How to Choose the Right Lamp

This bedroom has two different styles of lamps: floor and table. The different styles create interest in the room and look terrific. Pair reading chairs with floor lamps for a great look. Plus, they’re practical, giving good reading light.

Correct Selection Makes All the Difference

Whenever my favorite decorating store has a sale, you can bet I’ll be there. My chief weakness? Lamps. Nowadays, lamps have so much style. There are lamps with pretty colored gold, red, and black shades. Lamps today also featureall kinds of wonderful details such as iron scroll work, delicate trims,even crystal beading. About ten years ago, all you could find were ginger jar lamps. Fortunately, timeshave changed, and the range of lamp styles today is enormous. Best of all,

with all the variety today, by simply changing lamps, you can change the entire look of your room. But how do you select the right lamp for a particular place? There are two important things to keep in mind.

Go for style and correct sizing

Try to find lamps that will compliment the style of the room, first. Obviously, a chrome lamp with black shade would look silly in a Victorian-styled room. But, Victorian doesn’t always mean stained glass or gas-lamp with globe. Anything that has color or style elements that go with your décor would be fine. The point is that you should choose a style that will fit with the style in your room so that the look is attractive and appropriate.

Next on the list is proportion. Look for lamps that are sized properly for their placement. A small lamp that’s more suitable for a counter or bookshelf will look too small and silly on a side table or as a bedside lamp, so make sure the lamp is correctly sized for the space. This is usually where I get into trouble. Recently, I purchased a beautiful, tall table lamp, and although the colors were complementary, once I got it home, I found it was too tall and dominated the painting on the wall. Lucky for me I’d purchased another lamp that was correctly sized, so I just switched them out. If you aren’t happy with the look of your lamps, don’t be afraid to exchange them for something more appropriate.

Create interest in the room with various lamps

Rather than having all similar-looking or sized lamps, vary your lamp styles and sizes. This creates interest in the room. If you have a reading chair in the room, select a floor lamp instead of a table lamp to create more appeal. However, do be careful when trying to create a “designer” look by using different styles of lamps in the same space.

There is a trend currently of placing different styles of lamps on either side of the bed. Personally, I believe this makes the room look disjointed and haphazard. Unless you’re a skilled designer or you can get reliable advice, go with the same lamps for nightstands next to the bed and for end tables in the living room. Keeping the lamps the same ensures you won’t make a mistake, plus, you’ll probably feel more satisfied with the result. In these instances, similar lamps create balance and symmetry, and that makes you feel more comfortable and relaxed.

This bedroom illustrates what not to do with lamps. There are three lamps in this one room with three different colored shades, two completely different styles of lamps on either side of the bed, and a tall lamp on the dresser that seems out of place. This room would look and feel much better if the nightstands and lamps were matching.

Take a look around at the lamps in your house and see if they could use some updating. Chances are, if you have the old ginger-jar standbys, it’s probably about time for a little lamp pick-me-up – and with all the great styles and designs in lamps now, you’re sure to find a lamp that you’ll love and gives your room terrific style.