Buying a Table Lamp or Floor Lamp

You spent weeks intensely window shopping and surfing online, before you finally found the perfect lamp. But now that you have it at home, it doesn't look or feel quite right. It looked so cool in the photos on the website, so why doesn't work now? Manufacturers and retailers aren't stupid (well, most aren't). Beauty shots are meant accentuate the best visible characteristics of products, either by isolating them on a solid background or placing them in complementary decor. Photo stylists with a strong understanding of interior design and proportion ensure that everything coordinates. So, of course the lamp looks amazing in the photograph. Stylists also have an extra advantage - they don't have to consider the functional requirements for the lamp in the room, just the aesthetics. Do you need an advanced degree in rocket science to choose a simple table lamp? No, but you should be aware of a few things as you evaluate different lamps.

Location, Location, Location

Where are you planning to put the new lamp? Is it going to go on a table or on the floor? Will be in a high traffic area?

Table lamps are the right choice for placement on tables and floor lamps for the floor...shocker. If you're buying a lamp for an end table or desk, it's important to consider the strength and durability of the table. If the table is delicate or the top is easily scratched, you might want to consider a lighter weight lamp with a round or padded base. Obviously, the sturdier the table, the heavier a lamp it can accommodate.

High traffic areas can spell trouble for top-heavy lamps with wide overhanging shades. Be sure that the shade doesn't extend beyond the edge of the table. Not only does that make the lamp dwarf the table, but it also makes it more susceptible to being bumped into by passersby. A heavy base is less likely to be knocked over and should be used in areas where kids roam.

Form vs. Function

How are you going to use the lamp? Is it for general lighting or subtle ambient lighting? Is it a task light or an accent light to highlight something special? Whether it needs to be functional or just pretty makes a big difference in the type of lamp you should consider.

Torchier lamps and other styles of floor lamps can provide a decent amount of general light to illuminate a room. Multi-purpose reading lights should cast enough light to allow you to...you guessed it, read. They should produce a minimum of 100-150 watts of light. Many on/off lamps with a single socket use a light bulb with a maximum of 60 watts, so look for reading lamps that can handle higher wattages and three-way bulbs. If you prefer a stronger task light, look for something glare-free with tungsten, fluorescent or halogen bulbs to minimize eye strain.

If you simply want a lamp that complements your existing decor, ignore the previous paragraphs and get yourself something pretty...ooh, sparkles! A dramatic pair of Foo Dogs lamps from Barbara Cosgrove are a great way to enhance a Chinese or Asian style room.

Size Matters and so does the Shade

Have you ever sat down and been blinded by the exposed light bulb in a nearby lamp? Unless you enjoy frying your corneas (I supposed there may be a few masochists out there), it can be painful and more than a little annoying. As a rule of thumb, the bottom of the shade should be more or less at ear/cheek level. So unless you hang out with a lot of basketball players or jockeys, use a five to six foot tall person as a gauge. If you're planning to read by the lamp, make sure that the height of the lamp and the angle of the shade allow for the light to pass over your shoulder and onto the page you're reading. This will probably require you to measure the height of the table, as well as the distance from the floor to your ear while seated. And you thought that you'd never use trigonometry again.

Traditional table lamps have avoided looking top-heavy, with their shades no more than two-thirds the height of the base (covering the harp and neck metal underpinnings). But more contemporary lamps adhere to less stringent constraints and even welcome design with atypical proportions. As far as shade shape goes, it's wise to follow the shape of the base, lest you face the whole square peg/round hole dilemma. A white or translucent shade allows for greater diffusion of the light, while darker colors and more opaque materials provide a subtler ambient glow.

For insight on selecting the right kind of light bulb for your lamp or fixture, take a look at our lighting guide.

I'd say that I hope this article shed some light on the subject of buying lamps, but that would be too corny.

Bill Ferris

Minimizing Moving Headaches with Modular Furniture and Slipcovers

Recently, I moved to a new apartment and it brought back a flood of memories – mainly of how much I hate moving. But, it was less stressful than past moves and it motivated me to write this article to help you minimize the pain of your next move.

