Tag Archives: moss lamp

Fantastic Moss Lamp Trade

Posted on September 8, 2014 by Hepcats Haven

One day Mel and I were in the garage of our new home and a friendly face drove up and stopped right in front of our house. It was our friend Tom who Mel and I originally met at The Antique Company in Sacramento. Tom is such a socialite and he was soo eager to see the home we had just moved into. While we were showing him around he saw our oak leaf floor lamp.

Leaf Wire Lamp

When Tom saw this lamp he froze, turned to us and said, “I have the matching table lamps to that oak leaf floor lamp”. When he got home he texted over pics of the table lamps.

Tom suggested that we trade our floor lamp to complete his set for a Moss floor lamp he had. We were a little skeptical and also lamp heavy so we said we’d consider the trade after seeing his Moss lamp. Once he brought the Moss lamp over Mel and I were sold!

The lamp shade on this lamp is fantastic! The lamp has these cool Lucite rods that flank the brass center. The black bowl in the middle is a planter. This piece makes quite a statement in the room.

This shade has a great art deco pattern and is in amazing shape.

This lamp really goes well with the dancing Carlo of Hollywood pieces behind it.

This lamp will be a great companion to our pink butterfly frieze chair. We are so grateful to Tom for his trade and I think both parties are happy with the exchange.

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Posted in The Makin's Of Our Pad and tagged 50's lamp, 50's lighting, atomic lamp, atomic lighting, fifties lamp, fifties lighting, lucite floor lamp, Lucite Lamp, lucite light, Mid century lamp, Mid Century Lighting, moss floor lamp, moss lamp, moss lamps, moss light, retro lamp, Retro Lighting, vintage lamp, VIntage Lighting. Bookmark the permalink.

1951 Continental Art Company Statue Restoration

Posted on April 8, 2013 by Hepcats Haven

Mel and I purchased this awhile back from Ebay and as is the norm it arrived damaged. Fortunately I was able to repair it and it turned out great!

As you can see the only damage suffered was to the base. I had never seen a statue made by Continental art Company, usually they make lamps.

I love the way it turned out! After the usual repair process and paint it looks great. I even took some liberties with its detail work.

I bet they made a male counterpart so I guess I will have to keep my eyes peeled for him.

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Posted in Restorations and tagged Australia, Chalkeare repair, Continental, Continental Art Company, Ebay, Genealogy, Immigration, Mel, moss lamp, Oceania, Passenger Lists, Reglor. Bookmark the permalink.

Repairing Moss Spun Fiberglass Lamp Shades

Posted on July 16, 2011 by Hepcats Haven

A couple days ago I shared our collection of Moss lamps. The reason why a lot of these didn’t survive is because of the delicate spun fiberglass shades. Often times the shades would unravel. So, what do you do if you find a Moss lamp but the shade resembles a messy birds nest and is not too far gone? There is a cheap and easy solution….Elmer’s glue and water.

Clean the lamp shades of any debris
Dilute the glue in some water. There isn’t a science to this. Just get it to a consistency that will allow you to paint the mixture.
Paint the shade with the glue mixture
Allow to fully dry before placing shades back on the lamp

Tips:

My shades still had their original shape. If your shades are floppy you’ll want to do the same process but over a mold that has the shape you want. I had a shade that became floppy but originally had straight edges. I created a form out of wood for the shade to sit on before I started painting so I could get the straight edges.
If you have thin areas or small holes in your shades, before step 2 trim off some of stray fiberglass and use it to patch the areas during step 2.

Here are some before and after pictures.

Before

After

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Posted in Restorations and tagged 1950's Moss Lamps, 1950s moss lamp, 50's Moss Lamp, 50's Moss Lamps, atomic moss lamps that dancers spin 1950's, moss lamp, Moss Lamp CA, Moss Lamp California, Moss Lamp Co, Moss Lamp Company, Moss Lamp of San Francisco, Moss Lamp of SF, moss lamp shade, moss lamps, Moss Lamps CA, moss lamps california, Moss Lamps of San Francisco, Moss Lamps of SF, moss manufacturing lamp, moss manufacturing lamps, Moss Manufacturing Vintage, Moss Manufacturings Lamp, Moss Manufacturings Lamps, moss mfg lamp, moss mfg lamps, Moss MFG Vintage, Moss Spinner Lamp, Moss Spinner Lamps. Bookmark the permalink.

Moss Lamps Everywhere!!!!!!!!!

Posted on July 14, 2011 by Hepcats Haven

Mel and I fell in love with Moss lamps through a chance meeting with a gentleman we met off of a Craigslist pick. He showed us their true splendor and what an icon they are. We also have a Moss plaque and clock. Please enjoy the pictures I have attached. Most of the lamp shades have been restored.

Here is the history of the Moss empire off of the internet…

Moss Manufacturing Co. in San Francisco created the “lamps that spin” during the 1940s and 1950s. The lamps integrated motorized spinning platforms into their designs along with figurines from any number of ceramics firms during that era. These unique lamps had quite a visual impact. Most often the shades were “spun glass” and enormous in size.

Since metal was being rationed during World War II, Moss Mfg. decided to use plexiglass as the base material. Nevertheless, plexiglass turned out to be easy to work with and predominantly fitting for the fanciful Moss creations.

Thelma Moss, company co-owner, was the guiding force and motivation for the lamp designs. Duke Smith and John Disney were the designers who followed through by creating her vision.

Moss Mfg. quickly became known for other, sometimes, bizarre novelty items they created such as: aquarium lamps, fountain lamps, intercom lamps and more. There were even motorized “double shade” lamps with shades rotating in opposite directions independently. Some of the lamps were designed to double as clocks, music boxes, tables and room dividers.

The final Moss Lamps were produced in 1968. The rarity of the spun glass shades and use of plexiglass, along with the unconventional lamp designs, make these vintage lamps great collectibles today.

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