If you want to add stylish personality and flair to your lighting, adrum lamp shadeis a fantastic option. With various shapes, sizes, materials, and designs available, drum shades make it easy to customize your home's lighting to match your aesthetic.
What are Drum Lamp Shades?
Drum lamp shades, also sometimes called barrel shades, are a cylindrical style of lampshade that surrounds lightbulbs to direct and soften the lighting in a room.
Drum shades get their name from their similarity in shape to drums or barrels. They are open at the top to allow heat from the bulb to escape, preventing fire hazards. The drum shape also beautifully diffuses the lighting, eliminating glare and harsh shadows.
These versatile lampshades can be used on table lamps, floor lamps, pendant lights, sconces, and more. You'll typically see them made from fabric, raffia, glass, acrylic, metal, ceramic or other materials. The design options are nearly endless!
Benefits of Using Drum Lamp Shades
There are many great reasons to use drum light shadesin your home lighting:
Attractive Design - The cylindrical shape lends itself to attractive lighting that makes a stylish statement. You can find beautiful patterns, colors, and materials to elevate your room's decor.
Soft, Diffused Light - The drum shade shape helps diffuse the lighting for less glare. The light is also directed downward, great for tasks like reading while avoiding harsh overhead light.
Customization - With near-endless options, it's easy to find drum shades to match your room's style whether it's modern, coastal, industrial, etc. Mix and match patterns and materials for your perfect lighting ambiance.
Durability - Quality drum shades made of materials like metal, wood, or glass have excellent durability compared to fabric shades which must be cleaned gently. Sturdy materials make shades easy to dust off and allow them to withstand busy households.
Easy to Install - Most drum shades easily slide right onto your existing lamp harps or light fixtures without needing special tools or hardware for hanging shades.
Types of Drum Lamp Shades
Fabric
Drum shades covered in fabric are very popular options. From elegant embroidered patterns to modern graphic prints, the fabric allows for incredible style flexibility. Fabrics like cotton, linen, silk, or synthetics have different textures and draping effects.
Paper
For a lighter, airier feel, paper lamp shadesare nice choices. Materials like rice paper or mulberry paper diffuse light beautifully. Both sturdy and delicate paper textures are available.
Metal
Metallic drum shades add brilliant shine. Polished nickel, brass, steel, copper, or aluminum drum shades make a glamorous style statement. Perforations add intriguing patterns.
Glass
Crystal clear or creatively colored, hand-blown glass lamp shades have an ultra-luxurious aesthetic. The glass shapes capture and emit the candlelight glow gorgeously. Popular textures are pebbled, cracked, or frosted.
Considerations When Buying Drum Lamp Shades
Keep these tips in mind when selecting the perfect drum shades for your lighting needs:
Size
Make sure to buy lampshades sized properly for each type of light fixture. Measure to determine the ideal height and diameter. Shades that are over or undersized will not direct lighting properly.
For pendents and wall sconces, the bottom of the shade should hang 30-36 inches above the floor. Table and floor lamp shades should be in scale with the height of the base.
Shades should be wide enough to direct light downward without being so narrow they easily tip over. Larger drum shades pair best with equally sized lamp bases to keep fixtures weighted and avoid tipping.
Style
There are drum shades available to match any room's decor style. Measure the fixture size, room-scale, and space usage to determine the ideal style. Large bold patterns make great accent lighting while neutral solids blend in more discreetly.
Consider if you want shades as colorful focal points or simple background lighting. The shade style should coordinate with your room - not clash or overwhelm.
Material
Factor the fixture location and room use to determine the best lampshade material. Bedrooms and living spaces often use soft fabrics, while kitchens, dining, and office lighting call for easy-to-clean metal or glass.
Look for materials suited for indoor or outdoor use. Also, check that shades are UL-certified fire-retardant if using bulbs that produce significant heat.
Color/Pattern
The shade color and pattern have a big impact on the lighting ambiance. Light colors like white and cream have an airy, brightening effect. Dark shades like black intensely focus and direct lighting. Bold graphic or floral prints make a dramatic style statement.
If selecting patterned fabric, make sure that the material is opaque enough that the bulb and hardware inside the shade are not visible. Sheer fabrics should be doubled over.
How to Choose the Right Size Drum Shade
Follow these steps for choosing properly fitted drum shades:
- Measure from the bottom of where the shade will attach to the plug of the light socket. Round up to the nearest whole inch. This is the ideal height.
- Measure the widest dimension on the outside harp or hardware that the shade will cover. Round up to the nearest whole inch. This is the ideal diameter.
- When browsing shades, check that your height and diameter measurements fall within the shade size ranges.
- Some adjustable height shades accommodate ranges like 10-12 inches. Make sure your ideal height falls somewhere within the shade’s adjustable range.
- Try taking your fixture hardware shopping with you to test shade fitting if uncertain. Drum shades should slide smoothly into place around the hardware.
With proper measuring and a size match, your drum shade should beautifully direct the fixture lighting and appear proportional. Mix various sizes to create an eclectic layered lighting effect. Have fun and enjoy your stylish new lighting ambiance!
Our Top 5 Picks
To make your drum shade shopping easier, we’ve rounded up our picks for top-rated and bestselling options:
- Black Lamp Shades
- Set Of (10) Hospitality Drum Lampshades
- Houston Round Drum Lumashade 60" Diameter X 10" Height
- Fargo Round Drum Lumashade 22" Diameter X 12" Height
- Detroit Round Drum Lumashade 48" Diameter X 20" Height
FAQs about Lamps Shades
What size lampshade do I need?
The best way to ensure getting a properly fitted lampshade is to carefully measure your existing fixture’s hardware and bulb height. See our how-to steps above for recommended measuring tips.
How do I clean my fabric lampshade?
Use a soft, dry microfiber duster or cloth to gently wipe down fabric lampshades to remove dust buildup. For deeper cleaning, use a handheld vacuum with a brush attachment on a low suction setting. Spot treat minor stains by dabbing gently with mild detergent and rinse well with clean water on a cloth.
How do I attach a lampshade to my fixture?
Most drum lampshades are designed to easily slide right onto the lightbulb harps, socket, or hardware base of your existing fixture without needing screws or special tools. Check that the lampshade opening aligns squarely and is making secure contact around the top edge.
Where should I position my drum lampshade?
Proper positioning depends on the fixture type. Hanging pendants and sconces should hang so the bottom trim of the shade is 30-36 inches above floor level. Table lamp shades look best centered about 2/3 up the height of the lamp base. Floor lamp shades can align closer to the bulb socket end of the pole.
Can I use fabric shades on hot bulbs and fixtures?
Check that any fabric lampshade is marked as UL-certified fire retardant if using bulbs that produce significant heat like incandescent over 40 watts or halogen bulbs. LED and CFL bulbs produce less heat and allow more flexibility using fabric shades.
Conclusion & Final Recommendations
Drum lamp shades check off all the boxes for ideal lighting. The cylindrical shape emits a broader, glare-free glow compared to cone or cube shades. The open-top design allows for proper ventilation and heat dissipation from bulbs.
Given the vast range of sizes, prints, colors, and textures available - it's easy to personalize shades to complement your room style. Whether you want an intricate patterned focal point over your dining table, or refined solid black shades for softly illuminating a reading nook - drum lamp shades deliver.