Remember how easy it was to move in college? The university wouldn’t allow large pieces of furniture in dorm rooms, so the physical move itself wasn’t too demanding or require an advanced degree in spatial relations to make everything fit. You didn’t have much furniture aside from a bed, dresser, desk, chair and an nice table lamp or two. What you did have probably wasn’t particularly nice any way, so a few nicks and scratches as friends and family hauled your stuff in and out of the dorm weren’t a big deal. You simply replaced whatever was ruined or (god forbid) uncool with something different the next school year.

But times change, we get jobs, bank accounts grow and the difficulties associated with moving increase. You care more about what you have and want to keep things nice, since costs are higher and let’s face it - now you have to pay them. Your convenient old futon has been replaced by two pieces of unwieldy furniture: an actual bed and a sofa. To make matters worse, your bed now has a headboard, footboard, sides, frame, box spring and a mattress (Note: if you have a sleeper sofa, the friends you coerce into helping you move will hate you and wish you a slow and painful death). To avoid multiple trips, you Tetris all of your possessions into a moving truck and wrap your mirrors, TVs and glass tables like Egyptian mummies. Even if you successfully transport your furniture from Point A to Point B, you still have to navigate stairs, hallways and corners, before you arrange everything in your new home.

Why do we put ourselves through all this? Masochism? Necessity? A “significant other?” Whatever the reason, there are a few tips that can help make moving easier.

Modular Furniture is Your Friend

When people think of modular furniture, they typically picture a sectional sofa and stacking units. But there are other contemporary applications, such as home office desks and filing cabinets, as well as entertainment centers, room dividers and closet organizers. These self-contained interchangeable units can easily be configured to accommodate your unique functional needs and space limitations.

So how does that help when you move? Well, for starters, it’s a lot easier moving and packing small pieces of furniture than large ones. Most modular storage or seating is secured with simple clips or a couple of screws, so it’s quick and easy to separate complex arrangements into individual pieces. On the back end, they’re easier to manage when going up and down stairs and passing through tight spaces.

One of the most easily overlooked problems with moving is that the usable space in your new home or apartment is often very different from your old place. The bookshelves you bought to fill up the empty wall between your family room and dining room might be too wide now. Maybe there’s a fireplace right where you would normally place your couch. Modular furniture enables you to adapt to your new surroundings. Storage units can be reconfigured to be taller, shorter, wider or narrower depending on your room’s constraints. Instead of one large couch, you can separate a sectional sofa into smaller loveseats and ottomans.

Slipcovers – Change Your Look Affordably

What do you do if your new place has a different architectural style, décor or color scheme? You could toss your old stuff and just buy new furniture, but that could be pretty expensive. A great way to freshen up your old chairs and couches is with slipcovers. They come in all sorts of colors, patterns and textures and are easily removed for cleaning or a simple change for the season. You can buy pre-made or custom slipcovers that fit snugly over your existing upholstery, or you can buy slipcovered furniture to begin with. If you choose the former, be sure to measure your pieces before purchasing a compatible slipcover.

Boxes and Bubble Wrap and Towels…Oh My

How do you ensure that your stuff doesn’t get wrecked in transit? Nothing is more frustrating than finding the perfect table lamp, only to have it damaged while moving. If you have the storage space, I highly recommend that you save the original packaging of your most prized fragile possessions (for me that’s my HD flat screen TV). This includes not only the box, but the Styrofoam inserts as well. If you’ve already thrown out the packaging, bubble wrap is a good alternative. Once everything is safely in your new home, be sure to store the padding for future use (you can never have enough bubble wrap, if you ask me). Using your bath towels to help pad glass items is also efficient. You have to bring the towels any way, so you might as well utilize them to protect other things.

Moving is never fun or easy, but if you follow the tips above, it can be a little less stressful and minimize the number of unwelcome surprises.

Bill Ferris
Decor Interiors – Furnishings to Fit Your Style