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Let there be light.
Lighting has always been a good way to vastly improve a space without spending a huge amount of money...even with expensive fixtures, i.e. you get the greatest bang for your buck with good lighting.
The first fixture I knew was going in was this reproduction sputnik light I'd purchased years prior from Practical Props, a dealer/manufacturer in North Hollywood that largely rents period lighting fixtures to film and television productions.
What I had not intended was for Practical Props to custom design some sputnik sconces for my foyer and outside my bedroom door (seen below). I'd initially intended to use some brushed aluminium "double cone" or "bowtie" sconces, but these sconces protruded too far from the wall and would prove problematic near a doorway. The sputnik sconces were the most flush, mid-century appropriate fixtures I could find and Practical Props customized the length of the "tentacles" to the low heights of my ceilings...and all this for less than the cone sconces.
Sconce outside bedroom / bathroom doorway. Even at a relatively flush six-and-a-half inches, this fixture still is frequently disturbed and prodded by passing shoulders and arms.
I'd always wanted a George Nelson saucer lamp. This "criss-cross" model is in the dining room.
If you recall from my post entitled "Idiots," I needed to solve a problem created by recessed lighting installed without cans or any fire-barrier into an A/C ducting soffit. These lighting fixtures called "Beauty Spots" by WAC Lighting were a good solution. They're technically recessed fixtures as the housings are not visible, yet the bulb is not recessed and instead is covered with a flush-mount, glass cube for decorative purposes. With these fixtures, I can utilize the space for lighting without worrying the heat of a light bulb will ignite the ducting insulation.
Close-up of "ice cube" attachment around 20 watt, xenon bulb.
View of dining room from the living room showing the sputnik light above the wetbar on the left, the sputnik sconce in the foyer, the Nelson saucer lamp in the dining room and the beauty spots on the far right.
I found this fixture at the Habitat-for-Humanity ReStore in Pasedena. It was painted black, had several drips of white exterior paint on it, a broken porcelain socket and badly rusted brass hardware. I'd always intended for a chrome "bullet" fixture to be installed above the stone veneered fireplace, but I assumed I'd pay $225 for an "Aloha" fixture from Rejuvenation. I ended up spending $5 for this fixture at the ReStore, an additional $5 in rewiring supplies from Home Depot and $25 to have the fixture stripped and polished by Astro Chrome and Polishing. I painted the brass hardware with a can of matte silver spray paint I already had. Not bad for a total cost of around $35.
The first fixture I knew was going in was this reproduction sputnik light I'd purchased years prior from Practical Props, a dealer/manufacturer in North Hollywood that largely rents period lighting fixtures to film and television productions.
What I had not intended was for Practical Props to custom design some sputnik sconces for my foyer and outside my bedroom door (seen below). I'd initially intended to use some brushed aluminium "double cone" or "bowtie" sconces, but these sconces protruded too far from the wall and would prove problematic near a doorway. The sputnik sconces were the most flush, mid-century appropriate fixtures I could find and Practical Props customized the length of the "tentacles" to the low heights of my ceilings...and all this for less than the cone sconces.
Sconce outside bedroom / bathroom doorway. Even at a relatively flush six-and-a-half inches, this fixture still is frequently disturbed and prodded by passing shoulders and arms.
I'd always wanted a George Nelson saucer lamp. This "criss-cross" model is in the dining room.
If you recall from my post entitled "Idiots," I needed to solve a problem created by recessed lighting installed without cans or any fire-barrier into an A/C ducting soffit. These lighting fixtures called "Beauty Spots" by WAC Lighting were a good solution. They're technically recessed fixtures as the housings are not visible, yet the bulb is not recessed and instead is covered with a flush-mount, glass cube for decorative purposes. With these fixtures, I can utilize the space for lighting without worrying the heat of a light bulb will ignite the ducting insulation.
Close-up of "ice cube" attachment around 20 watt, xenon bulb.
View of dining room from the living room showing the sputnik light above the wetbar on the left, the sputnik sconce in the foyer, the Nelson saucer lamp in the dining room and the beauty spots on the far right.
I found this fixture at the Habitat-for-Humanity ReStore in Pasedena. It was painted black, had several drips of white exterior paint on it, a broken porcelain socket and badly rusted brass hardware. I'd always intended for a chrome "bullet" fixture to be installed above the stone veneered fireplace, but I assumed I'd pay $225 for an "Aloha" fixture from Rejuvenation. I ended up spending $5 for this fixture at the ReStore, an additional $5 in rewiring supplies from Home Depot and $25 to have the fixture stripped and polished by Astro Chrome and Polishing. I painted the brass hardware with a can of matte silver spray paint I already had. Not bad for a total cost of around $35.
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