I’m Kate Malfroy, a professional lampshade maker and teacher. I came to shade making through upholstery, and I’ve never lost my love of fabric, colour and the details that make a piece feel just right. I believe a shade can transform not only the lamp it sits on, but the room around it.
Teaching is one of my favourite parts of this work. I love helping someone turn a fabric they’ve chosen into a shade they’re proud to take home. I also make lamps and shades for sale at the quarterly Handmade Canberra markets, and take commissions for custom shades and makeovers.
For more than 30 years, I’ve lived on my little patch of paradise at the end of a quiet country lane in Jamberoo, on the NSW South Coast. City visitors to my studio are often astounded by the beauty of the garden and surrounding bushland—and by how many birds they can hear. It’s a lovely place to spend a few hours making something with your hands, and a constant source of inspiration for my work. It’s also why I care so deeply about protecting our wildlife through the advocacy group I founded with my neighbour Wildlife Watch Jamberoo Inc. If you ask me about the local wildlife, you may have to stop me talking!
