How to make a Tree Trunk Lamp | Redo It Yourself Inspirations : How to make a Tree Trunk Lamp

Sunday, March 9, 2014

How to make a Tree Trunk Lamp

This is what you call "seeing the forest through the trees".   After several trees uprooted from Storm Irene, I recently checked out the damage, well after the ground dried, and decided that we should clean them out and replant.   In the meantime I knocked around some ideas as to what to do with the wood.  Then I saw lamps among other things in the woods and got started.

This is the "Before" photo.  :)

Cut out the desired section with a chain saw to start. 

Removed bark with chisels, knives, and anything that worked. 

Dug out more bark growth and earth in between the roots. 

Now this, took a lot of patience. The bark, of course, was wrapped around each root and to reach them was tedious. 

Some were easily taken off...

others needed more coffee and even vintage picks. 

Sanding began.


Gave it a pressure washer bath to remove anything else, including the possibility of unwanted insects. 

I used several sanding methods; a belt sander on the bottom, orbit sander for flat spots and then on to small Dremel bits for in between.

At 19" high, a long drill was needed to make the wiring feed through the log.

Finally the fun... staining. I used a "Golden Oak" wood stain even though this wood  is in the pine family.

One coat of lacquer was enough.

The bottom of the  log where the drilled hole is located. 


This was a large wooden drawer knob. I painted it and drilled a hole through it to use
as a decorative touch for the top of the trunk. 


Ran the lamp rod through the hole. 

Then wired up with the light kit. 

A tree brought back to life. 

Completed with a shade. 

A little bit of Mother Nature added to the room. 



I transplanted 6 of these trees as seedlings from the very woods where our fallen trees are. I put them in a sunny location on the property 4 years ago. They are ready now to be planted where these fallen trees are. A great spring project.







5 comments:

  1. Very cool lamp! I'm visiting from the Countdown blog hop.

    Thanks

    Angie

    PS – “The Great Blog Train” (blog hop) is
    currently live on my blog –we'd love to have you hop on board (if you haven't
    already) The Destination this month is Windsor, Ontario CANADA! Thank you!
    http://www.godsgrowinggarden.com/2014/03/the-great-blog-train-14-giveaway.html

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  2. This is amazing. My husband would absolutely love this lamp. There used to be a specialty gift store in our area with pieces like this in them and it was expensive! I nominated you for a Liebster Award on the blog at http://www.housekaboodle.com/liebster-award-pay-it-forward/

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  3. Thank you, Sue! These types of lamps are made and sold around the Lake George and Lake Placid areas here. They are very pricey, but the work that goes into them can explain why. Working with mother nature has its disadvantages, but worth preserving its beauty. I'm glad you like it. Thank you for the nomination! It's a fun one that I'm truly enjoying!

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  4. So cool! I love how you saw the beauty in the tree trunk!

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  5. Oh, that looks fabulous! And what a great use for something that might have been disposed of.

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