Universal lamp shade polygon building kit

One simple cut-out shape lets you build all sorts of different designer-looking lampshades! You can make dozens different geometric forms using various numbers of the cut-out shape made from paper or plastic. All the standard mathematical polyhedrons and such are possible.

The pieces just fold together by hand into rigid forms, and you can take them apart and build into new shapes any time!

this is fun and educational for kids and adults alike, and you get a really nice lampshade when you are done.

As seen in ReadyMade Magazine, Dec. 2007/Jan 2008 issue

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Step 1: What you need

I saw a lampshade made out of the shape below at a friend's house, so I traced the shape and made my own. the lamp i saw used thin plastic for the pieces. I believe the original design for this lamp was done over 30 years ago by the firm Iqlight, they sell pre-cut parts in case you do not want to make the parts yourself.

Below is the shape as an image, and i've also attached a DXF file.

You will need sheets of paper or plastic that allow light to get through. The stiffness of your material determines how large your pieces can be - stiffer material for larger pieces and larger lamps, thinner material for smaller pieces and smaller lamps. (see next step)

You will need a lamp fixture - just a raw socket on a cord. I found some nice ones at Ikea for $4, and some fluorescent bulbs. Use a compact fluorescent bulb so you can get more light without melting the plastic.

I experimented with a number of different plastics and sizes for the parts, here are my results:

- HDPE: works well, looks good, cheap and easy to get. I used 0.8mm thick stock for 8cm pieces (measured flat-side to flat-side). That's about the smallest you'd want to go with that thickness, you could go up to 12 or 15cm with that thickness. this is the least expensive plastic by far. One of the commenters suggested using plastic milk-bottles, which are made of HDPE, this is a good idea!

- Acetal (delrin): this seems to be the best choice for looks, it has the purest white color and best light dispersion (basically, looks just like acrylic except it doesn't crack as easily). I used 0.35mm stock for 6cm and 8cm pieces, and 0.5mm stock for 8-12cm pieces, and 0.65mm stock for 12-15cm pieces. It still is a little brittle and harder to work with than HDPE, and more expensive. if you cut this with scissors it will be somewhat tricky due to the brittleness, but possible.

- Vinyl: I did not try it, probably want to use thicker pieces since it is not very stiff. but you can use colors!

- Paper: I did not try paper but it should be good for smaller constructions.

- Laminated paper: this is a great idea suggested in the coments section. try laminating color tissue paper, then cut the pieces from that. very unique and colorful!

- Acrylic: too brittle, it will crack when you try to assemble. too bad!

- Nylon: has a yellow-ish look when lit up which makes it undesirable.

- for a large construction use stiffer material for the same size piece. ie, if you are making a lampshade with 12 pieces use thinner material than if you are making a shade with 100 pieces, assuming same size pieces.

---

Where to get it:

HDPE 1/32" sheet: sheet: http://www.usplastics.com item number 42584

Acetal sheet, 0.015" and 0.020":: http://www.mcmaster.com item number 8738K52 and 8738K53

Comments

[ltruzzi]

I made a "patchwork" version of it!

[blessed2bakidsmom]

Super cute! What material did you use to get the different colored and patterned pieces?

[patymara]

Muito legal. Amei.

[blessed2bakidsmom]

Love Love Love this lamp! What do you use to cut it out of plastic? and do you start at the top or the bottom?

[adubeau]

Thank you so much for this. My boys saw some guy selling kits to make these at our fair this year. I thought they could make it themselves so we didn't get it. Now I have a template and instruction so I can make them a kit for Christmas!

[cardboardguy]

My version upon this tutorial made with beer cans, with labels facing inwards. It gives the shade a crisp aluminium look. Cutting the template out from each can was a killer, but the result was worth.

[foobear]

How many shapes did it take to make the complete sphere?

[cardboardguy]

30 pieces.

[wildfloweressence]

This is cool! You could always pre-punch holes in the metal before assembling if you want light to come thru but I love it as a metal sculpture!

[cardboardguy]

Thank you! And yes, I could do that.

[bedragon]

This is SUPER!!

[cardboardguy]

Thanks!

[candilee47]

Absolutely AWESOME!!! I'm gonna try it, emphasis on TRY... Stunning work, ALL of you with original versions, well done!!

[jtp139]

oooooh! How do you attach it to the light?

[artanis]

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/623521323/loomi-a-modular-light-of-paper

So did this guy steal this from you or what Dan?

[dan]

what's old is new again! you can't steal a free idea.

i think if you are here at instructables you are more interested in cutting out your own pieces from an interesting material than paying someone else to do it for you.

[Dhuynh]

Quick tip: Click on the image and it will open up larger, but right click on it and select view image which will open it full resolution. Then right click and save as so you always have a copy. I've made the 30 element one yesterday and its awesome. Each of my elements are a full 8.5 x 11 inches big. I was going to attempt the 130 element one but I dont think it will hold its shape very well. Im using 80 lb cardstock. So I scaled it down a bit and am doing it with 7 x 8 in pieces.

[Dhuynh]

For those of you having issues assembling these into other shapes, http://vlightdeco.blogspot.com/p/basic-work-instruction.html
These are the diagrams I found on this site. Good luck.

[kwoodham]

Here's mine, I used 65lb/95g paper for it; the template I scaled to fit on A4 paper. it's about 18" in diameter (and much more white than in the photo), and I'm really happy with it! Thanks for the tutorial!

[lucymo91]

Awesome design! How many pieces did you use for that?

[jwestenberg]

Just to be sure, is it 18" in diameter or radius?

[ababa3]

kindly tell me how to cut a paper in the right shape.or send me the design of diagram.
my id is [e-mail]

regards

Muhammad Ali

[kwoodham]

The design template is provided above - download the 'polypiece.dxf' file at the bottom of the instructions and open it in Illustrator (I don't know what else it opens in, I used Illustrator). You can resize it there and print it in the desired size, and make a cardboard template or trace it onto your paper.

