Lampshade Upgrade

Nothing quite says, "Miss Havisham" like a house full of dusty lampshades. But getting those suckers clean (especially the pleated variety) can be so tricky and thankless.

You've tried using the hose attachment on your vacuum, or wiping them with a lightly dampened towel or sponge, but those methods leave a lot of dust, or worse, can damage the shade. On the inter-web (as you kids call it), people recommend shaking the shades in a garbage bag filled with cornmeal, or rubbing them with dinner rolls, but (speaking from experience), sometimes the kookiest solution isn't the best one (and I generally follow a a rule of thumb by which silk and foodstuffs don't mix).



I've found that the best tool for removing dust from shades is a plain old sticky lint roller. Turn the lamp on, so you can see the dust clearly, and simply roll all over the shade, making sure you get the trim at the top and bottom.

Now, cleaning that wedding dress you've been wearing for forty years, that's another story...

photo credit: chandelier from Restoration Hardware, lint roller from John Lewis