How to Build an Affordable and Stylish Outdoor Lamp

6 Materials
$20
1 Hour
Easy

Are you tired of being limited by the proximity of electrical outlets when it comes to adding a touch of elegance to your outdoor spaces? Say goodbye to those limitations with this innovative DIY cordless lamp project I'm about to unveil.


This post was transcribed by a member of the Hometalk editorial team from the original HometalkTV episode.

In this post, I'll guide you through the steps of creating your very own cordless solar lamp, a stylish and functional lighting solution that doesn't require a nearby outlet.

Bowl and E6000 glue

1. Gathering the Materials

For this project, we are going to start with six of these bowls. I got them from Dollar Tree.  


You're also going to need some E 6000 and you want to give yourself enough time for this to dry overnight.  

Apply glue to the bottom of a bowl

2. Assembling the Bowls

Start by putting the glue around the lip of the bottom and from there we are going to take another bowl and place it on top.  

Stacking bowls

We're going to do this again and make two more sets. Once they are all done, leave them overnight to set.  

Adding glue to the rim of the bowls

All right, now that we've let these dry a little bit, what I'm going to do next is I'mgoing to be taking my E 6000 and I'm going to go around the top of this. 

 

Assembling bowls on top of each other

We're going to stack another set on top. Make sure they are centered.  

Building a lamp base from bowls

Then we're going to do this one more time.  

Painting the DIY cordless lamp base

3. Painting the Assembled Bowls

All right, so we've let this dry overnight and everything is dry so we want to paint them. If you like the marbled look you can always leave them as they are.  

Two Styrofoam rounds

4. Adding Styrofoam Rounds

Now that we have assembled all the bowls together and the paint has dried, we're going to move on to our next step. I grabbed two of these Styrofoam rounds.  

Applying glue to a Styrofoam round

I want to glue them together with my E 6000.  

Cut a hole through the center of each round

You may notice on this side, I have already gone and put a hole in the center. We're going to replicate that hole on the second one as well.  

Paint the Styrofoam rounds the same color as the lamp base

Now it’s time to paint the Styrofoam. I used the same paint as before. Be sure to give it a long enough time to dry. 

Glue the edges of the Styrofoam rounds

Once the paint is dry, we're going to use some hot glue and we are going to be attaching it to the inside of the top bowl. I'm going to start with the bottom part and then add as needed.  

Remove the bottom stake from a solar light

5. Add a Solar Lights

Next, you want to grab a solar light and remove the bottom half.  

Push the solar light into the holes of the Styrofoam rounds

Finally, you want to place a large lampshade on top and pop the solar light through the hole and into the foam. The foam will keep it snug and secure. 



DIY Lighting Project

Check out this gorgeous lighting tutorial for more ideas: Create a DIY table lamp from a vase.

Final DIY cordless lamp

DIY Cordless Lamp Tutorial

Here is the really DIY cordless lamp I created for my outdoor patio area. I really love how this turned out, it was super simple to make, super easy, and it didn't take a lot of time. 


Let me know what you think!

Suggested materials:
  • Bowls
  • E6000 glue
  • Styrofoam rounds
See all materials
Meredith - Arts & Classy
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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Frequently asked questions
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3 of 15 questions
  • Kim 'Kiewatt' Waknitz Kim 'Kiewatt' Waknitz on Feb 10, 2023

    I’ve never had luck with solar lights charging or being bright enough with something covering them, even with top open to sun light. What I’m I doing wrong?

  • Sable Sable on Feb 12, 2023

    Does it get enough solar power and how long does it last?

  • Arleen Arleen on Jan 09, 2024

    What kind of Paint?

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  • Sheros Sheros on Jan 10, 2024

    Looks cute, but I have a ton of solar lights and this will probably need to be put in the sun to recharge almost daily.

  • Bregitta Bregitta on Jan 11, 2024

    So disappointed. Went to my local Dollar Tree and found that they have raised some items to $3.00 & $5.00. The manager told us that they will be going to $1.25 and more. I’m sure that the increase will hurt their business as many customers depended on them to get products that they needed.. The items that we looked at definitely were not worth $3.00 & $5.00. So we just put items back and walked out.

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