Decorative Colored Glass Mosaic Tile Table Lamp

Dimensions: Height 26 inches; Base 12.25 inches square; Each colored glass panel is about 8x12 inches; the light cord is 6.5 feet long from the base to the plug; and a spinning toggle switch is on the cord, right near the base, so it’s easy to turn on and off. This one-of-a-kind accent lighting piece is not officially stained glass, but the small tiles with air bubbles showing certainly evoke the look of really old stained glass. It will add a beautiful, colorful, happy, warm glow to whatever room you put it in. It reminds me of the windows in an old church. As a coincidental matter of fact, I was putting the finishing touches on it around the same sad time when Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris caught fire. As a feature piece, it will attract a lot of positive attention. I wish I had room for it in my own house, but I don’t, so I’m looking for someone else to give it a good home. How about you? $275. Click here to purchase.

The Story

I found this item in an alley just a couple of blocks from my home in the Glover Park neighborhood of D.C. It was originally a solar-powered light with a fake candle, but it no longer worked. It had been outside a long time, which probably accounts for the somewhat distressed look of the metal frame. Dots originally on the outside of the four glass panes may have been meant to look like dew or raindrops. I disassembled and got rid of the guts and the original plastic base. To create the stained-glass look, I used clear-drying glue to attach glass mosaic tiles to the smooth sides of the glass panes, then filled in the gaps with black grout. Each panel has six of the seven colors I had to work with (Cobalt Gold, Merlot Gold, Honey Gold, Prickly Pear, Amethyst, Baby Blue, and Dark Amber, from my favorite supplier, Maryland Mosaics). For variety, no two panels have the same color arrangement, and the same color is not contiguous on any two adjacent panel edges. However, I did use only the gold and green tiles in the four large, central rectangles, because it seemed like they would allow more light to pass through. The brackets that originally held the panes of glass in place wouldn’t work because of the greater thickness with the tiles attached, so I came up with a custom solution of quarter-round wood moulding in each corner, each held in place with a screw from the top and the bottom. I created the base and feet from some leftover pine lumber, used a router bit to give it a decorative edge that complemented the top of the lamp, and painted it semi-gloss black. I created a custom light fixture with new parts purchased from another favorite store, the Lamplighter in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. It features two light bulbs arranged vertically above/below one another, to help deliver light to the upper and lower edges of the side panels. I put in two compact fluorescent bulbs equivalent to 75-watt incandescent bulbs. You could also use slightly dimmer or brighter bulbs (e.g., 60 Watts or 100 Watts), but when you change bulbs, I strongly recommend you use either compact fluorescent or LED bulbs, to avoid throwing off a lot of unnecessary heat inside the unit. It is vented at the top, but I think it will be best to go with cooler (and energy-efficient) bulbs. To access the bulbs, you just remove three screws that hold the metal frame to the base and lift the structure straight up. Then remember to screw the frame back onto the base.

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