[shylock]

I helped a friend make make one for her place and she loves it. Everyone who comes through comments on it. Originally we make a ball but she wanted something bigger so we extended it into a cylinder.

We used disposable cutting boards / placemats we got at Walmart. They have the same vine print green and black mixed in with some plain white. The photos don't really do it justice.

I think we're going to replace the incandecent bulb with and LED one for safety. Almost no heat from LEDs... and I already had a regular bulb melt through the plastic of another lamp I made.

[bedragon]

Fluorescent lights also work perfectly and they are cheaper than leds

Cheers

[destructopop]

Oh, wow! The pattern was an excellent decision! It looks really lovely.

[cmeow]

so it's about stealing other's design?
or not respecting Intellectual property?

http://www.iqlight.com/

[bedragon]

When a design pass the 20 years old it is public domain and you can use it.

The only thing that you need to do is quote the author of the material that you are using. Its the same with the clasical chairs of the Bauhaus or any chair, you can copy it and sell it but you need to quote the author of the chair.

Cheers

[meyotch]

Well, it's illegal to steal intellectual property, but in this case the company you link to doesn't claim any intellectual property on the design itself. They only claim a trademark on the name IQ Light. No one here has infringed on that mark.

It doesn't look like there is any violation of intellectual property here. The original design was made in the 1970's so if there was a US patent on this kind of lamp, it has long since expired.

Just my 2 cents.

M

[starrilicious]

Love this, bookmarked it a while ago and finally got round to making one.

I made mine out of printer paper as a table ornament. It stands 16 inches or so tall and I cut my pieces, all 120, on my Silhouette SD. I reckon I could cut thin plastic too.

I'm working on a prototype ball with a special shaped piece to slot on to your ceiling pendant as the perfectionist in me needed it to hang right. My friend wants me to send her some and make a video assembling it, which I might just do.

Thanks so much for sharing!

[kwoodham]

This is absolutely perfect. My current living room light (a beautiful sculptural paper piece I made) has been whacked one too many times and needs replacing. My dining and living rooms are connected, separated only by half a wall, so I could also make smaller versions of the same light for the dining room (a pendant with 5 lights that I've neglected to finish yet - it currently has 3 different prototype shades hanging from it, and two naked bulbs). The design would even work in well with the print on my dining room curtains. Simple and PERFECT.

[Sol501]

i've been to munich a few days ago and i saw a sales booth where they sold exactly the same lamps... but it is boring just to buy that stuff (and expensive ;) )

[playful-geometer]

This is wonderful, thanks for sharing. I've been able to use the whitespace on the laminated prints for my Cosmic SpaceCraft Lanterns (http://cosmic-spacecrafts.net) using my CraftRobo Pro which I use to contour cut the panels. I had to modify the DXF file to make a continuous path for my plotter, which I'll upload here:

[keraiwailjs]

Cool. I like how you can customize it with that one shape.

[ansleybleu]

I am having trouble putting the oval 80pc lamp together. Did anyone take photos of it from the top or bottom? How many pieces are in the center ring section?
Thank you for any assistance!
Ansley

[si]

If you don't have the time to cut out the pieces or can't find a nice source, there are now sellers on ebay who you can buy them from, e.g. http://myworld.ebay.com.au/koanliving_aus/

I got some for AUD$17.20 per 30 (delivered price as I sniped 0.99c auctions and negotiated postage with 4 lots). Not as cheap as making them yourself, but the polycarbonate plastic is good quality, and I'm very pleased with the result.

Looks fantastic, thanks for the instructable!

[Chaoz123]

I've cut out 3 pieces, but I can't figure out how to connect them together. Help please.

[wearingpink]

I was thinking of trying to make this. Do you have any idea how big it is?

[dan]

it can be any size you want

[wearingpink]

I was talking about the red one, and I just wanted an original size to go off of.

[dan]

they were outside a building, probably close to 1m

[wearingpink]

So I made my own version of the red one. It's a little over a foot tall, and made out of mylar. It was a learning process. I'll add a photo when I find it.

[wearingpink]

Ok here's a picture:

[wearingpink]

So I finally made an instructable. Its here!: http://www.instructables.com/id/Modern-Lamp/

[CheesesOfNazereth]

Very nice

[neonack]

So do you have your diagram on that? Thats an awesome design.

[dan]

ooh good work!! was i right about the number of pieces and their shape? i was kind of guessing about it with only the photo to go on (i forgot to look very close at the time i took the photo). how many pieces did you use?

[emalcar]

That is amazing! Nice job! Please post even a general Instructable. I love this!

[nabau]

wearingpink...WOW nice work!!! are you going to share your pattern? ;)

[infinitysnake]

Can you post some other shots, or a pic of your pattern?

[haleysteffen]

I'm attempting the 120 piece light, i cut out all the pieces, and have tried multiple times for hours on end putting it together but it never comes out right and closes itself off before i can use all the pieces. I understand the concept of putting the 30 piece together no problem. Any help? Thanks.

[tangela]

Any idea how this might work with cutouts from poly folders like these?

[hintss]

anyone lasercut it?

[draw2blue]

Here's my version made of plain old paper. my first one didn't fit so had to extend it into an oval one, as you probably can it's a bit too heavy to stand on it's own.. thanks soo much for the template~!

[spijk860]

i saw a men wit those lamps on my holliday in france cool thinges

[Klode]

Has anybody tried it with 1/32" birch plywood? I can't seem to find this kind of plastic in Canada and our milk is sold in cartons not jugs... So i am tempted to try it with thin plywood... I am looking to make the 80 piece model... Thanks for your help!

