Create a Mood: Put a Lamp on It

I love lamps in lonely places.  A small lamp can add magic to a dark bookcase, an old desk, a kitchen counter, a dusty bar cart – really any odd corner of your home that looks unloved and has an outlet nearby.  That last bit is important.  We have a small, awkward entry (but at least it’s an entry!) and once a year I experience a memory lapse and exclaim: “Oh!  I’ll add a lamp!”  This is followed by an embarrassed pause as I remember that there are no outlets in our entry.  The cat has the decency to look away.

Overhead lights can be unflattering, over-bright and, in my opinion, they can suck the joy out of a room kind of like canned mushrooms on a fresh pizza.   Ideally you should have multiple lamps in a room.  I love seeing a teacher’s classroom where they’ve permanently turned off the overhead fluorescent lights and have scattered lamps around the room.  When I see this, I know I’m meeting a kindred spirit.

Here are a few ideas to get you on the same “Put a Lamp On It” page as me.  In general, these aren’t lamps to read by, these aren’t lamps to even play a hand of rummy by, these are just ambiance lamps.  Lamps to bring some cheer, some romance, some warmth to a dark spot in your home that needs it – these are mood lighting lamps.

 

I just finished Chuck Wendig‘s amazing book Wanderers (two enthusiastic thumbs up) and, if you make it far enough, there’s a Willie Nelson reference and ever since then I’ve been on a Willie Nelson kick!