on to more complex projects but it is often the simple ones that provide us the most satisfaction. It took longer to write this post than make the lampshade, yet it makes me immensely happy to see it sitting above my desk.
Anyone can do it, so what will be your first simple project?