Daniel Kuehl Posted May 30, 2013 Report Share Posted May 30, 2013 This is a table lantern I started on Saturday, and finished up last night. I saw something like this somebody made on LJ's and liked it enough to give it a go. The wood is walnut, legs are maple, and top is aspen/walnut (all cut-offs from the scrap bin) . Finish is 3 coats shellac with a brown bag rub on final coat. the paper is vellum and the light source is an LED puck light from HF. This project was a test run for some more I will be making for wedding decorations this summer. I tried to get a pick with it lit up, but the vellum wasn't allowing enough light through. I will need to switch to rice paper, or a stronger light source, or both... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChetlovesMer Posted May 30, 2013 Report Share Posted May 30, 2013 Wow, that came out great. Not sure how to help you with increasing the amount of light. But I'm sure the folks on this forum will have great ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodieboy Posted May 30, 2013 Report Share Posted May 30, 2013 Cool design! I don't have knowledge about that kind of project but try checking turquoise paper lantern. It's very light. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G S Haydon Posted May 30, 2013 Report Share Posted May 30, 2013 Very unique and very well executed Daniel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted May 30, 2013 Report Share Posted May 30, 2013 Sweet! Cool design! Asian flavored stuff always looks good to me, and you can't go wrong with that color combo. Since this was a prototype, here are a few thoughts for the next one(s): - Maybe thin all the parts down just a bit...looks a tad bulky - I might skip the contrasting wood on the top, and just use the maple for the whole table and the walnut for the lantern. I think the walnut in the top distracts the eye from the lantern, which should be the focus of attention. - If you're not afraid of stained glass, I think that would be really cool...AND you could put a matching piece of stained glass in the top so the entire table surface is usable and no one drops their bottle of Bud Light into your lantern. - See what the table top looks like flipped over with the edge profile on the underside. - I think this piece could lend itself well to some Greene & Greene details...you could round over and soften the ends of the lantern pieces, incorporate some ebony plugs, think about where a few cloud lifts might look good, and I think instead of the long chamfer on the legs, a G&G leg indent detail, like on the Blacker House chair and Marc's G&G Adirondack, could look really killer. Another option for the legs would be to add some subtle curves that gently flare out at the feet. Obviously some of these changes would be more labor intensive, and if you're looking to batch out a bunch of them, maybe not practical. Just some food for thought. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted May 31, 2013 Report Share Posted May 31, 2013 You might try 3 or 4 pucks hanging in the center of the lantern. If a dimmer is possible 4 pucks could be able to produce a wide range on illumination. I just built a garden lamp with a LED floodlight and I intend to add a dimmer to make the light level just right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Kuehl Posted May 31, 2013 Author Report Share Posted May 31, 2013 Sweet! Cool design! Asian flavored stuff always looks good to me, and you can't go wrong with that color combo. Since this was a prototype, here are a few thoughts for the next one(s): - Maybe thin all the parts down just a bit...looks a tad bulky - I might skip the contrasting wood on the top, and just use the maple for the whole table and the walnut for the lantern. I think the walnut in the top distracts the eye from the lantern, which should be the focus of attention. - If you're not afraid of stained glass, I think that would be really cool...AND you could put a matching piece of stained glass in the top so the entire table surface is usable and no one drops their bottle of Bud Light into your lantern. - See what the table top looks like flipped over with the edge profile on the underside. - I think this piece could lend itself well to some Greene & Greene details...you could round over and soften the ends of the lantern pieces, incorporate some ebony plugs, think about where a few cloud lifts might look good, and I think instead of the long chamfer on the legs, a G&G leg indent detail, like on the Blacker House chair and Marc's G&G Adirondack, could look really killer. Another option for the legs would be to add some subtle curves that gently flare out at the feet. Obviously some of these changes would be more labor intensive, and if you're looking to batch out a bunch of them, maybe not practical. Just some food for thought. All FANTASTIC ideas....especially the stepped in legs. I'd never really considered any of the G&G details until after I'd watched that Thorsen house tour video. The whole project is for putting one of these on each of the tables at the wedding. Each lantern will need to be unique. The variations will be different combinations of materials, leg details, and top design. That aspect kind of blows apart some of the batch work, but most of the joinery is very basic (half laps). and the top is attached with dowel pins. I kind of like the bulkiness, but that is also something that can be varied from lantern to lantern, a nice long taper on the 2 outside faces of the legs would look nice too I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Kuehl Posted May 31, 2013 Author Report Share Posted May 31, 2013 You might try 3 or 4 pucks hanging in the center of the lantern. If a dimmer is possible 4 pucks could be able to produce a wide range on illumination. I just built a garden lamp with a LED floodlight and I intend to add a dimmer to make the light level just right. I'm starting to think that If I want the light source to be brighter, I will need to move in the 110V direction. I looked again at the pack of vellum I purchased for this lamp and it is silver colored. There was also a clear vellum, and I think it might be a bit more translucent....so 1 puck would be able to get the lighting effect I'm shooting for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indy Cindy Posted May 31, 2013 Report Share Posted May 31, 2013 Attached is a picture of one that I made. I used a 25 watt bulb and it is plenty bright. To diffuse the light I used a plastic sheet called Dura-Lar in thickness 0.005" that is sold as a drafting material. I bought it at United Art and Education, http://www.unitednow.com/product/5761/grafix-matte-dura-lar.aspx?item=12285. To give a textured look I layered it with handmade paper that I purchased at a specialty art supply store. You could forgo the diffuser altogether and use a tea light in the lantern. If these are on individual dining tables make sure they aren't too tall so that people can see over them. And you also don't want them to be too bright so that they hurt people's eyes to look at them. Cindy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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