Help - no overhead light, what lamps to use where?

14 years ago

I've posted my family room before, but now I need some different advice. This room has no ceiling junction box for an overhead light. It does have two wall sockets on each side of the couch wired to a light switch, so any lamps or light fixtures I plug in there can be easily turned on and off. Because of textured ceilings and the direction of the ceiling joists, wiring an overhead light from the existing sockets is not an option right now. So, I'm trying to figure out what lighting I need.

The room has several windows, but they face north and east and our lot is very shaded by trees, so the room is almost always quite dark (I had to use the "night snapshot" setting on the camera just to get these photos, so the color is a bit off). I currently have a hodgepodge of lamps in here from our last house. I like the little uplights on the piano, but the two floor lamps are just cheap miscellaneous lights from years past (the far one has a glass torchiere shade, but the movers packed it with our fine china, which I have yet to unpack).

The walls are LA Olive 4, but after I found the leather sofa on CL I'm thinking I may need to repaint, probably SW Camelback, as seen in the the dining room. That might help lighten up the room a bit. The rug, pillows, and some other accessories will be changed; these are just what was left over after we moved in and I filled the other rooms ;-)

I probably need lamps that can use high wattage bulbs and really give off good light. Do uplights and torchieres do this better than lamps with fabric shades? I feel like I have a lot of furniture in the room, but I don't have an end table by one end of the sofa, so that rules out a table lamp, at least on that end. The other end has the sofa table under the window (it doesn't have to go there, but I bought it for the coffee table that came with the set on CL, and that was the only place for it). So I could put a table lamp on it if I wanted, I suppose. Would it be better to do symmetrical floor lamps on each end of the sofa? One floor lamp and one table lamp? Maybe wall lamps or sconces instead? I could wire in wall lights to the existing sockets easily enough and still control them from the switch, so that might work.

The room is fairly long and narrow, so it's hard to get a good photo.

From the foyer doorway, SW corner of the room (lightswitch on the wall to the left out of the photo)

Standing on the other side of the piano, SE corner of the room

Standing in the dining room, NW corner of the room

Standing in front of the sofa, looking toward the west wall

I like the looks of this wall lamp below, but would they look too small for the space if mounted at each end of the sofa? I'll eventually have wall art of some sort over the sofa.

Please give me your ideas! What type of lamps and where should I put them? What styles or materials would look best? I have a lot of heavy wood furniture, so would metal or glass or something like that make a nice contrast? I know I've seen some threads by you lamp-lovers, so please share your knowledge and inspiration with me!

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Comments (5)

lightinggal
14 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I would go with a matching table and floor lamp along with the wall sconces. Do you like Tiffany style lighting? I think it would look great in there. On the page below scroll through the 38 different sconces and see what you think.

Here is a link that might be useful: Lighting So Exciting/Sconce Lighting
palimpsest
14 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
It could be the camera but the current wall color makes the sofa look blue grey, and the distressing look pale, so I think you are probably right about painting.

Although bracket lighting is more common at bedsides, I think it could be a nice option because you could get a balanced look, without having balanced tables on each side.
You will need artwork since the shades are not large.
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anele_gw
14 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I love the idea of some sort of stained glass lighting!

I do think lamps mounted on each side of the sofa would look good. Your other option could be (OK, I know I am not using this term correctly!) some sort of Arts/Crafts floor lamp on each side with a thick wooden base. I would suggest that they be shorter than the lamps you currently have there, and not a torchiere style.

If $ is not an obstacle, I would remove the large table to the left of the sofa. I would replace it with a smaller round table and put it either between the two chairs with another Tiffany lamp (but not one that matches the other by the sofa exactly) OR put the table to the left of the beige chairs.
graywings123
14 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Would it be better to do symmetrical floor lamps on each end of the sofa? One floor lamp and one table lamp?

No and no. And I wouldn't do stained glass either. Stained glass lamps are lovely, but they reduce the amount of brightness. I like your idea of pin up lamps on the ends of the sofa.

I am a huge fan of having a torchiere in a corner (and not a wimpy, skinny one). With a 150 watt bulb, it will illuminate the room. I would place it in the corner to the left of the piano and use an extension cord if necessary to be able to turn it on from the wall switch.

I was watching an episode of Candice Olsen's Divine Design and thought of your problem as she added lighting throughout a living room, including the use of mirrors to double the light. On another episode she was using track lighting - track lighting has come a long way since the 1970s. Again, I don't know if it would work in your room, but the basic idea is to bring in various light sources.

I don't like the pair of lamps on the piano. Something about that looks odd. Maybe a polished brass piano lamp?

Here is a torchiere that I had. The style may not be right for your room, but it's my favorite lamp of all time and it is what I mean by a non-wimpy lamp - LOL.

Here is a link that might be useful: Piano lamp
equest17
Original Author
14 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Palimpsest, the third photo shows the sofa in the most true color rendering. It doesn't really have any blue in it, but I still don't think it works well with the more olive/pea green walls. DH likes the wall color, so I'm torn about painting it. But I think something a bit more neutral and brighter would help.

Anele, I like your idea of the round table between the two beige chairs. I've been on the searching for something that would work to make that a nice little grouping on the end under the window. I'm not sure I want more heavy wood furniture in the room, so I'm trying to decide if something light and airy with metal and glass would be best or a fabric-covered decorator's table. Until then, the sofa table will probably stay under the window, but I'm thinking of using it as a TV console if we get a flat panel TV and removing the deep antique cabinet that currently houses the TV.

Graywings, I think you're definitely right about stained glass cutting down on the light. I would love to add track lighting, but the wiring is still the problem.

I don't really care for the usual piano lamps. That's why the little torchiere pair appealed to me. I do want to hang some wall art over the piano also, as the lack of height between the lamps seems odd. But it sounds like you don't like the looks of them at all? If the proportions are wrong for the piano, maybe I can use one on a (future) round table between the beige chairs and one on the TV console.

Help - no overhead light, what lamps to use where?

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lightinggal

palimpsest

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Help - no overhead light, what lamps to use where?

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lightinggal

palimpsest

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