[woodNfish]

Where are you looking for suppliers? Look up industrial supply sources in your area. Worst case you can order over the internet or scavenge other products like kerrym suggests.

[kerrym]

I'm in Canada, too.  I made mine using those super-flexible plastic cutting mats sold at the dollar store.  They come in different colours, but I used the clear/white-ish ones.

[ansleybleu]

How many piece make the bottom & top? Do you have a photo of the bottom of this lamp? This is the one I want to make, but cannot figure out how many pieces go on the top & bottom.
Thanks for any help!
Ansley

[jns02c]

This is great! So you used the cut out listed at the top of this page? How many pieces is it? Did you just play with it until it became this shape? Thanks.

[kerrym]

Yes, I used the template given above. This is the 80 piece variation as seen on the Iqlight site. I used their photo & diagrams to figure out how to assemble the pieces to get this shape.

[flyingpuppy]

Thanks for the material suggestion! This is going to be my Christmas present to a few people this year!

[jsiew1]

Very nice... i like it very much. do you have the pic of the original shape per piece? i would like to try doing it for my new house :-)

[velorna]

beautiful and what a great idea

[tangela]

Plastic cutting mats? The ones that are sold for chopping vegetables on and such?

[kerrym]

exactly!

[giannacl]

thats beautiful! how many pieces to make that size?

[kerrym]

This one is the 80 piece variation

[giannacl]

one more question (blush): what size did you choose?

[kerrym]

I just measured them, and each piece is about 5" long and 4 1/4" at its widest point. The finished light is roughly 15" in diameter, 11" high.

[giannacl]

thank you!

[Ex0]

I'm in Canada too..I was thinking...would 2 litre pop bottles work?

[Moomoomilk]

I LOVE CANADA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! <3<3<3<3

[omendata]

I dont often comment but superb - simple , inspirational and looks superb much better than most of the lights I have seen in shops in the UK.

Well done!

[Crafty123]

This is the same thing, basically taken from a kit :( of like the IQ ball series (no. 3)

[tangela]

Excellent instructable! Thanks for all the details--I'd like to try making one or two for a friend.

[jackhg]

TOOOO COOOL on the red shade,

does the red shade use the same pieces as given in this instructable?

Please let me know, I can see these as gifts for December

thanks

Jack

[Crink]

I was wondering if anyone is having trouble with the proportions of the jpg. I feel that there is something off. I might be wrong though.

[casvandegoor]

Great aesthetic shapes!

[cheeto4493]

Cool, I saw this on MAKE and followed the link here.
I converted the DFX over into a PDF. I called it IQlight.pdf

I was thinking about the HDPE material you recommended, and I got a thought. How about recycling 1 gallon Milk Jugs?

If you are interested in slide together polyhedra, check out this site.
George Hart polyhedra activities
http://www.georgehart.com/virtual-polyhedra/slide-togethers.html

Here is a picture of a ball I made from one of his patterns. I modified the triangle pattern, and built this ball out of CD's.

~Travis

[craftyv]

Travis wow!  
Has anyone got the instructables for these . The GeorgeHart site is  well worth checking out  but there are no instructions. i'm sure members would love any and all  Slide together polyhedra such as these.

[Shut Up Now]

(removed by author or community request)

[Shut Up Now]

oh and about how many cds did that particular polygon take

[cheeto4493]

20, plus a few that I broke while cutting and assembling. It is a regular Icosahedron. The hardest part is cutting the CD's without them cracking. And also putting the last one in. I ended up having to break it and tape it back together because it wouldn't flex enough to slide in. The other hard thing about cutting them is making the kerf the same width as the thickness of a CD, and at an angle.

[Shut Up Now]

i see.. thanks for the help oh yea i was thinking that it would be cool if after u assembled each set of 5 u microwaved em. if u have ever done that, it makes lightning and gives a cool cracked effect

[mage]

sweet. i really like the cd ball. because its shiny it entertains me :D

[frisko]

Hey Cheeto, thanks for the cool lamp shade idea!
I made the 30 square version as well, and it looks cool...

Does anyone know how to make one of these though?
http://www.origamitessellations.com/2006/01/17/identify-me/
The cool thing about this lamp shade is that you can open and close every individual compartment...

[craftyv]

I agree this is awsome.  It is s design called APERTURE by a designer called Claire Norcross and is sold commercially' I  too would love to know how to make it .

[Alex Ribeiro]

Thank you very much for the PDF file version!

[KitschyKoo]

Thanks for the great idea. I made my one out of some x-rays. I wanted something to hang above our table and as we don't have pendant light, I've just got it suspended from string. It would look fantastic with a light through it, but I'm happy with it just as a sculptural piece that spins in the breeze. I took the picture with a cell phone inside it.

[craftyv]

Kitchykoo: Brilliant use of old X Rays can you imagine how great they would be  with a  light globe inside and the bones showing through.My next project is an X Ray lamp for my grandson he will love it, because of the bones.

One point. WHERE CAN I GET XRAYS from as I only have 1 . Help please.

[dan]

ooh, Xrays are a great idea, and perfect material.

[Corrinne]

Has anyone tried making these using pieces cut from empty plastic milk containers? I just looked and they're HDPE, so I think it would work.

[craftyv]

Milk bottles work well but can be tricky to cut neatly, otherwiae terrific and free.

[dan]

yes, that should work.

[chasmyn]

SO when you make the shrinky ones, you put them together first and THEN shrink them? These are awesome - I am definitely making one from used milk bottles. Thanks for the instructable and the comments suggesting it!

[craftyv]

Help. I cant find any reference to shrinky ones, which sound great. please tell me where and/how.

