Lighting, Light Fixtures, Ceiling and Exhaust Fans - Replacement glass for simple bathroom wall lights

I have a very simple idea to modernize/redo a bathroom in my new condo, and I'm frustrated because it's a category of product no one seems to sell. You can buy lots of lampshades all by themselves, and put them on just about any lamp designed for a lampshade. But what about wall fixtures with a glass shade? Can I replace just the shade, or do I have to redo the entire fixture?

I'd love it if someone can point me to a supplier of such glass shades.

The bathroom light fixtures are very simple and old-fashioned. The actual lights are two ordinary incandescent bulbs in ordinary indandescent sockets. They're arranged horizontally, pointing away from each other. In the middle is a metal bracket, and in the middle of the bracket is a threaded post. The post sticks through a half-inch hole in the glass shade, and there's a little threaded nub on the front (visible) side of the glass shade. Thread the nub onto the post and the glass is held in place. The shade is very undistinguished glass, a U-shaped trough, which runs horizontally.

Instinct tells me that I OUGHT to be able to replace just the shade: unscrew the nub, remove the glass, take the new glass, slip its hole around the post, and reattach the nub. Voila -- what appears to be a new light! (It's entirely similar to removing a lampshade, discarding it, and replacing it by a new shade you bought at the store.) After all, there's nothing wrong with the bulbs or the sockets or the guts of the fixture; why not just cover them all up with a fresh-looking shade?

So I take off one of the shades and take it to Home Depot, Lowe's, and Ikea. I ask if they carry a replacement. No. How about something else that would fit? No, you have to buy the entire new fixture, shade, sockets, guts and all.

If I were a glassworker I could easily MAKE a replacement. It could even be made from a flat piece of glass, if I wanted to: just cut it into a vaguely horizontal shape, drill a hole in the middle, sand the edges, and there you have it.

So I would imagine that somebody somewhere stocks not only the glass shades -- to use as replacements for broken ones -- but also all kinds of other glass which would fit just fine (i.e., have a hole drilled in the middle). But HD, Lowe's, and Ikea all claim that that's not possible, not even by special order!

Am I nuts? Is there some reason why such a product doesn't seem to exist? I'll bet there's millions of people with boring light fixtures like mine, and a few thousand of them would want to change them every now and then, right? Or just replace one that breaks??

OK... end of my rant and rave. Any leads would be appreciated. I want to replace four of them, so although this is not a large project it is more than just a $6 single item.

In advance, thanks!

glass shop.... if nothing else you can get a long flat rectangle (hourglass, round, wave, etc)...maybe frosted and have a hole drilled through the middle of it. You may also be able to find other styles of glass that you like... marbled? The only downside might be cost, it may be less expensive to buy a new fixture with a shade you like.

Another option might be to check into plastics, maybe another local shop? (I was thinking that it would be easier to shape the plastic, less expensive too!) I would ask and make sure about any required temperature ratings though...

Second hand shops,flea markets, garage sales, even building supply salvage centers may also have the item your looking for. I did an exhaustive search online and wasn't able to come up with even one store or business that carried them.
Good luck with your search.

Thanks, everyone, for your help! Desy, I hadn't even thought of plastic... even *I* could cut something like that to shape! And majack, it's good to see that someone else couldn't find something on the internet, either.

I'm guessing that it's alot like $20 coffee pots. The electroncs cost nect to nothing most of the expense is in the glass. The companies that make them figure that no one is going to be willing to spend $4 on a replacement shade when a complete fixture is only $6.

I'd replace them or just pick different fixtures you like (maybe the ones with the round bulbs which are also very inexpensive). I doubt that you could save much even if you made something yourself, and you could spend alot of time trying.

As for plastic or plexi--light bulbs get hot. Make sure your plastic product is rated for that heat if you try it.

The "socket and bracket" part of a light fixture costs almost nothing. The glass is where the $ is.

Once you accept that "they give you a socket if you'll buy the glass", replacing the entire fixture starts to make more sense.

You may come up with a really nice design by making your own glassware but you won't save any money, particularly if you consider your time as being worth anything at all. Viewed as an art project, this may be OK.

But don't use plastic. I think I know the type of fixture you have, and if you get it wrong (wrong plastic, wrong design) the plastic will melt and possibly burn.

This is too high a price to pay for art, no? <g>