Lighting Strikes Again

Lighting Strikes Again

Thomas Edison may have invented the light bulb, but the light fixture has been a focal point of the room since the first person thought of putting a candle in something fancier than just a candlestick. Then came the lantern, the lamp, the sconce, the chandelier, the fluorescent tube and whatever you call those ashtray-shaped ceiling lamps that seemed to spontaneously generate in every American house built around 1950.

These days, when it comes to brightening your dark corners, you have plenty of options, from the simple to the spectacular to the spectacularly weird. The feature itself makes a huge difference. An elegant sconce may add old-world glamour to a new world kitchen wall. A space-age take on a chandelier can take an old-fashioned foyer into the future. And it’s not just the way your lighting fixture looks, but the quality of light it provides. It may be snowing and grey outside, but you can trick a bedroom into springtime all year long with the right kind of light.

Take a look at some of my bright ideas below and see what happens when you take a shine to a new light feature.