[dan]

great! can you post a photo of your milk-bottle pieces or finished lampshade? that is a great recycled source for the HDPE

[craftyv]

I found a much easier tile shape on eschertile.com . And have used it succesfully  several times. It uses a Rhombus tile  which is easy to cut because there are no curves. A hole punch is used to mark the positon of where the  slots on the tiles hook onto each other.  Brilliant.
Sorry dont know yet how to "show' what I mean.

[jokerlz]

 I made this one from cheap lined paper. Once it was all locked together it was fairly strong.

[Depraved]

I love this lamp! I made one using laminate sheets and tinkerbell gift wrap.

[Bnie]

Help!

I am able to assemble the 30-elements lamp, and the 60-element lamp is also a piece of cake using videos found on the internet...

Can anyone provide a video or detailed instruction for the 120-element lamp please?

Thanks up front!

[chezcliff]

these lights are amazing!  I was trying to make my own and failed! after searching i found a site that sells the pre-cut pieces but even better sells them ready made in different sizes and shapes!! A fraction of the price compared to others. I brought the 120 piece ( they call it Electra) and it looks fantastic. Check them out 
   www.smartylamps.co.uk

[Valche]

Excellent! This is a beautiful and ingenious design, thank you so much for sharing it with us. I'll post pictures once mine is complete.

Question, though. How did you go about attaching this to the lamp? I'll be doing a hanging fixture like some you have and would love to know how to attach it to my cord. Thanks!

[arohak24]

OMG I have been looking everywhere for this lamp shade as soon as i saw this lamp I nearly died it was the exact picture i had in mind does anyone know where i can buy a similiar lampshade like these from in australia as i am not good at all at this sort of stuff and following instructions please it would be much appreciated im sure making these lamp shades would be a very lucrative business especially when people like me dont have the time to make these awesome lamp shades and would definatly buy one if that was an option.

[karudoru]

 kiaora Aroha,

i made sum and selling on trademe.co.nz for roun 30nzd but could post you one from auckland if u could pay through paypal, if u go to trademe and look up wiremu33 ive got them listed on there :)

[hishealer]

Wow, long sentences are very hard to read.

[dworssap]

Thanks for the instructable. I used the mexican style (see http://0pointer.de/blog/iqlamp-stencil.html with the stencil from Flickr.
I made a 30 piece lampshade. Here are some pictures:

One sheet of HDPE from usplastics.com (HDPE 24" x 48" 1/32" Thick) was enough for one lamp.

The lamp itself I bought for $3 off of craigslist; I used a 75W equivalent compact fluorescent bulb, which doesn't get too hot.

I hope other people have as much fun with this as I did.

[claudiaruge]

Hi !! I tried this one with cardboard and cut in 12 pieces. I did it yesterday at night and I had so much fun. Thanks for the instructable!!!

Im using it in my bedroom :)

[byte_me]

i had fun making these lamps, and now im earning money from it. this is my version using sulfuric acid plastic bottles and handmade paper.
thank you so much dan :)

[Tinseltoy]

Don't forget these lamps are from a Danish designer and are patented. The original is called the IQ light. See you don't get caugt selling replicas.

[ajn142]

I may be wrong, but patents expire after a certain period. You cant get another patent for the same product, even if your a different person, ever; but after about 20 years i think, the design is no longer exclusive, anyone can do it.

[byte_me]

oh i know this, that's why i only sell to friends and people that i know. :)

[bullkelsae]

Very nice instructable, I will be trying this soon, if you want to add colur and still use the same plastics you could apply some sign vinyl to the shapes before or after cutting which isn't expensive to buy, alternativley you can just ask any sign maker about scrap material as they always have a lot around, translucent vinyl would be best but normal vinyl will still let light through.

[benhnyc]

 how do you bring in the ends to meet to make the final shape? help! im having trouble...

[drend9]

HELP HELP!  I have purchased two packs of 120 modules each to make the larger size shades.  Can someone please give me some instruction.  The smaller ones I can do but I have been working on this for 4 hours and just cannot get it!

Thanks

[gracenthekraken]

would cardstock be an ideal material to use? or would it be too thick of a color compared to plastic? (i am using plain white cardstock)

[taiphoon]

 it sounds like it wouldn't let much light through.

[Mizifi]

Hello. Thanks for this instructable, very good. The pieces were made by hand in this picture. In the case, I did a special piece to attach directly to the lamp, as shown in Annex.

[taiphoon]

 I was wondering how you fit the lamp in!  Thanks for sharing!

[flytape8490]

This would be really cool to make out of a pack of cards

[Radobot]

This is very nice instructable! It is very simple system, it inspirates my.

[red8877]

i just made it, i also found that the template was too short but i just cut the slits longer and it worked fine.
i used the plastic covers from old lecture pads in different colours and it looks really cool

[reprint]

Thanks for posted this - i'm playing with different shapes to make and am halfway through a giant star shape. I didn't download your dxf file but simply traced over the picture above... a computer screen works just as well as a lightbox ;) I was just careful to use a soft pen so as not to damage my screen. A thought for those having an issue with the file.

[hishealer]

I right-clicked on the picture and clicked "print picture" I hope it's the same size, but it's the shape that's special, right?

[Cigani]

im making my 1st one out of paper. I right clicked on "SELECT ALL" and then right clicked on the template and then save "Save Pic As" then i printed out 50 copies... SUPER CHEAP AND FAST! I hope it will look as goog as theres does :)

[vaanloves]

hey, i printed off your template but i can't assemble it like the pics above. i put it the same way as the picture above but its not long enough and doesn't join

[byte_me]

it requires patience vaanloves :) i've printed it and made 3 already. its a lil difficult at first, but once u got the pattern, its quite easy :D

[spikethegecko]

Instead of acrylic, what about polycarbonate (Brand name, Lexan)? Unlike acrylic, it is much more flexible - you can bend it all day long without breaking. Not too expensive when purchased in such thin sheets. Any good building supply should have some (they sell it along with acrylic for glass pane replacements).

[dan]

lexan will work fine, its just commonly available only in clear.

[joeysdreamgarden]

Hi Dan and thanks for a fantastic Instructable! I have made a small lampshade out of recycled 4-pint milk bottles, I am very pleased to get something for almost nothing! I am drinking more milk so's I can make it into a 30-piece lampshade... and then 60-piece lampshade... 90-piece... 120... is there a limit??! :D

[dan]

wow it looks great!

[tepaul]

WHAT PATTERN DID YOU USE TO MAKE THIS LAMP?

[tepaul]

How many pieces were used to make the lamp?

[iectyx3c]

Superb. Best ever. Favorited and 5 stars.

[lukevery]

i love very much this lamp...

[Greendome]

beautiful lamps

[chicchien]

Hi Dan ! ( or anyone else who has made these shades) Did you ever figure out the template for the lamp you saw in China ? Would love to do that one. Thanks, chicchien

[28.martine]

I tried one out of printing paper that is to hard I'm going to get me some plastic tomorrow. I love this lamp, I'm going to make one for my nice who is moving into her new home and the space above the stairs is screaming for a designer lamp. Because of my health I can not help her so I hope she will be pleased with my home made gift. Thank you so much

[dasblattlaus]

That's very pretty, wearingpink. Can anyone tell me how you actually attach these to the bit that's hanging off the ceiling and has the bulb in it? When you buy a boring lampshade it has that metal bit that you hang it from..

[setimo79]

This is my video guide <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okX-tDFF_zQ">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okX-tDFF_zQ</a><br/>

[michelleyo]

i bought one of these when i was in mexico so i just wanted to help you guys that are trying to figure out materials a little... for mine the plastic they used is only slightly more bendable than the plastic from milk jugs, so it might be a little stiff at first but thats definitely something you can use, especially for larger lamps. a little awhile ago i saw some 8" x 11" plastic sheets at the craft store that are for people cutting out their own stencils...again those are a little bit stiffer compared to what my lamp was made of but would totally do the job. as far as paper goes...im not sure but i think that would be too opaque. my lamp, as it is, doesnt shed that much light (definitely just an accent lamp). although, to be fair mine has pieces in black, purple, and white, with the black and purple on the top half and the white on the bottom half. you could always hold up your sheet of paper to the light though and see how much comes through!

[Aercimete]

exacto knife would work on thin materials....

[iknoweverything]

i bought pre cut paper in Mendoza Argentina

[faiseaux]

Well, I tried to make one, it really dont see like in the picture but is very close to it, I use 6 diamond shapes, actually it was two equilateral triangles, I hope to make this instructable soon but I need to try diferent measures first. Thak you for the inspiration!

[taria]

I love that red one at the very bottom did anyone ever figure it out? if so let me know, I'd love to make one of them. thanks in advance.

[yetunguez]

this is awesome! i've been searching for a way to make a cool and unique lampshade and I found it. I have about 4 or 5 of those ikea lamp sockets that need a shade I'm thinking this could be done 'green' and eco-friendly by cutting up plastic milk jugs or vinegar bottles for the parts...I'll put my results on here when I get around to trying it, lol... Great project, and very simple.

[lime74]

Hi all, Recently, I bought 120 pieces to assemble the big lamp. But I have tried the entire day and I still couldn't get it. Does anyone has a step by step instructions to assemble it? Many thanks, Eric

[joeysdreamgarden]

Hi Lime74
I made the relatively simple 20-piece lamp from recycled milk bottles. I laid the pieces out on the floor as illustrated on this site: http://themagazine.info/56/Pictures/MISC/IQlightThree.jpg and connected them one by one. Although the diagrams are very tiny, it does give you a good guide as how to put the structures together. I imagine that the 120-piece one would get rather confusing without any sort of instructions... good luck!
Joey

[marcostoma]

Fantástico o efeito !

[littledrummerboy]

Cool Dan I always wondered about what shape was used for that lamp. I think it's especially awesome that you experimented with different assemblies:-)

[loveelephants]

Does anyone have specific details about placing the light fixture? I bought a kit. It came with a socket and a cone. No mention of the cone anywhere on the Internet or the instructions. Does it go on the inside or outside? Face up or down? What's the cone for anyway? Thank you!

[bobix]

The cone goes a the top, to the ceiling, it's ment to cover the hook and the cable connections

[wearingpink]

what about using mylar? there is a non-metallic kind which I think would work. and I found it at my college bookstore, probably there for architects of artists.

[puffyfluff]

Wow. Sounds cool.

[lieuwe]

I tried it with laminated paper, but it didn't work, it un-laminates :-( and you can not get any shape together(or at least, I couldn't)

[tiago_ast]

Great idea. Where i find other shapes? thanks

[ian bernal]

to all having problems downloading the dxf: try right clicking on the link and use the "save as" option, it should work for you.

[jak06]

will styrene work?

[IdeaFactory]

Hi, am trying to download the DXF file, but it;snot working, can anybody care to mail me the dxf or cdr file at [e-mail] Regards Wadhwa Ajay

[awakening612]

Hi ! I can't get the DXF file either, did anyone send another template to you that you can forward to me ? thanks !

[awakening612]

I'm going to a plastic store in NYC to get the paper today ( very excited) but I don't know how to download the template for the pieces. Can anyone please help me? thanks !

[octochan]

Hey, I have one of these lamps! I got it on sale somewhere a long time ago, but the plastic yellowed in sunlight, so I disassembled it and put it away. I always did want to copy the pieces and make a new one, but I couldn't get the lamp part off of mine - it was permanently attached to the middle of one of the module pieces. I also didn't know where to get the right plastic for it, but now I'm eyeing at our 4L bottled water jug - I might have to raid my neighbours blue boxes on the next recycling day!

