Wax Paper Capiz Shells and a Tabletop Chandelier

I LOVE the look of capiz shell chandeliers and lamps but they are always too expensive for my (non existent) decorating budget.

Then I saw some online made of wax paper and
 figured I can do that!

 I chose a tall brass tabletop lamp for the bookcase at the corner of our hallway.

I like it! I like it alot!!

It has a soft glow, great texture and a bit of movement when you walk by.
Even The Welding Man likes it,
he says it reminds him of a wedding dress. :o)

I took a lamp shade from my stash and removed the old cover.
I knew I wanted the rings to be larger at the top and smaller at the bottom.
And I wanted two layers of hanging shells. So I added another ring halfway up
 with craft wire secured with more wire.

After a coat of white spray paint I FLIPPED IT OVER and got all
my fake capiz shell circles ready.

Dollar Store wax paper, baby!!

Next I made the wax paper "shells." I used a dry iron on the cotton setting and put
parchment paper on the bottom between the ironing board and wax paper.

Four sheets torn off close to the same size melt together nicely and make a good, stiff 4 ply sheet.
Let the wax paper cool then start the circle punching. I found my punches did best
 with 4 sheets of 4 ply wax paper, your punch might do better with more or less.

I used a 2" and an 1 3/4" circle punch. I figured I needed about 400 circles total, plus I cut a few extra in case of mistakes or design changes.



I sewed my circles together using my machine's longest stitch and placed 9 circles on each "run."
I sewed several sets of nine together in a single sitting with about three inches
 of thread between each set. I cut them apart into sets of nine and started assembling.

I wound the thread from one set of circles twice around the middle ring and put a dab of hot glue over the thread. I placed each string of circles about 1" apart.

For the top ring I let six of the circles on a string hang down outside and folded the other three over inside the frame, using a dab of hot glue on the thread at the top. This gave the upper half of the lamp a fluffier look and more visual "weight."

Extra circles folded in half and hot glued around the upper ring give the lamp a finished look.

As you can see, the stitched circles diffuse the light and overlap nicely, giving a nice soft glow to the evening. During the day they give that corner a bit of reflected light and nice texture.

I am already thinking ahead to doing this with my dining room light.
Maybe with a little color and a bit of glitter?

When I figure it out and make it I'll be posting right here.
Hmmmm. Stay tuned.