I am thinking of turning a munny into a lamp and maybe using one of those bulbs that look like antique edison bulbs. I am thinking simple bedside light/reading light with this and not light up the room kind of lamp. But this leaves many questions maybe one of you can help answers.

Should I make the munny the lamp or make a lamp with a large enough base and set the munny in front of it?

Making a edison/steampunk type munny is not my thing right now, but anyone know of any light/lamp/lantern base monster/creature from folklore?

If I cut off the top of the mounny's head, do you think the vinyl will handle the heat from the bulb if I put it in the head?

How hot does the bulb get? you could seal the munnys head a few extra times.

I do not know. It is only 40 watts

When I built the spaceship lamp for my son last summer I went to Ikea and bought this cheap desk lamp that had a stainless base and extension with the fixture attached. I would use the same thing, but a hole in the top and bottom and use self drying clay or epoxy to seal it up and keep it in place. If you do this, the bulb most likely won't be a problem.

I was thinking of buy a make you own lamp kit, but I will also check out ikea and maybe take something they sell apart and use that.

Vinyl bakes in the oven with sculpy, so it can handle a certain amount of heat. So it depends on what type/size of bulb and how close it comes to the vinyl. You mention cutting the top of the head off -- I assume you mean to help vent the heat out the top? That should be good to help prevent build-up, but you'd still have radiant heat on anything within a certain proximity to the bulb.

If the vinyl softens/expands/whatever with heat, and whatever paints, varnish, clay, etc. expands/softens at a different rate, you could be in for some potential problems. ("Differential thermal expansion.") But that's might only be an issue of the heat is really strong enough to make a big impact. I have no idea of this would be an issue, but it may be something that comes up.

Honestly, a bit of trial & error (or trial & works without a problem) might be in order.

Are you dead set on the old-school incandescent lights? LEDs would create little to no heat.

As far as folklore, I don't know about too many creatures. A will-o-the-wisp is about the only one I can think of. But you could also do anything that might seem to have a "glow" to it... ghosty things, etc.

In terms of semi-legendary people, Diogenes was said to wander the streets of Athens with a lamp, "looking for an honest man." There's quite a bit of art depicting him that way.

More abstract is Drunk Jack/Stingy Jack... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stingy_Jack (Or "Will The Smith," apparently known by a few other names, a blacksmith whose story ends the same way -- wandering around with a glowing lump of coal.)

Good luck. Also... make sure to post pics.

Thanks for the advise everyone. I am too lazy to upload a pic someplace right now, but there is one up onb my FB page. THe lamp I bought to use was the cheap $5 one Jon suggested and then I ripped it apart to get the base and pole. I am going to replace the light socket on it. I drilled holes through the munny so I could run the pole though it and thenthe light will actually be above the munny. Still no idea how I am going to paint it. Hopefully I will get that figured out soon. I was so excited about making a lamp I really didn't figure out what the munny would look like.

I do have some ideas for another one that would have an LED light in the head. But that is a different project. Have to finish this one first.