[klang]

80-100 euros for a box with 30 pieces, pricey. I have a 9-piece and a 20 piece-lamp, I like them.

[Matti]

This is really nice! Started mine today. I just discovered that you can buy those 30-piece lamps on ebay Germany for 7,95 plus shipping. Those are copies of course and maybe they are shabby. Anyway, I will make my own, planing to do 120 pieces. I built a template for a pin router and can make as many pieces as I like ;-)

[jak06]

do you know of a ratio for the size and number of the pieces to the finished product. I need a specific size to replace small a globe.

[dan]

the 30-piece balls shown in a couple of my photos are about 250mm diameter, the pieces they use measure 70mm between the two flat edges.

[architectapril]

love the lamp, i'm making a 8'x4' light box that also shows films on the front. i bought the hdpe from the site listed above and its pretty good but has some shine to it. does anyone know where to get similar material without the shine?

[Enote]

Hi, Love the lamp (I'm biast since I'm from Denmark) but can't download the file. I'm lucky enough to have a water jet at work so my operator will upload the drawing and cut them for me. We have been strogelig to save the file on my PC - what am I doing wrong - any help on how to grab it? Thanks Enote

[cool lamp]

I had really good luck with the Carolina write-on/wipe-off poster board. You can use either the shiny or the dull side out. It is really easy to cut and can be used with this style of lamp up to 1.5 ft in diameter. Depending on the size of lamp you are making, you will get 6-15 pieces / sheet. At $1.44/ sheet, this makes a very reasonably priced lamp. I have used regular and fluorescent bulbs and prefer any that give a bright white glow. I either make my own cord or buy a ready made one from IKEA ($2.99 15 ft.). I make these with my 4th grade students and the results were fabulous! I ordered from Mister Art and was very happy with the service and timely delivery. I would appreciate any other design templates/instructions that anyone would like to share,

http://www.misterart.com
Carolina Pad Write On/Wipe Off Item # 6931225 1.44

[Shifrin]

I like the one that looks like a rose!

[manggo_lover]

I've finish my first polygon lamp. Thx Dan!

[cherry0884]

hey, this is a silly question: where did you get the lamp base, i've gone to so many stores and can't find anything simple enough to put my lampshade on. By the way, your polygon looks great. I did a round one.

[manggo_lover]

It's not silly question :) I'am from indonesia. Sooo, you should be around here to have exact lamp base ;) It came from table lamp, i strip all upper part (where lamp_bulb_base use to be sitting) becouse its to big and stick it to my polygon.

[jak06]

does anyone have a better way of cutting the shapes instead of scisssers

[pojken]

The lamp is from a Danish designer (sold at ilva.dk if you live in Europe). If you want instructions, go to http://www.iqlight.com. They have all the different variations. CB2.com sells smaller "Christmas light" versions of them if you want a string of them. Search term LIGHT.

An important thing to note is that if you want to hang it from something (bare bulb or even a keychain), simply insert the end of the cord/lightbulb into the shell and then pull it around any of the central connections. Because of the way the pieces interlock, it pinches the cord.

I had to install one of these and it took about twenty minutes to figure out how to assemble. Theyr'e great fun because you can make some REALLY big ones if you wanted to combine different sets. (There's a store in NYC's SoHo... forgot the name... that sells the actual lamps. It costs around $100 for one set. I've always wanted to make them myself, as that was too expensive for 30-something pieces of plastic.)

[pardonmyfreedom]

aw the site looks like it's permanantly down. :(

[pojken]

If you do a search for IQ Light and click on the link, it works. Funny how that goes, but I clicked on the old link and it didn't work. When I did a google search, it worked. http://www.iqlight.com/ is the one I got, which is no different from what I posted, but it works.

http://www.google.com/search?q=iq+light&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official is the Google site.

Here's a link for the instructions - http://themagazine.info/56/Pictures/MISC/IQlightThree.jpg

T.

[tr67]

Your original link has a period at the end, hence the confusion.

[Hieu]

Walmart sells Flexible Cutting Mat (7065200725 in kitchen supplies area) in a package of 3 for $2.96. Each mat measures 12x15 inches around 30x38 cm. It comes in light blue may come in other colors - not sure. Don't know what kind of plastic it is though.

[tr67]

Thanks for the tip. I found a flexible cutting mat in my kitchen and made a small lampshade very quickly from it.

[nilufersyed]

Hi....damn neat job...kudos. Its 3 am right now and i wanted to get to work on this beauty right away but :o( I cant access the file for tracing the design....Cud sumone pls help me out ? As in mebbe send me this design on word or anyoder format...pretty pls.

[apburner]

I suspect one could use 64th inch plywood as can be had at hobby shops. You could stack a few sheets of the stuff together and cut the piece with a scrollsaw.

[kirnex]

VERY COOL. I cannot wait to make some of these. You could probably also use those report-cover thingies you get at the office store. They come in packs of like 10, 25 or 50 sized @ 8.5"x11". A pack of 25 is like $14 at Office Max. They also come with all sorts of cool designs on them and in several colors. I use them for all sorts of crafty apps--this would be a great one. Just cut 'em with an exacto knife. Thanks for sharing this most excellent tutorial.

[Diogo Alves]

very nice!! i´m looking for a material like that you use but it´s hard to find!! if someone can help me saying where i found.... i will be very gratefull !

[gibbon]

I bought the Delrin from McMaster Carr.

http://www.mcmaster.com/

Cutting Delrin with a scissors was terrible. It's brittle and easy to crack. I would recommend Polyethelene.

