This is an instructable on how to create a wooden lamp that can be used for lighting purposes. It was built at school using our FabLab which gave us access to these tools: table saw, miter saw, belt sander, and laser cutter.

Supplies

4 square foot piece of MDF (any other ¼” or 1⁄2” piece of wood should work)

2-foot slab of wood 3-6 inches wide

Extension cord with socket (E26/E27 - standard)

LED Light Bulb (A19 - standard)

Acrylic

Hot glue gun

Hot glue sticks

Wood glue

Step 1: Step 1: Gather Your Materials

Step 1: Gather your materials and measure out everything. There are four main components to the frame of the lamp that are built out of wood and the lamp shade is cut out of acrylic.

Base: 12 in. slab of wood, 6 in. slab of wood (2)

Vertical Tower: 18 by 2 in. pieces of MDF (3), 16 by 2 in. piece of MDF (1)

Diagonal Tower: 8 by 2 in. pieces of MDF (3), 6.5 by 2 in. piece of MDF (1)

Horizontal Tower: 7 by 2 in. pieces of MDF (3), 1 by 2 in. piece of MDF (1), 2 by 2 in. piece of MDF (2)

Acrylic Shade: 5 by 6 in. piece of acrylic (4)

Step 2: Step 2: Cut Out the Pieces for the Towers

Step 2: Cut out your wooden pieces for the towers using MDF or another thin sheet of wood that is either ¼” or 1⁄2” thick. Use a marker to measure and plan out your pieces and cut them out on the table saw.

Step 3: Step 3: Cut Out Base

Cut out your wooden pieces for the base using the 2-foot slab of wood 3-6 inches wide. Measure out the appropriate lengths to make the base; you have creative freedom over how you make the base. Cut the wood using a miter saw. Glue them together using wood glue to make a plus-sign.

Step 4: Step 4: Sand the Wood

Sand all of your pieces to avoid splinters and rough edges.

Step 5: Step 5: Assemble the Pieces.

Hot glue each tower together by following the specific instructions for each tower. After all the towers are assembled, glue them together. The vertical tower is on the bottom, the diagonal tower should fit into the vertical at an angle, and the horizontal tower should fit into the diagonal tower. Refer to images for assistance.

Vertical Tower: Glue all four pieces together. All bottoms should be even which means that there should be a 2 in. opening near the top because of the 16 in. piece.

Diagonal Tower: Glue all four pieces together. All bottoms should be even which means that there should be a 1.5 in. opening near the top because of the 6.5 in. piece.

Horizontal Tower: Glue 3 pieces together like a rectangular prism, leaving space for the last side. Fill in the missing side by gluing a 2 by 2 piece at the bottom; the edges should be lined up. Measure 3 inches from that piece and glue down the 1 by 2 piece so that it fills in the width of the space with the 2-inch side.

Step 6: Step 6: Wiring

Feed socket extension cord through the lamp, prong first so that the cord fits. Glue the lamp frame to the base using hot glue/wood glue once the wiring is complete.