Rustic Log Lamp

Today I will be making a rustic log table lamp. I love rustic and log furniture and decor, but it is incredibly expensive to buy. I have made log furniture for less than a tenth of the price it would have been to buy it. This project is very simple, and does not require a great deal of experience to do. It also does not require a lot of special or expensive tools. It is made to look like what people would have had in log cabins, or farmhouses, which would have been made using hand tools only.

The woodworking part of making this rustic lamp can be done in an afternoon. With time allowed for several coats of finish to dry, the total project time would be just a few days.

There is nothing like log furniture and decor to bring to mind a sense of warmth and home and can make any room feel a little more relaxing.

Drill

Wood drill bits (assorted sizes)

Forstner Bit (optional)

Hand Saw

Draw knife, or a putty knife

Hammer

Screwdriver

Deep well socket and wrench

Measuring Tape

Square

Sandpaper

Pencil

Polyurethane

Sponge brushes, or disposable craft brushes

Wood Glue

Super glue

Dowel pins

Lamp Hardware kit

Logs or Tree Branches of appropriate sizes

Lamp Shade

Decor for the lamp (optional)

For this project, I am using some Cypress wood. Carefully peel all of the bark off. The bark can be left on if you want, but there is always the chance it will come off when handling. Cypress bark does stay on pretty well, even after the wood is completely cured. I am using a section of a 5 foot long piece of Cypress from a tree that came down in an ice storm over 2 years ago. The bark can be removed with either a draw knife, or a putty knife if it is a small piece.

Once the bark is off, the wood will need a good sanding to make the whole surface smooth. If the wood is completely dried, sanding will not be a problem. It takes at least a year for logs to dry after they've been cut, most of the time 2 years to be completely cured. If it is still fresh, sanding will be much harder. Under the bark, the wood will be sticky from sap. You can still use it, but as it dries the wood will shrink. This will particularly be a problem if you are using a tenon and mortise joint to join the body to the base. Once the wood shrinks, the body may become loose on the base. The body of this lamp will be attached to the base using dowel pins and wood glue.

I use 60 grit sandpaper after peeling the log pieces, then move up to 100 grit, and finish with 160 grit.

When you have finished sanding, blow off as much dust with an air compressor as you can, then wipe the wood down with a damp cloth. Leave the wood to dry overnight after wiping down.

Whenever I dress logs for drying, I always leave a small amount of each limb that grew off of it. For the body I chose a section that still has several "stumps" on it.

I am using for the base a log biscuit from a piece of pine wood. When sanded, pine and cypress will finish pretty much the same using polyurethane.

In order that the lamp maintains a good solid feel, you will need to drill the hole for the thread rod small enough that you can actually "thread" the rod into the wood. For the typical thread rod you will need a 3/8" drill bit. The body of my lamp is 16" tall. The kit of lamp hardware I got had 12" long thread rods in it. Use the 3/8" drill bit at the top of lamp body to ensure it will hold the socket and harp securely.

At the bottom of the body, you will need to drill a hole wide enough for a deep well socket to fit into the body far enough to reach the bottom of the thread rod. Once the rod is in place, apply a decorative nut to the rod at the top of the lamp, and at the bottom of the rod, a washer, a lock washer, and a nut.

Next, drill two holes in the bottom of the body, coat the inside with wood glue, and hammer in two dowel pins for securing the body to the base.

Drill a hole the same size as the one at the bottom of the body into the base. drill a second hole for the power cord in the base from what will be the back of the lamp into the larger hole that will be beneath the body. Also drill 2 holes in the base to sink the dowel pins in, to secure the body to the base. Do not glue the body down yet!!

This is the best time to apply whatever finish you prefer for the wood. I love the look of bare wood, or just a slight natural color to it. For this lamp, I am using a gloss polyurethane with a natural oak tint. Apply one coat and allow to dry overnight. Leave the bottom of the body, and the part of the base that will be beneath it unfinished, as the wood glue will bond better to bare wood. On the next day, lightly sand the whole surface by hand using a clean piece of 160 or 180 grit sandpaper. wipe down the whole surface and again blow off the surface with an air compressor to completely remove all dust. Apply a second coat and let dry again overnight.

Place the neck, the harp hardware and the bottom of the socket on the thread rod top and firmly secure them.

Before beginning the wiring, lay out everything that the wire will need to pass through from the base all the way up to the socket. It is so easy to wire something, only to find out once it is all together that one thing was left out. Wood glue forms a very strong bond, stronger than the wood fibers themselves are attached together. Once the body is glued to the base, it will not come apart again. Run the power cord through the small hole in the back of the base, and up through the hole that will be under the body. Extend the wire through the thread rod and up through the socket bottom. Here, tie an electrician's knot in the wire to prevent any strain on the socket wiring should the cord get yanked once the lamp is finished. Securely fasten the wires to the socket and seat the socket firmly to its bottom.

Using a small brush, coat the bottom of the body, the dowel pins and the base with wood glue, trying to stay far enough away from the edges to prevent any squeeze out. It may be necessary to tap the body down and into place. If so, use a small smooth piece of scrap wood to work around the hardware.

The final things will be to add a shade, and any extra decorations you would like to add. I have done lots of things with deer and farm animals, so this time I decided to go with bears. Glue the decor on using super glue. I got these bears at Amazon for $23.

Cost of this lamp, $12 for the hardware kit, $8 for a small can of polyurethane, $23 for the bears, and $40 for the shade, totals $83 dollars. I have seen similar lamps for sale online for anywhere from $150 to $200. Overall, it is a much better deal than buying one. But more than that, it is a much better experience. There is nothing like the smell of the wood when the bark is stripped away, the feel of a piece of sanded wood, or the satisfaction of using the finished product for years to come, and knowing it is something you made with your own hands!