[gibbon]

I made the 30pc sphere out of .5mm white delrin. This material is a little brittle to be cut with scissors IMHO. After many hours of cutting, punching holes, and a few scrapped parts, I was ready to hang the shade. 1. I used a cheap hanging socket. 2. To hang the shade from the cord, I traced a CD onto the delrin and cut a slit for the wire to pass through. 3. Leaving one of the 30 pieces out of the sphere made a rectangular hole that the florescent bulb, light socket, and delrin disk could pass through. 4. Now the shade is hanging from the wire.

[dan]

very nice!

[glans]

Hey all. I just made my own lamp not so long ago and if you need inspiration take a lokk at my pics- My pics show the progress and has comments! glans

[mmalecky]

That's beautiful! I love the tiny circuit-like details.

[glans]

sorry!!!1 this is the site http://www.flickr.com/photos/glans/sets/72157594587818064/

[katz]

You can recycle your plastic water bottles this way! Bigger bottles have bigger flat surfaces to use!

[knutmo]

can someone please help me out on how to make the HUGE ball with 120 modules? I keep ending up with 30 module ones....

[dan]

i've added some more photos in the last step including an 80-piece construction which is built very similar to the 120-piece one

[knutmo]

thanks for the extra photos, but I still can't seem to do it. I really fail to see the patterns in your examples and in the few drawings I have found. I'm able to make the 30-piece balls when I follow the steps and the video that's on the IQLight website, but I have nowhere found similar instructions for the bigger ones. If someone has step-by-step instructions I'd be really grateful!!!

[nickpeer]

haha

[nickpeer]

yeye

[Nevermore78]

First of all, thanks Dan for this great instructable. I've had a lot of fun building this things. As a small contribution, I created a "roadmap" for the 120-piece one. I painted the pieces with two colors, to distinguish between the two faces (some pieces go face-up, and some go face-down). I also added a view of the bottom part to make the beginning a little easier. I built a 14cm diam. version with paper (this is how I understood the structure). As you can see in the pictures, it looks more like a dodecahedron rather than a sphere. .

[starcana]

Hi, thanks so much for this. Have just bought 120 pieces in Thailand. Sorry to be thick but can you tell me - do you make each of the top elements first (as my instruction sheet, then add the long row, then the next long row and then the bottom elements. Hope that makes sense, what I'm asking is what order did you put this together in. thanks

[Nevermore78]

Hi Starcana!

The way you describe it is pretty much correct, except for the fact that it is a lot easier if you take the bottom element as a start. You have to assemble the first five pieces (the white ones in my diagram) forming the pentagonal base, and then you continue growing that bowl-like structure row by row (adding "circles"), until you get to the closing phase, where you'll eventually end up with the last five top pieces, that you'll just have to interlock.

It may look complicated, but you'll se that once you've done the first couple of rows it's pretty straightforward. Just keep an eye of the orientation of each piece.

Happy building!

[starcana]

Thanks for this but I'd given up and have just completed the 60 piece one which is probably a better size for where I want it. Just the flex/bulb to get in now without it collapsing! Thanks again.

[byte_me]

i did it! i finally did it! thanks nevermore. i couldn't have done it without your help :) i made mine with HDPE plastic from plastic bottles :)

[Nevermore78]

Hi! I used regular printer paper, it's OK for that size. The pieces I used are 4.5 cm in its long diagonal. They're quite small, so be patient with the scissors.... Using those numbers you'll be able to predict the final size of the ball. Have fun!

[feelgoodlost]

amazing! what kind of paper did you use? im afraid normal printer paper will be too flimsy. also, what was the approximate length of pieces that made a 14cm ball? id like to to be able to predict what size it comes out to.

[knutmo]

thank you SO VERY VERY VERY MUCH for your excellent roadmap!! This is exactly what I needed to build my 120-piece behemoth lamp! I couldn't have done it without you guys!!! If you're ever in Utrecht, The Netherlands, be sure to look me up and I'll buy you beer.

[dan]

thanks for posting the photos! this is a more attractive shape i think than the 80-piece one, i think i will have to upgrade my 80-piece to a 120.

[Wetwillie1800]

Dude, this thing rules!!! Is it just me, or does the one you made in the first picture look exactly like a Takraw Ball? Takraw is an ancient sport native to southeast asia, and is played like volleyball, but with your feet.

[Zak]

I used a rice bag (the same as I used in my lamp project which is PE starnds laminated with clear plastic. My pieces are 18 cm (largest size) and while the lamp stays together I must find out if it can be suspended. The decor on the bag makes the design look very busy:

[DonnaCohn]

saw these lamps at the Make Faire this weekend. they look great! For more modular polyhedra check out the work of George Hart. http://www.georgehart.com/virtual-polyhedra/classroom.html

[servant74]

Are there some good but cheap laser cutter services on the 'net?

[czarina28]

Thanks for the instructable. Ive wanted to make a lamp for a long time. I ended up finding velum at the fabric/craft store so I used that. It is likely too thin to last very long (and Im presuming it wont catch on fire.) For the light I found a 'candelabra' bulb (15w) and candelabra socket with an on/off switch included. A regular bulb and socket were too big for my shade. I only used four template pieces to construct this. I presume the lamp would become sturdier if I add more. My cellphone camera doesnt do it justice, as it does look pretty darn cool when lit up. Oh, velum was about .99 a sheet. Bulb and socket were less than $5. Cool lamp? Priceless.

[dan]

wow, that looks amazing! and with only 4 pieces!

[Johntron]

Awesome! I'd like to see one shaped like this (minus the monster arms). I've seen something similar made out of dollar bills, but I don't know how to do it.

[bookratt]

Get one of these if you want a rounded star shape:

http://www.christmaslightsetc.com/categorydetail.asp?categoryid=552

We used to make these as kids, in my Moravian church here in the states. we shorten the longer spires to make the star more rounded.

They may have kits that show how to cut and how to do the folding of the sheet plastic.

Then you could use that kit and its pieces as a template and make more of your own less expensively.

[dan]

unfortunately these pieces can't make concave corners, only convex ones - so stellated polyhedrons are not possible. i would have made one otherwise!

[Johntron]

Yeah, I'm sure it's possible using other shapes though. I'll look into it.

[!werdna!]

Okay, so how can i get the file in something other than a .dxf ? I don't have autocad... perhaps if someone could up a PNG or something like that I'd be able to do this sweet instructable! Thanks!

[fizzix18]

OpenOffice can read DXF files

[!werdna!]

okay...never mind, i managed to grab the gif, >_< duh

[dan]

dozens of drawing programs can read dxf. coreldraw, visio, etc.

[SerJ]

do you think this will work from unused plastic sheets for the laminating machine? i shall try that next week. or even maybe laminated blank sheets of paper? then you can print out your template, laminate it, and cut it out? thanks

[dan]

good idea! you could use laminated colored tissue paper, i think it would be great!

[tracy-s]

Oh wow! This is so perfect! Last summer I went to Italy and got a kit to make this lamp and... well.. the instructions were in italian of course. Since I am not at an italian instruction sheet understanding level in my language ability, I sadly failed at my attempt to put this together. Haha. But now I have been given another chance! Thanks! :-)

[octochan]

I bought a lamp like this made of plastic a few years ago, but sunlight turned one side of it yellow. I haven't bothered to make replacement bits since I couldn't find plastic that matched, but maybe I'll start over with paper.

[curiousity]

thanks dan! it is so beautiful!

[kkinney]

I'm intrigued about making the cookie cutter out of sheet metal. What type metal? Do you sharpen it before forming? That would be a GREAT instructable.

[dan]

i agree, that would be a good instructable. i'd just use a 1-inch wide strip of sheet metal, maybe around 20-mil thick (1/2 mm). no need to sharpen it, when you heat it it will cut right through the plastic like butter. then you bend it with pliers to form a cookie-cutter. it probably will need one or two ribs across it to help keep the shape (scrwed/soldered/welded on). if you see step 2, some folks commented there that you can order such a cookie cutter on the web fairly cheaply.

[EmilyG]

This is great! I saw this lamp at a fancy furniture store and I've been wanting to make my own. $100 for a die cutter and custom die sounds awesome. I too would like that link if you still have it. Thanks.

[thisisthechad]

while it's likely that any laser cutter you might use will have a responsible person associated with it, it should be noted that using a laser on vinyl will create chlorine gas, which will kill you. Also, I did a project similar to this, and we used a custom die for the cutting, in conjunction with a simple die cutter-- the die (which is like a really sharp cookie cutter) cost around 30 dollars and the cutter was something a little ridiculous like 45 dollars... I can't remember the prices really well, but we ordered both on the internet and if you made a lot of lamps or split the cost with friends it wouldn't be too bad.

[dmeyer40]

thisisthechad, do you remember the URL of the site that you purchased the custom die from? Thanks!

[dosher]

I used 90 lb. watercolor paper, and it worked fantasticly. It's a nice cream color when lit up. Great project, thanks a lot!

[capricorn]

That's life. Someone makes a living out of invention like that working for IKEA and other one earns some serious respect postiing it to us for free. RESPECT MATE! :)

[mrmath]

Time to combine instructables. Make your "lampshade" out of No. 6 Plastic, then shrink it. http://www.instructables.com/id/EIW10VHVUOES9J6JE0/

I wonder what would happen. I'm guessing a big blob of melted plastic, but it would be fun to find out!

[zachninme]

That plastic won't melt at the "shrink temp", so you would be fine.

[becava]

I do that combination, and make a nice keychain. Now I'm thinking of make more of them to use them in my Christmas Tree. (in the picture are 3, the big one in plastic, the medium is made of paper, and the small its shrink plastic)

[kitschnsink]

hi, your lamp looks like you've used a different shape than the one instructed. could you share your instructions? thanks

[dan]

what method did you use to cut out your parts?

[becava]

I forgot to tell that for the christmas sphere, I will use leds inside them

[dan]

i have added a step with a lot more detail on how to assemble the pieces

[origamiguy]

Several yrs ago I saw this polygon in one of my paper folding magazines. I made lots of them for the Christmas tree.....makes a cool unusual ornament and I have had lots of comments on them. Never did the lamp, tho.

[hethlee]

i tried this out of colored computer paper and it was awesome... it took me quite awhile to figure it out.. and it looks lopsided but i put it over a lamp and it's pretty sweet!

[dan]

hmm, i will try to put an instructable about how to fold them together!

[swiftgriffin]

I just saw these down in Baja, they are georgeous! They used colored plastic with the white for a diferent look. Orange/white, yellow/white, they all rocked!

[linblood]

The lamp has been around for quite a while... well, some 30 years at least. In the last years their popularity have revived.

It's called the IQ Light, see

http://www.iqlight.com/

or any of the numerous online shops carrying the lamp designed by Holger Ström.

Support creative designers and quality-focused companies by buying and loving their products.

[rotor]

When I win the lottery, maybe I won't mind paying $90 for a lampshade. Until then, I will make do with this SUPER-AWESOME instructable.

[dan]

sure, i have a link to them in my project. i have seen no-name knockoffs of it also. if you are in the mood to buy it then go right ahead, but it is well within Fair Use to make your own for non-commercial purposes.

[ansleybleu]

I purchased one of these lamps in Thailand last year and adore it. I have been looking to buy more pieces to make it larger. Where did you purchase your plastic?

[PeterTheUnGreat]

That is very clever and amazingly simple Pete

[mrmath]

By the way, these things look AMAZING! I might just do it with cardstock paper just to see what I can do.