I don't know if they are cost effective (probably not) but there are bulbs with silver on the bottom, so they aren't so glare-y. My elementary school had these and provided a nice glow to the classroom.

You can get a cord adapter that screws into the socket that you could then use to make dangly cord lights with the shades of your choice. A couple of carefully placed ceiling hooks (or horseshoe magnets, if your ceiling happens to be metal) to hold the cords up would bring the light directly to wherever you'd like.

CB2 has a drum pendent light with diffuser for $50.
http://www.cb2.com/family.aspx?c=120&f=4773

That little ring makes me suspect those light fixtures had *something* hanging as a shade, long long ago.

Have you tried speaking to a Lighting Only store? I assume people must have to eventually replace drum shades, so perhaps they'll have better leads.

If I was in your shoes, I'd probably just end up DIYing it if shades couldn't be found at an affordable price.

This lady made a very large drumshade for quite cheap, and it doesn't look too hard to do at all, even for someone who's not used to making stuff.

Here is the single outlet variety, but there are others that have multiple receptacles that might be cool, too.
http://electrical.hardwarestore.com/12-34-outlet-adapters/plug-base-attachment-601212.aspx

Schoolhouse Electric schoolhouseelectric.com
sells vintage-styled shades. The least expensive ones are around $20-$30. It might be a lot to spend for a rental depending on how many fixtures you have. I would use clip shades and less expensive fixes in my personal spaces... and maybe spring for the more expensive shades for the spaces where I entertain guests.

I have variations of these in my 1909 Chicago apt. Both single and double. These were never meant to have a shade hanging from them although my singles do have gold leafed beaded glass bobeche collars to reflect the light. An easy solution is to use Edison bulbs which will cast a warmer & softer light. A word of warning, These are probably still wired to the original cloth wrapped wiring and you will easily snap the wire if you try to unscrew or screw the collar ring. Trust me, been there done that as I restored the bobeches.

I've seen complete fixtures like these in historic homes before, with glass globes and also candelabra lightbulbs. Maybe some incandescent globes would provide a similar affect?

Yes, I was going to suggest Edison bulbs too. They are pricey but they look cool - and intentional.

How 'bout embracing the bare bulb instead of covering it. I would go for a cool 1912 Edison Bulb. You can get them here: www.rejuvenation.com

This would give a historical look. The only draw back is that you would have to choose a lower wattage bulb to avoid the glare issue, so you might need to introduce some low lighting to make up for it. But those could be your modern fixture and the overall look would have an eclectic old and new look.

www.jeremyspk1.com

I have a 4 light variation of this in my living room.. slash bedroom..
and one almost identical in my dining.. area.

i was thinking of buying a cheap lampshade at target or something to hang over the fixture using some fishing line and thumbtacks.

i made a diffuser for a drum shade with an embroidery hoop and translucent fabric, and wired it to the shade. kind of a pain because you have to take the shade off to change the light bulbs, but it looks great and was cheeeep

They look fine just as they are except you need to get nicer bulbs, our historic home has fixtures like these in every room..These are the type of bulbs I would recommend:
http://www.rejuvenation.com/fixshow100149/templates/selection.phtml

Or if you must do a shade something like this:
http://www.schoolhouseelectric.com/shades-detail.asp?ShadeID=156&all=0

good luck!
Just be sure to check the fitter size.

This type of lamp -- from the 1920s -- is considered very desirable. I have beautiful antique downfacing opalescent glass shades on mine and I love them. You can buy reproductions made for fans -- or real antique ones probably. There is a little ring you can buy if you need to to hold them on with screws. Any lamp store should have them.

for example:
http://southwestspiritantiques.com/dynapage/IP760.htm

Many vintage electric fixtures had no shades at all. Since electricity was relatively new to the general public, homes built during that time period tended to highlight the bare light bulb. Oh and the ring on your fixture may be purely decorative, mimicking the gas lighting fixtures that predated it. So your landlord is probably staying true to the era of the building rather than being quirky.

I suggest clip on shades, but look for ones that have straight sides to avoid that "up side down" look. The Lamps Plus web site had a few (www.lampsplus.com).

These were never meant to have shades -- in fact there is no "fitter" for a shade attachment. The only thing you can do, shade-wise, is to use a clip-on shade. Unless you want to rig up something.

I say embrace the fixtures. Clip-on shades or ad hoc crafts will just look weird. As others suggested, you could use an Edison bulb or a silver tipped for a softer look.

