watch out for drip marks!My neighbor spray painted the fabric on her patio chaise lounge chairs. There are some drip marks that fell on then fabric by accident and she cannot camoflauge them. Be very careful!

Try washing the shades first. If you paint them they will become opaque.

I'll always remember the drum shades the decorator told my mom to paint. She used a brush, red orange paint and it was streaked and UGLY. When she turned the light on it accentuated the streaks and was opaque. Really nasty. I'd say try it and then "if" you don't like the end result....buy new ones.

What about recovering them with another fabric? trimming them with that flat cording stuff or ribbon...???

I have spray painted shades before and did not like the result because the light no longer came through the shade, it just came out the top and bottom. I bought new ones. Also I would think that later on the heat from the bulb might affect the paint, possibly crack the paint? I would clean it again with something different then hide the stains with ribbon or turn the shade around. If these do not work, just by new ones.

I have painted stained lampshades, and it will reduce the amount of light coming through, but mine is not opaque. I used a brush and craft paint mixed with fabric medium (available in the same aisle where you find the craft paint) rather than spray paint. It has held up for several years, and since it's a lamp I turn on only for ambiance when we watch TV, the reduced light doesn't matter.

I have several spray painted lamp shades..they look just fine as far as I can tell! The paint does limit the amount of light coming through the shade, but they work just fine for reading or ambient lighting. I painted the insides a really light goldy color and it makes the lamplight beautiful.

Hi Rhonda, how ya doin'? Here's a suggestion~haven't tried it, but I think it might be an alternative to painting. You could tea stain, brushing on the liquid. Give the shade a good shake after each application~let dry in between. I guess i'm thinking you might be able to lessen the stain if it's almost the same color as the tea. Rit puts out a product that's a color remover too, or maybe you could even dye them. Good luck! ;o)