Why I made a pink flowerpot lamp
So I saw this cute plant pot at IKEA last Tuesday and thought “Damn, this’d make a sick lamp”. It was pink ceramic with little ridges – perfect for hiding wires. Grabbed it without any real plan, like yeah this’ll work.
Stuff I used
- Cheap LED strip (the warm white kind)
- Empty pink flowerpot obviously
- Some old phone charger
- Hot glue gun
- Duct tape because why not
- Cardboard for diffuser
First I tried hot-gluing the LED strip around the pot’s rim. Big mistake – the glue just peeled off when I bent the strip. Wasted half an hour scraping dried glue blobs with my fingernails. Super annoying.
Switched to duct tape instead. Stuck the LEDs in a spiral from top to bottom like a candy cane. Looked messy as hell but whatever, I’m not entering design contests here. Plugged in the charger and bam! Burnt smell and smoke. Freaked out and yanked the cord so hard the whole pot almost smashed on the floor.
Turns out I crossed the wires like a dumbass. Stripped the charger wires properly this time with kitchen scissors. Wrapped exposed bits in electrical tape and said “good enough”. Flicked the switch – success! But the light looked like prison spotlight. Harsh shadows everywhere.
Cut some cardboard circles to fit inside as diffusers. Jammed three layers into the pot. Now the light glows soft like sunset. Propped the whole thing on my bookshelf. Works like a charm!
Total cost? Maybe $8. Time wasted? Three evenings. But hey now I’ve got a fancy pink glow near my bed. Worth every frustrating minute.
