I first took 3 racks he had laying in his building and cut the antlers off the skull plate so I could arrange them the way I wanted them to stand to make the lamp stand. I then marked the areas they over lapped and drilled holes deep enough to hold a wooden dowel with gorilla glue. Next I drilled the holes for the lamp cord through the main beams of the antlers so it would be hidden. The skull is connected to the stand by a bolt with a self locking nut going into the brain/ spinal column. I bought the lamp kit from Lowes along with the lamp shade.