Finding the right size lampshade for your lamp

Today I'm sharing one of my design pet peeves with you. I CAN'T STAND lampshade that are disproportionate to the lamps they're on. There is an epidemic of too short lampshades going on in America. This is an extreme example but quite honestly, not that extreme.


Here are 2 easy steps for determining the correct size lampshade for your lamp (per Martha Stewart Living):

1. Lamp shades look best when they are 2/3 as tall as the lamp base. Multiply the height of the lamp base (floor to socket) by .66. This is the appropriate HEIGHT of your shade or measure A in the diagram below.

2. A lampshade should also be slightly wider that the widest point on the lamp base. Measure your lamp at its widest point. This could be the very base of your lamp (the part that touches the floor) or a point midway up the lamp if you have some kind of hourglass silhouette going on. Whatever the widest part of your lamp is, take that measurement and add 2 inches. This is the minimum WIDTH of your lamp shade or measure B in the diagram below.

This calculation works great for table lamps but not so great for really tall floor lamps. Case in point - I got this turned wood floor lamp on Overstock last year (no longer available, bummer). It came with this absurdly short shade for a 66" tall lamp. I mean look! You can see the "guts" of the lamp! Bulbs, sockets...the whole deal!


According to step one in the calculation above, a 66" tall lamp would need a 43" tall lamp shade. I don't know about you, but I've never seen an almost 4' tall lamp shade.

My rule of thumb with floor lamps is more like 25%. The height of your floor lampshade should be roughly equal to 1/4 the height of your floor lamp. I do believe step 2 holds true though. The shade should still be slightly wider than the widest part of the lamp to keep the entire effect looking proportional.

Once again my lamp is 66" tall and 12" at its widest point (which happens to be the very bottom). Using my rule of 25%, that would mean I need a roughly 16.5" tall by 14" wide lampshade. These are rough estimates but they are a good starting point. Either way, not a small lampshade by any means and usually not cheap.

A quick trip through my local Pottery Barn last week landed me this 17" tall by 15" wide drum shade for...drum-roll please...$9.97!!!! On super, duper, final sale clearance. I can't even find it on their website. It was one of those deals with the cashier goes "woah...are there any more of these?" when you're checking out. {and yes, there was one more which I was tempted to buy just because but I fought my hoarding tendencies and walked out with just one.}


Doesn't it look SO much better? This might be the cheapest design fix I've ever landed (and no, I'm not counting the time when I spray painted some lampshades...though that was epic).

So...do you have any lamps sporting disproportionately sized lampshades in your home?