Light it up!

Sorry for the radio silence going on here...Not doing it on purpose, promise.  I took an intensive Lighting class this Summer and I had my final project due last week and my final test yesterday.  Needless to say it took up some time and energy.  But its over and I get to enjoy my Summer now...well all 3 weeks of it till my next classes start in the Fall.  I'm already getting tired just writing about it.

But woah, I give all those lighting designers out there major props, it is NOT as easy as it looks folks.  Cut sheets, RCP's, electrical plans, schedules on top of making sure everything is all shipshape together is not an easy task. 

Anywoo, lighting in a space is important.  After all, without light how would we be able to see all the pretty colors and details going on?  Table lamps are an easy way to bring in light to a space.  With so many choices out there its impossible not to find at least a dozen to play with in your own home.  I find that table lamps are also an easy way to bring in a little sparkle, funk and color to a space.  They can be switched out on a dime, so why not have a few back ups in storage?

Nick Olsen via House Beautiful 

Rachel Reider

Amie Corley

Elle Decor

Baily's house from Peppermint Bliss

Ivy & Piper

Tobi Fairley

When it comes to your own home, I think people often have a hard time getting out of their comfort zone.  But, lamps are the perfect place to test the waters.  Here is a roundup of some fun lamps that would sure spice up any space.

1.  /  2.  /  3.  /  4.  /  5.  /  6.  /  7.  /  8.

Green in low places

Every time I see another blogger or designer posting about their pretty new fiddle leaf fig tree I get a little pang of jealousy.  They really are pretty, add height to a space and who doesn't love having a tree inside?  I certainly do!

When I first moved into my apartment I wanted one so bad I went right out to the store and got one for the corner of my living room. It was perfect, exactly what the space needed.  Except it was not the perfect space for the tree.  The tree wanted more light and my dark living room corner was not cutting it.  The tree got mad at me and died within 2 short months.  I thought about getting another one, but it would just be a waste of money seeing that there would be no window going in as well. 

That's when I realized I would need to look for plants that can survive with low light.  They might not be as cool as the coveted fiddle leaf fig tree, but they still bring life to a space.  Plus my Grandma told me they have health benefits too, like taking toxins out of the air. Yes please.

So my search was on for plants that could survive in the less than ideal light situation I had going on in my apartment.

Now you may be saying but Lindsay, "these don't look like fiddle leaf fig tree!" Of course they don't, because they aren't.  I had to get over that love affair real quick, unless I want to spend $80+ every few months to replace my dead trees.  Which I don't.  Enter the low light solutions above.  I swear the pothos plants I have can NOT be killed.  Even if I stick them in a dark bathroom and don't water them for weeks on end, they still show me love. They make me feel like I really have a green thumb. (warning these plants can get leggy, and I don't like that look on them.  I keep mine tight and bushy like the picture here)

I think with the right planter (cachepot), these plants can be cool too!  Here are my current favorites.

1. Blue and White from The Pink Pagoda   2. Black Zig Zag   3. Rose Clay Planter   4. Zinc Tall Square Planter   5. Aerin Round Woven Cachepot (if only I could afford this one, crazy for a planter right?) 6. Well Appointed House Blue Studded Planters   7. Galvanized Planter    8. Aged Copper Round Planter   9. Bataan Planter

So tell me, what low light plants do you like (and have kept alive longer than 2 months)?  I'd love a reason to head to the garden center this weekend.

Have a good weekend everyone!

Jana come to me!

Sometimes there are items I just cant get off my mind.  The Jana Lamp is one of those items.  The brass is so shiny, yet dull at the same time.  It makes me want to run my fingers over that marble base, but not in a sexual way- get your minds out of the gutter.  OK maybe I'm the only weird one here, but look how pretty it is actual room settings

 

 

Ok this last one isn't the Jana lamp exactly. But it's just as pretty and much shinier, which I'm kind of digging.

(Sources: unknown, Lonny Mag, Pinterest/unknown, Anne Hepfer Designs)

Murano what, what!

Who knew one little boat ride over to the island of Murano could cause such an obsession?  Seriously though, I cant get enough of Murano chandeliers, and just the glass in general.  I spend HOURS dreaming of the day I have my own home and can use Murano chandeliers in basically every room.

They come in all different sizes, shapes, colors- you name it they can make it out of glass.  Here is what I'm talking about

Design by Lee Ledbetter

 

Coddington Design

Kristen Buckingham

Domino Mag

Katie Ridder

Hillary Thomas & Jeff Lincoln Design, photo by Eric Piasecki

via House and Home, design by Sharon Mimran photo by Mark Burstyn

Jamie Drake

Katie Ridder

Kendal Wilkinson Design, photo by Aaron Leitz

Lonny Mag

Bailey McCarthy design, photo via her blog Peppermint Bliss

Wendy Schwartz Design

 

Design by William Sofield, photo by Simon Upton

In case you are looking for your own chandelier, here are some of my favorites

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8

1,2,3,4,5,6

bubble up!

There seems to be a thing about bubbles lately.  I had seen Lindsey Adelman's lights awhile ago, but the name popped up again in Elle Decor in non other than Ivanka Trumps posh apartment.  Then when I went to her website again it had been updated, this photo stopped me in my tracks

hello lover!

If only that ahhhh-mazing light fixture wouldn't set me back just over $17,000.  Yeah, that's not a typo there.  It's almost like hanging a car above my dining room table.  Or 3 cars if you're talking my car in college.

Back to the point, bubbles.  I'm loving them lately.  The shiny glass, the modern designs, they had me at hello.  But not the $17k price tag.  Here are some other pretty bubbles that I'd love to grace my ceilings

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

I see the light

Do you ever go through your house and just want to start all over again?  Some days I love my apartment and other days I'd like to change it up.  I pretend that I have unlimited funds and go on crazy online shopping sprees.

Today its lighting.

I have two flush mount fixtures in my long hallway- they are standard apartment grade and not my favorite.  You don't know how many times I'd dreamed about ripping those suckers down and replacing them with something new.

Loving all the brass/gold colors lately.  I used to HATE it and think it was so 80's looking- but it is really growing on me

Back to the standard silver/chrome finishes but with a little more modern feel.  The anemone one is totally something that I never would have picked for myself, but it is really calling my name.


I've thought about the DIY route- there are some pretty great tutorials out there on how to make drum shades. But, I have yet to find a good tutorial on how to cover up apartment lighting.  I would love my readers forever if they knew of any...I know you do.


(all lighting fixtures above from Circa Lighting, Bellacor, and Neena's Lighting)

A Lighting Rainbow

While shopping for a new lampshade at my local lighting showroom I found myself drawn to all the gourd lamps.  Their shape and the wide variety of colors they come in make them a great choice for so many bedrooms, family rooms, living rooms and so on.

The two I saw were blue, here they are

I got to searching through my inspiration files and found so many more beautiful gourd lamps. 

Amanda Nisbet

Amanda Nisbet

Christina Murphy Interiors

houzz.com, designer unknown?

Joe Nye

Lynn Morgan Design

Meg Braff

Massucco Warner Miller

Todd Alexander

Tobi Fairley

Tobi Fairley

Tobi Fairley

Palmer Weiss

Sally Steponkus

So tell me, do you like gourd lamps as much as I do?