Incidentally, this would have originally had frosted globe bulbs like these:

http://www.vintagelightingandfanshoppe.com/STARBURST2FM.html

http://www.vintagelightingandfanshoppe.com/Markel2Pyramid.html

I have a similar light fixture in my living room, I use decorative bulbs for it and it looks beautiful - I get so many compliments!
Also the decorative bulbs cast a lovely pattern on the ceiling around the fixture which looks wonderful, and they give a warm cozy light as well.

So, go for a nice amber colored decorative light bulb and the fixture will look absolutely wonderful!

:o)

I have on several occasions had these types of fixtures over the years. They didn't originally have shades because bulbs were not very bright in those days (which is why you will often see so many sockets for a primary room light). The bare bulb also was desirable to show off that you had electric lights and had moved out of the age of gas lighting.

I personally like using the large frosted globe bulbs in these fixtures. It gives them a modern look while respecting their history. I also am a fan of silver tipped bulbs as they reflect all of the light onto the ceiling reducing glare in the room.

I had a fixture like this an the living room of my favorite apartment. I used round bulbs. One christmas I hung a bronze (looking) cherub from the center on fishing line and it floated over the room. The cherub was about the size of a two pound baby. It looked great. I didn't take it down until I moved.

We have a bunch of these - they are definitely meant to be bare bulb. As in, "Look, Mr. Haverhill, we just had the house WIRED with that new ELEC-TRICITY. Doesn't it just appall you with beauty?"

You don't have to get an expensive bulb. I got a few white tinted bulbs at the Home Depot, and not one has burned out yet.

There was also a bare fixture in our bathroom, and I got a larger sphere bulb to put in that, and it looks marvvy.

Good luck!

I have a fixture that is identical to this (and several similar ones) in our 1929 house. You should assume that the wiring in the ceiling is as old as the fixture and be cautious about overlamping the fixture with too high a watt lightbulb. I don't put anything over 40 watts in ours.

Here's a link to a how-to make your own diffuser for a drum shade:
http://www.younghouselove.com/2010/06/office-progress-let-there-be-light/

Wow, so many good options here! Thank you all for your input.

@EdgeH2Ogardener: so interesting to hear the history on these and to have the word of warning about not prying too much into the wiring.

@ flynngrrl and nitagee: So, they were always bare-bulbed? It's so funny how I'm thinking of that as unappealing now, but it was once so desirable . . . My grandfather specializes in antique lighting and it's so interesting to see a fixture that was never meant to have shades--I've never seen a bare-bulbed fixture (with the exception of a chandelier with torch bulbs) in his workshop!

@ravennagirl: thank you too for the warning about wattage, I'll keep that in mind.

Sounds like decorative bulbs are the way to go! I'm going on a shopping spree online for bulbs for all of these fixtures.

Can't thank you all enough for the history lesson and suggestions.

Decorative globe bulbs are the way to go. These are painted gold, which softens the light, and are only 25 watts:

http://www.rejuvenation.com/fixshow100144/templates/selection.phtml

Whatever you do, do not use candlebra bulbs, also called flame bulbs, like these:

http://www.rejuvenation.com/fixshow100148/templates/selection.phtml

When the bulbs face down, the heat goes straight up into the fixture, and flame bulbs generate too much heat.

Your bare bulb fixture is a beauty from about 1920. It would sell for around $300.

You may want to consider beaded glass light bulb covers. There are some on Etsy and elsewhere. Not sure if they are exactly appropriate for the time period, but... Also, Pottery Barn sells less expensive Edison style bulbs via their web site (or did...) My 1919 bungalow had these lights throughout and the knob and tube wiring was soldered to the sockets, so as the other commenter posted, beware!

I did the Edison bulbs in ours:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/alanawaters/4896090320/in/set-72157624605414051/

@rayma: Thanks for the warning about flame bulbs--I think we're going with Edison and globe bulbs for the apartment. The fixtures do look pretty ugly with regular, bare incandescent bulbs in them, but I'm psyched to see them with the new bulbs.

@pxlchk1: The amber Edison bulbs look beautiful, I think we're definitely going with amber bulbs in our entryway and a couple other spots.

i collect vintage barrel shades (and lamps) typically for the purpose of reworking them. someone else provided a solution(?) to the diffusers. perhaps i can help? here's what i do with them: http://www.etsy.com/shop/retroseksual?section_id=7363858 - scott

I love antique lighting and use bare bulbs. but their a standard bulb that looks like chandelier bulbs.They're not expensive and add a lot of charm.