Lighting Ideas

If you don’t want to contribute to all the light pollution in your city, you might want to check into outdoor lamps that have been certified as night sky friendly. This means they don’t cast stray light up into the night sky and they don’t shine over into your neighbor’s bedroom (which would probably annoy him if he’s trying to sleep…).

You can actually find web sites out there that specialize in selling only lamps which don’t contribute to light pollution. This outdoor wall lantern is from Starry Night Lights, where it will cost you $249. They have lots of outdoor lighting that doesn’t look any different from a lot of the stuff available in the local home improvement store, but it’s certified to be night-sky friendly.

http://www.starrynightlights.com/

via Home Improvement Ideas

If you’re looking for some fun lighting that is decorative as well as functional, check out these Olivia star pendant lamps.

Available from the Pottery Barn for $250 a piece, the pendants are made with frosted white glass panels in a bronze metal frame. If that seems pricey, take note that they’re a bit bigger than they look in the picture. The lamps measure 18.5″ wide x 18″ high and come with a 6′ chain, so they can be hung in your foyer or any place you want to dangle a bit of eye candy from the ceiling.

If you’re a fan of environmentally friendly products that are made from reclaimed or recycled parts, then you’ll probably dig this candle holder.

“The S-Curve candle holder is made from a curving automotive timing chain and topped off with bicycle cog flowers. Spin the holder on its base to hear the familiar clicking of an old 10-speed bike’s freewheel.”

You do have to have a taste for the industrial to fit something like this into your decor. The candle holder could be a fun accessory in a brick-walls-concrete-floors-and-exposed-beams loft, where one expects a bit of the industrial feel. The candle holder is $36 from eco-artware.com

If you know many people who have candles, or just like to browse the candle shops whenever you go shopping, you’ve probably seen those wooden logs cut in half lengthwise that have little holes hollowed out to hold tea lights (sometimes the logs are even plastic and just look like wood… kind of). I don’t know about you, but I’ve always found them kind of tacky, or maybe just too “rustic” for my tastes.

This glass tea light “log” is a little different though. It has a hollow center, so you can thread ribbons, seasonal greens, flowers, or anything else that will fit, through the center. This lets it be used any time of year for a table decoration. It’s available over at the Gardeners’ Supple Store for $22.50.