Thank you and especially thanks for the link. I needed that! It will take me some time to figure this out. This is my bedroom, the swing arm wall lamps are antique brass (needed to man up the room a bit). On the other side of the room in the corner is a non-descript floor lamp, a chair and soon a small reading table. I need to replace the shade on the floor lamp; itâÂÂs disgraceful and has a dent. The room is a bit of a mix like the rest of the house. IâÂÂm partial to drum shades but IâÂÂm not sure if that will fly in here, need to tie in the headboard, wall mount lighting and the rest as best as possible. DonâÂÂt want anything to frilly or bell-y. I know I want a cream colored shade with some trim of some sort. IâÂÂm stuck on a shape! I think I need a nice shade to counter some of the used stuff and make it all look on purpose. Shade shape for this room???

I feel your pain! I recently bought a gorgeous lamp on eBay, and the shade that came with it was just SO WRONG... My first stop was to shop online to get a feel for the types of shades that were available and what I should expect to pay. Online, there were a lot of options in the $40-60 range -- some lower, some higher. But like you, I didn't want to buy sight unseen. Someone compared it to buying a hat without trying it on. So off with my base to my local lamp store -- Lamp Shade Heaven! But it was still a big chore to find just the right shade. We must have tried 30 different shades before finding a lovely silk shade that looked really, really good on my base. The prices weren't marked on the shades, and I was expecting something a bit over $60-ish, but would willingly have gone a bit higher given the service and consultation time (maybe $90?) -- but $150.00 ?! Yikes! I expressed my surprise and asked if he had anything a little less pricey. He said that the shade we selected was actually one of his more 'moderately-priced' shades, and that I appear not to have gone shade-shopping recently. (True, but...) So home I went with my $150 (gulp) lamp shade, and the knowledge gained from trying on shade after shade after shade. But I couldn't help but feel like I have been taken. So I went back online and hit the bricks: Home Goods, Ross, BB&B, Great Indoors, Lowes, Target, JC Penney, Macy's, Dillards, Michaels, MJ Designs -- and finally, Restoration Hardware. Restoration Hardware had the perfect shade -- in stock for $60. So back to the Shade Shoppe to return my $150 'moderately priced' wonder-shade... I'd like to support local businesses with personal service -- but there's a point at which the price difference just goes too far. If I had a do-over, I'd have talked price up-front with the Shade Shoppe guy. The lady in the shop at the same time as me was a professional designer, and she got a trade discount that I didn't get. It wouldn't be unusual to get 50% off, and at 40-50% off, I'd have been happy with the 'moderately priced' wonder-shade -- I bet if I had gone into the shop with a few printed pages from some web sites showing the type of shade and their pricing, that I'd have been able to negotiate a price I could live with and support local businesses at the same time.

Yes, take the lamp to a good lamp store, and try the shades on. Most good shops have a table with plugs, and lightbulbs if you need them, so that you can really see what looks best...shape, color, size...with your lamp. Good shades, like good picture framing, can be a little spendy, but they make a huge difference in the overall quality of your rooms.

I think I am going to try the lamps out at least, 3dogs, the FC one is designated for another spot entirely and btw, I think Leviton did make lamps. It's stamped on the socket. here is the one my mother bought 25 years ago and still looks good, it's on my bedroom dresser. I am currently trying out the shade on another lamp so didn't bother to go get it for the pic. This is the burglar lamp, it weighs a ton! I also have a Leviton double candle stick lamp in the basement that I cannot find a spot for it that's perfect. Thank you, sis!! Patty, the tray edges are black and there is quite a bit of black in the room, the kitchen bar chairs are black and the countertop is black. The trays are 20" in diameter, I measured. :-) I"ll post a picture with the lamps in place. I think I need two as the mantel on the other side of the table is an asymmetrical arrangement but maybe not, not with two trays?