As two big nerds, we both love Star Wars. I always saw the IKEA PS 2014 lamp and thought “it looks so much like a Death Star!”

With my boyfriend moving in, we took the chance and converted one of those plain white lamps into the exploding Death Star floating over our bed. We absolutely love it.

See how we made it below!

More info: lylelo.blogspot.de

I made this Death Star from a plain IKEA lamp and you can do it too

First step, of course, is to buy an IKEA PS 2014 lamp and a can of spray paint

We decided to get the biggest IKEA lamp in copper/white. It is supposed to hang over the bed in our slightly Star Wars themed bedroom, so why get small! I used a can of light grey spray paint from the local hardware store. Do this outside because of the fumes and the necessary ventilation. If you want to have it perfect – cover the copper insides BEFORE you spraypaint the outsides. The mist of the spray dulled the sheen a tiny bit – it doesn’t bother us, but if you want it super shiny – cover it up. Or don’t use spray paint and brush the light grey instead. In my case, it was a matter of time and not wanting to paint them all by hand.

We used masking tape for painting walls to cover the areas that should stay lighter

Using an x-acto knife and a cutting matt with a ruler proved to be helpful to have a variation in the strips. Cut some wide, some small, some long, some short. Alternate to create the pattern, the Death Star wasn’t all the same, neither should be yours.

We created a stencil of the round weapon on a piece of paper first and traced that onto the lamp with a pencil

Once you’re satisfied with the look of your pattern, you can paint a darker shade of paint over the whole ball

We decided that black was too dark and sharp as a contrast, so we mixed a darker grey color. The paint is a mix of acrylic paint and chalk paint, to give it a not so glossy finish. We found this paint in the hardware store.

Paint the ball completely or work in segments – it all depends on your taste

We peeled the masking tape not long after painting. Make sure to press the tape very well down before you paint, avoiding blotches doing so. But even if you have some slight uneven lines – the result will be great because the Death Star has so many little bits and dots, it will look like you wanted it this way.

The round weapon was painted by hand with a fine brush

Hang it on your ceiling as instructed – you will need a hook for that – and enjoy your Death Star lamp – it’s awesome!

Watch it in action below: