My Grandmother was very enterprising....it seemed there was almost nothing she couldn't do...she cooked, sewed, ran a funiture shop, could guide construction workers in exactly how to build houses (one of her son's have got this talent) had the talent to do flower arrangements for brides...made bridal thrown ....you name it... weddings in the family were always DIY projects...practically everything was made from scratch (my wedding too!) Her numerous talents spread amongst her children.....though non got all of it...almost everyone got one of her talent.
My mom got her talent for Dressmaking (she also does quite a bit of house repairs )and I as her grand daughter seem to have suddenly developed a fascination for wood working. My children of course are thrilled about it ...for now they could tell me what they want to be built. This mom maker contest is i feel made for me and many other mom's who are totally into crafts....so thank you instructables and dremel for putting up this contest!
I have always been a gonner for the rustic look...and when i saw this
http://www.etsy.com/listing/89232922/maple-wood-slice-rustic-wood-coat-rack
I wanted to try it...I also had a thing for colored wood...hence
my rustic lamp was born :-D

Step 1: Gather Your Materials

off cuts of branches from your garden
barbecue skewers
wood glue
hot glue gun
log
thin ply wood
1/4" square dowels
1/2" square dowels
"6 x 6"x 3/4" scrap wood...just to cut the base
bulb holder
insulated wire
on/off switch
plug
wood stain...that is if you don't have naturally colored wood dowels
varnish

Step 2: The Stand

Get your log and sand it.....for the base i used a circle cutter to cut a circle...you could go for a simple square if you like. cut the same size in thin plywood for the bottom cover.
Drill a hole through the stump...i drilled from both ends as my log was longer than the drill bit.
attach the base...counter sink the screws and cut a small path for the wire
take your off cut branches and cut off wood slices in various thickness...the more variety...the nicer it looks. It's easier if you cut with jigsaw and a fine cut blade...then you don't have to sand it.
Cut loads! you need it.
Once done the fun part begins....
I handed it to my children and showed them how to randomly place them...there was a bit of an argument when my son placed most of the smaller once togeather...and the perfectionist in my daughter couldn't take it :-D....i had to tell her it doesn't make much of a difference once you place the bigger slices around.
My daughter and I did the base as it was more difficult
Once done sand the top and bottom so that the slices are flat with the log.
I used a metal cutting disc to cut the thinner branches and had to sand it as the wood slices got burnt ( using the saw blade in the grinder just ruined the branches)

Step 3: The Shade

Make 2 square frames...i kind of just made them...with random measurements.
I sanded the corners to a bevel so it would be easier to glue the sticks and also there would be more hold.
Take 2 square dowels to the exact length of the larger square. Mark the width of the large square dowel on the the square dowel and cut half lap joints. ( i hope i'm making sense!...please refer to pictures!!)
center the dowels and nail it down ( pilot holes first with a drill)... then cut off a little from the center of the dowel to reveal the hole in the stand. Do the same with the other square dowel ..but perpendicular to the first square dowel...again...refer to pictures :-)

I found this the most difficult part!
get your barbeque sticks and temporarily paste it in the center point of the small square and large square in all 4 corners at equal distance....check with a leveler. then place it on a higher level and start placing your sticks with a gap of 1/2" or slightly less gap on the small frame...place the end of the sticks on the bigger frame as in the picture..( yes...at a loss of words in how to explain that!)
trim to perfect lengths and paint black.
you could fill the whole frame with the sticks if you like and finish it like that.
If like me you like to have a rainbow colors of wood...read on :-)
Get 1/4" square dowels and sand and stain...i had my dowels slightly longer then the sticks...i wanted to trim later.
If you have dowels of various colors...go ahead and use them...since as you can see my dowels were mostly one shade...i stained them teak , dark walnut, and mahogany.
Once done...i handed it to my daughter who was waiting to complete the shade...this time she told her little brother to hand over the relevant colors while she pasted! haha
We did section by section so that it could dry well.
later use a ruler to mark the proper length from the bottom of the shade and trim...at this point some of the dowels which were not pasted well came off...just glue them back...touch up the bottom where the stain is not there and then varnish!
Currently the lamp resides in my kids room as they say they did most of the work...I seriously don't think it goes with their room...so i'll wait till they get sick of it or till i make them another lamp! :-)

Step 4: Wireing of the Lamp

wiring of the lamp is pretty simple...all you need is a bulb holder a switch plug and some wire...
The pictures would illustrate it quite well ....more than i can actually type! :-)

Step 5: Now Light It Up and Enjoy

yes....the heading says it all...

It's fun doing things with your children and for your family. It's a learning experience and kids feel important when they help you make something.

I have entered this in the maker mom contests ...and would love to win the gifts as it would be easier for me to do my projects instead of hiring the power tools ...

so please Vote if you like it and don't forget to rate it.
Thanks