Sahara Mesa Papier Mache Lamp | Complete with Shade

Tall and wide. This is a statement lamp, not a small bedside one.

Check the depth of your surface. A shade this wide will overhang a narrow console. You want at least 40cm of depth, ideally more, or the shade sits proud of the front edge.

Check the height above it. On a 75cm console the top of the shade lands at around 147cm from the floor. Under a low shelf, a wall-mounted mirror or a sloping ceiling, measure first.

On a console, this suits a piece of 100cm or more. A matching pair at either end of a long sideboard is the most reliable styling there is.

On a bedside it will be tall. That can look striking in a large bedroom, but on a compact bedside it dominates. For most bedsides a lamp of 45cm to 60cm suits better.

Beside a chair for reading, the bottom of the shade wants to sit at roughly eye level when seated, around 100cm to 110cm from the floor. On a low side table this lamp reaches that comfortably.

Papier mache is one of the few genuinely handmade materials still used at this scale.

The base is built up in layers by hand rather than cast in a mould or thrown on a wheel. That is why the surface has a soft, slightly irregular texture, and why the form has the organic quality of something shaped rather than machined. No two are quite identical.

It also means a lamp this size is remarkably light. At 72cm tall, a ceramic or stone equivalent would be a serious weight to lift and reposition. This one is not, which matters if you like moving things around or you are styling a shelf rather than a floor-level surface.

The woven shade is the other half of it, and it does something a plain fabric shade cannot. Light passes through the gaps in the weave as well as through the material, so it casts a soft pattern onto the wall and ceiling around it. Lit in a dark room, the shade becomes part of what you are looking at.

Warm neutral tones throughout, so it sits with terracotta, rattan, oak, linen and warm neutral schemes without needing to match any of them exactly.

• Handmade papier mache, built up in layers rather than moulded
• Organic texture that varies across the surface, so no two are identical
• Light for its size, easy to lift and reposition at 72cm tall
• Natural woven shade that casts pattern as well as light
• Statement height, tall enough to hold a console on its own
• Warm neutral tones that sit with rattan, oak, linen and terracotta
• Standard E27 fitting, so bulbs are easy to find and cheap to replace
• Buy two for symmetry on a long sideboard, or one to anchor a corner

This matters more than anything else on this page. A warm bulb at 2400K to 2700K. Cool white light drains the warmth straight out of a neutral papier mache finish and makes a woven shade look grey.

A woven shade needs a dark wall behind it or beside it to show the pattern it throws. Against a bright window during the day you lose the whole effect.

Two matching lamps at either end of a long console or sideboard frames the surface and gives you low warm light from two points rather than one.

Texture answering texture. A basket, a timber surface or a jute rug nearby stops a neutral corner reading as flat.

A lamp this size needs space around it. Crowding it with small objects makes both look worse. One low bowl or a stack of books is enough.

The rule our stylists use. A table lamp, something low at floor or shelf level, and an overhead you rarely switch on.

Dust with a soft dry cloth or a soft brush. The textured surface holds dust in its irregularities, and a dry paintbrush clears it faster than a cloth.

Nothing wet on the base, ever. This is the one thing that matters with papier mache. It is paper and paste at heart, and water will soften and mark it permanently. No damp cloths, no sprays, no exceptions.

The woven shade takes a dry brush or a vacuum with a brush attachment on low, working around the weave in one direction. Never wet it.

Keep it away from damp and steam. Not a bathroom, not a utility room, and not a conservatory that gets condensation. Interior dry rooms only.

Handle it by the base. It is light, which makes it easy to lift, but a papier mache surface will dent under a knock in a way ceramic will not.

Switch off and let the bulb cool before changing it or cleaning near the shade.

What to expect. Variation in texture, small irregularities in the surface and slight differences in the weave of a natural shade are the character of handmade materials rather than faults. Yours will not match the photograph exactly.

Your lamp is packed to protect the base and shade in transit. Current timescales and charges are set out on our delivery page.

Send us the depth and height of the surface you have in mind and we will tell you honestly whether a 72cm lamp suits it. Reach us via our contact page or live chat.

If it is not right once it is in the room, our returns process is straightforward, and everything is covered by our guarantees and warranties.

0% interest-free finance is available at checkout, and our price match promise stands if you find the same piece for less elsewhere. Lighting a hotel or a holiday let? Ask about trade accounts.