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The Beginner's Guide to Tapered Lamp Shades

Let's talk about Tapered Lamp Shades

What is a tapered lamp shade?

A tapered lamp shade is any shade that has a different top and bottom diameter. You may have heard other terms for tapered shades including empire, bouillotte, coolie, and tapered drum. All of these names are for specific styles of tapered shades that live in design history and that we get to enjoy today.


Tapered drum shades have a slight taper, meaning the top and bottom diameters are only an inch or two different. Oftentimes, they can be confused with drum shades until they are measured. Many mid-century lamp shades are tapered drums that are taller than they are wide and difficult to distinguish between standard drum shades just by looking. They are also sometimes called barrel shades.

Coolie shades have the most extreme taper and a shallow height. Coolie-shaped lamp shades launched into popularity during the art deco period in the 1920s. Through the years, interest in this extremely tapered shade has ebbed and flowed, popping up again in the 1970's and now today. It is said that the name came from the hats worn in rice paddies called coolies.

Bouillotte shades have a slight taper and a shallow height. As old as the 1830s, these lamp shades were used for keeping candle light out of players eyes while playing the French card game bouillotte, which is how they get their name. 

Empire shades are used as a general term for a tapered shade. The two names are often interchanged, but an empire shade by definition is a shade with a top diameter that is half of the bottom diameter. This gives the empire lamp shade a medium angle taper and a balanced appearance in width and height.

 


How to Measure a Tapered Shade

Tapered shades have more dimensions and angles than drum shades. Therefore, it is important when comparing shades to make sure you are referencing the same dimensions for each shade. Unfortunately, in my experience, the internet does not stay consistent with the way tapered shades are measured.

For example, a tapered shade has a total height which is the distance between the top and bottom of the shade. If you were rest the shade on a table top and put a ruler through the center of the shade, that is the correct shade height dimension that you should use when measuring for a harp.

I've found that some sites will measure the shade slope (or slant height) and label it the shade height. The shade slope is the measurement from the bottom ring to the top ring on the outside of the shade. For my fellow geometry nerds, that is giving us the hypotenuse rather than the adjacent leg, and that measurement will always be too long for your harp measurement. 


Note: Since the majority of lamp shades I create are made without ever seeing the lamp, I like to have as much information as possible to cross check my measurements and calculations. When receiving dimensions for a tapered shade, I prefer to have the bottom diameter, top diameter, and shade height. Although I never mind having all four measurements; there's less chance for height error with more information. 

The last dimension needed for a tapered shade is the drop height. A standard drop height of 1/2" is the most common for spider washer hardware, but other styles of hardware like uno fitters or euro fitters don't have a standard drop height. For more information about drop height and hardware types, you can visit my 'About The Hardware Drop on Your Lamp Shade' blog post here.

Diagram showing where to measure for drop hardware with euro rings on a lamp with a lamp shade

Why Choose a Tapered Shade 

Tapered shade styles change through the years and come back around. Introducing a new tapered style lamp shade into your room can feel refreshing and different. Certain styles of tapers can evoke the past. For example, adding a coolie tapered shade to a simple lamp can bring an art deco feel to a space. Extreme tapers are seen as a contemporary shade option right now, while empire shades are seen as a more traditional shade choice.

A functional reason to choose a tapered shade would be to control how much light the room receives. The more extreme the taper, the more downlight is cast. The more subtle the taper, the more light is cast from both the top and the bottom of the shade, bringing more light into the room. To see an example of these light differences, visit my You Tube Short showing how shade shape affects light output.

Why are There Limited Fabrics for Ud Form Tapered Shades

While directional fabrics line up cleanly on drum shades, that is not the case with tapered shades. Tapered shades use arched templates. If the fabric has a distinct linear pattern, like in the case of my Handwoven Confetti fabric, that fabric will look crooked on the completed lamp shade. On an empire shade, this will appear as a strong diagonal line, but on a more subtle taper, the results look sloppy and unintentional. Many of my favorite textured lamp shades have directional weave patterns, so for this reason, I limit the fabric options on my tapered shades. This is personal, visual quality choice. I don't want a shade I create to appear poorly constructed.

 

How Do I Choose the Right Size Tapered Shade

This is a tricky question. I'm currently exploring the best ways to approach this question to help you find the right size shade. I hope to have a blog post about this in the future, but for now, all I can offer is one-on-one help.


Have a question? If you have a question specific to getting the right shade on one of your lamps, please feel free to reach out through my Contact Page. I'll email you within a couple days. I'm happy to help.

-Krista

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