Using our lighting in the USA

All our lamp shades (paper, fabric or wood) can be used in the US. We cannot export the hanging kits / brass sockets on our website to the US because they are European standard and are not UL certified, but we do supply adapters to make fitting our shades easier in the US.

We are slowly changing our paper shades so that they hang from a cord grip attached directly to the flex rather than from the socket. All our Enban Shades, Large 53cm shades and Tamago shades are now hung from a cord grip. These shades can be used anywhere in the world with any cable/flex. You do not need to buy a particluar lampsocket.

For the remaining paper shades and all the fabric shades, our adapters work with standard US lamp sockets which you can purchase from most electrical retailers in the US. The samples in all our pictures below come from https://www.grandbrass.com/

The sockets are standard E26 parts, so they should be very easy to purchase and fit, but as always, if you are confused, please consult with a trained electrician before attempting to work with electricity!

There are two main options when it comes to sockets: 1) Phenolic (looks like black plastic) and 2) Brass.

1. Phenolic Sockets

Our paper and fabric shades all fit a standard E26 phenolic socket without needing any adaptation. We have tested our paper and fabric shades with this socket:

There is a range of these E26 pendant sets at Grand Brass

The cap on this pendant socket is too wide for our wooden shades. Maybe a different phenolic socket would fit these shades, but all of our customers so far want to replicate the brass socket we use on our site.

2. Brass Sockets:

US brass E26 sockets have a smaller external diameter and do not fit the European standard diameter shade aperture very well. While they do work without adapters, the shades can be hard to keep in position. So, we have sourced or made some adapters to use with our shades.

We have tested all our shades with this Uno thread brass socket:
https://www.grandbrass.com/item/sogb11svtbr6/lamp_sockets-e_26_medium_base-pendant_socket_assemblies/
It comes as part of a kit including a braided silk cord. It is a very similar colour and style to the socket we stock on our website.

i) Using a brass socket with our wooden shades

Here, you can see the space if you use the E26 brass socket without an adapter.

The shade rings on the standard E26 socket will just fit on and do up.

But it can be hard to get the shade centred on the socket and hanging straight.

To prevent this, we have a brass collar that will screw onto the bottom half of the lamp socket. This will then give a nice snug fit for the shades. 

The adapter will come with two shade rings. Wind the first one on tight as far as it will go. This will then leave enough room to put the lower ring on once the shade is in position.

Once fitted, the shade should look like this!

Each adapter set is £10. It is solid brass and a fairly specialist part, so there is not that much demand for them here in the UK, but this is the best way to get this shade to work in the USA. please email us with your requirements!

ii) Using a brass socket with our paper or fabric shades

Here, you can see the space if you use the E26 brasss socket without an adapter on a standard E27 diameter bracket.

The shade rings on the standard E26 socket will fit,

But it can be hard to get the shade centred on the socket and hanging straight.

To prevent this, we have some stepped 3d printed plastic adapters, which just slot inside the shade rings.

And make a better fit for the brass sockets.

These adapter rings work with any of our fabric or paper shades, the photos here are with our paper shade bracket just as an illustration. If you need an adapter ring, please let us know and we can drop one in your package for you. Please email us with your requirements or questions.