Home Depot had some interesting ceiling and table fixtures displaying those retro bulbs.

i also want to know

"If you google "exposed bulb lighting" the fashionistas are on to you and you only get pictures of the $200 ones. "
wow, really ?

I wasn't going to take the bait. With a little effort one can find a wide range of lights at an equally wide range of prices. We just upgraded the lighting in two houses so it can be done and to be honest the search is enjoyable to me.

I'd be happy if I could find something similar to Schoolhouse Electric's Defiance or Rejuvenation's Hannah...

http://www.schoolhouseelectric.com/defiance.html

http://www.rejuvenation.com/catalog/products/hannah?category_id=4e0a2cc79a86654a4400004a

At the Home Depot website there are 573 flush-mount ceiling fixtures under $50, but all of them have shades or glass.

"the Home Depot website there are 573 flush-mount ceiling fixtures under $50, but all of them have shades or glass."

If you are spending your time counting light fixtures that won't work I can see why you are not making any progress. You will have to look for a Home Depot that is demonstrating those retro bulbs. Mine is. Roll the dice and ask one of their sales people for help. Some of them know their stock.

Or you will have to contact a good local lighting store with your requirements including price in hand. Trust me they are usually both competitive on price and knowlegable about what kind of lights will work.

Or instead of trying to go ultra cheap buy the Scholhouse or Rejuvenation fixtures. Go ahead and have fun with the retro bulbs and spend a bit. We spent more than we originally estimated with a beach house and love the result.

>You will have to look for a Home Depot that is demonstrating those retro bulbs. Mine is.
>Roll the dice and ask one of their sales people for help.

I know the "Home Decorators" exhibit you're talking about at HD with the retro bulbs, and I went back today to confirm that indeed these are all pendant lights.

I also gave 3 Home Despot employees a HeaDache trying to find something slightly more attractive than my $1.61 Leviton keyless lampholder. One opened a package for me of a small fixture with a little glass/plastic dome, but it looks hideous without the dome.

The smaller HD fixtures (with shades/glass domes) are under $30 which is about what I would expect to pay since what I want is minimalist.

Are you sure your HD displays bare bulb CEILING MOUNT fixtures? If so, could you post where it is so I can call them and get a part number?

This is at Lowes for about $50...

http://images.lowes.com/product/converted/736916/736916587990lg.jpg

...Could do without the glass shade but it even includes an Edison bulb.

Does anyone else here see any irony in that just as laws banning traditional incandescent bulbs are being phased in, there's been a boom in sales of retro carbon-filament light bulbs that cost 10x as much and put out 1/3 the light of those soon-to-be-unavailable incandescent bulbs?

(note: decorative light bulbs, such as candle or globe shaped, are exempt from the new regulations, which is why bulbs that look like those that were deemed obsolete in 1920 are allowed. Also, halogen-IR bulbs that look and work like standard incandescent bulbs but use only 2/3 the electricity, and shouldn't be much more (if any) more expensive once they're in full production, will still be legal, which is why there's no good reason to stock up on 60, 75, or 100-watt incandescent bulbs)

I won't lie: I love the look of old-timey light bulbs too, but I would never use them for general lighting. Indeed, they look best when dimmed, which makes them even more yellow/orangeish, and makes it easier to look at, whereas I tend to look away from a brightly lit bare light bulb. So I'd light the room with recessed LEDs, and use hanging light(s) with dimmed antique bulbs over a table or something only for the effect, not to add much illumination.

Hence the name of the Schoolhouse Electric fixture: "Defiance".

Man has been making fire in his cave for his woman since the beginning of human history, and now there is a new predator to fear, the greenback-sucking bureaucrat.

But I digress.

For vintage ceramic/porcelain fixtures the magic word is "porcelier" turned up some retro fixtures on eBay that could be had in the $20-$50 range, although some DIY rewiring is needed.

http://retrorenovation.com/2012/06/13/porcelain-light-fixtures-the-history-of-these-classic-lights-for-1920s-1930s-1940s-homes/

Pic of the Lowe's Allen+Roth fixture I forgot to post before:

"anyone else here see any irony in that just as laws banning traditional incandescent bulbs are being phased in, there's been a boom in sales of retro carbon-filament light bulbs that cost 10x as much and put out 1/3 the light of those soon-to-be-unavailable incandescent bulbs"

Ironic is not among the words I would choose. There is apparently a gap in the law. A pricey bulb that uses 60 watts to put out a puny amount of light strikes me as short-sighted and purposely wasteful in view of our soaring energy costs. A huge step backwards. They look cool and hip but at such a cost.

If saving money is still the goal you might look a little closer at the porcelain fixtures available from your hardware store. Some of them are either unglazed or the glazing is rough enough that it should hold paint or stain. Color the fixture so that it looks like something other than a basement refugee and use bronze or brass rather than steel screws to hold it in place. Not as nice as hammered copper bare bulb fixture for $450 a pair but it could do the trick.