Welcome! I think most of us here have some level of "hodge-podge" decor, although we prefer to call it "eclectic". :-) You'll get the hang of it - the devil is in the details and accessories can make it all come together.

I think the lamps will work fine because you've got some traditional elements in the recliners and the console table. If it were all sleek lines and austere shapes they might well look a bit out of place. Just make sure you have a couple of other brass things scattered around the room (they can be small things, like a statuette or an arty-looking bowl for catch-all items like tv remotes, or maybe a floor lamp with an interesting brass base in a corner because you most likely do need more lighting than two table lamps) so the brass lamp bases aren't all by their lonesome in the room.

I assume you meant the end tables were on either side of the couch, not the tv. And you definitely need more lighting to warm up your pretty space!

I think the lamps would be fine. As Johnmari mentioned, your chairs and tv console are very traditional in feel. You could add some pillows on the couch and chairs that might be more traditional fabric like a toile or needlepoint.

Down the line you might consider addition some other art with a more traditional feel (perhaps landscapes or still life) if that appeals to you. You could also add an area rug in a more traditional pattern.

But, mixing things up is interesting. If all the elements in the space are of one period or feel (no matter what period that is), I think it tends to blend together.

While I think they could work, I'd reconsider the pearls. Waterford's not what it was.

>Waterford's not what it was.

Too true, alas.

Is there a way to see these lamps in a store before you make your selection (lamps v. pearls)? What's the height of those lamps? A picture in a catalog can be deceiving. I'd go for the lamps if their height is over 28 inches.

Get the pearls, then wear them with everything! At least that is what Coco Chanel thought:

wow talking about anorexic! poor woman. sorry for going off topic. I think the lamps would look great. If you are not a pearl wearing person then dont get them!

Could you use them in a bedroom?

Another thing you could do (if your office workers don't visit) would be to pick the best (read-most expensive) thing from your options and sell on CL or some other place.

Yes, I know...crass, but then you could get something that you'd really love.

I would get the lamps -- and enjoy them every day! Let them brighten up the room!

For a change -- you could go for black shades -- which would work well with the other black-painted elements in your room!

Jan at Rosemary Cottage (where there's LOTS of brass ! LOL!)

mbarstow - There's no way to see the actual items. I need to choose from their online catalog via http://giftnetonline.com/. But the lamps are 28 1/2 inches tall.

ideefixe - I might have considered the pearls if they were Akoya but they're not. They are cultured pearls in a 30" length necklace with 14k gold safety clasp. Would they be worth more than 2 Waterford lamps? (Gotta make sure I get my money's worth.)

les917 - I'm embarrassed to say that it wasn't a typo. The end tables are on either side of my TV console. My house is very small so I have my Pottery Barn desk (small Aris)in the living room. There just isn't enough room for the desk, sofa and flanking end tables. (Not just a decorating ditz but a layout ditz, too.)

johnmari - I have a brass ceiling fan in the foyer (open to the LR) so the lamps wouldn't be too lonely.

cooperbailey - I'm not a pearl person because I've never had pearls. But I'm not a crystal person, either.

bbstx - You've got a good point! So maybe I wasn't a pearl person because I was assuming I would need to wear them to formal occasions, which I rarely attend. But pearls at the beach would work.

parma42 - Yeah maybe the lamps would work better in my bedroom. But DH is a clutz and would probably end up breaking the lamp on his side. (Jeepers.. the ditz married a clutz. Go figure.)
I've thought of selecting one of the more expensive items and reselling on CL. Suppose I need to do some homework on how much the items sell for. The problem is that there are no item#s so it's hard to compare the actual worth.

I would without a doubt, take the pearls. You can buy Waterford look alikes or choose from many other lamps at places like Home Goods but long after the lamps are replaced and forgotten the pearls will still be there. Do you have a daughter that you will eventually pass them down to?

In my "career days" when I got my first "big job" I celebrated by buying myself a string of pearls from one of the better jewelry stores (not the ones in the malls) and to me, it meant I had made it. Now I am a full time mommy of teens but I still love those pearls to this day!

And always remember, June Cleaver wore hers every day!!!

Pearls will look just as good in the bedroom, if not better than, lamps! If you don't believe me, do a Google Image search for "pearls negligee." Interesting images...especially the cross-dressing guy!

Can't read giftnetonline without a company code.

I have a beautiful set of pearls - 24" long, gorgeous color and shape bought by my grandfather for my Mom for her college graduation in the early fifties. He would travel to NYC often and bought them there. They have a diamond clasp and are altogether lovely. Mom had them appraised and restrung sometime in the early nineties -they are in the $3000 range.
She gave them to me because she never wore them. I have had them for 15 years+ and never wear them because I don't get dressed up much and pearls seem stuffy, preppy and formal to me. (old lady)

So, get what you will actually use or sell.

Love the lamps!!!! They will look great!

My concern isn't the style but the size of the lamps, both the height and the overall look of the lamps with the strong statement that the other pieces make.

But I would still get them. If they don't work out in the living room, you could use them in the bedroom or elsewhere.

And I would add even more lighting sources to the room. One or two lamps is what we call a good start. :)

It seems like there are two problems here. One, you need more light scattered around your living room. Instead of getting the crystal lamps and putting them on the end tables that flank the tv, I changed up your layout. Lamps would have been a little awkward there, glaring at a tv viewer and up onto a screen.

Your desk now backs up to the couch to double as a sofa table. I hope yours was sort of to scale, because if it is, I think everything fits much better.

{{gwi:2106649}}

Problem 2: Pearls or crystal. Okay, I don't see that as a problem. Either one would be great! :OD

my 2 cents.....my 30" single strand of cultured pearls(no clasp), 6.5mm, knotted between each pearl... are almost perfect and I paid $20 for them, in Cozumel. I think today they'd sell for $60.

Waterford crystal.....I just like the name....that's a nice pair of lamps.....to use somewhere!

paint_chips - Thanks for doing a mockup of my layout! But I didn't mention that my PB desk has a matching hutch so it needs to be in a corner. I actually love it in the corner. It's tucked away just enough that the family will occasionally forget I'm there so I can get some work done.
{{gwi:2106650}}
Sorry but my image didn't truly show the layout. Behind the desk and filing cabinet is an open railing so I can't move the TV there. And right now the TV is mounted on the wall above the console. It took DH months to finally install it so I'm not about to tell him to move it!
Since the DR is open to the LR I tried to position the sofa and chairs so it seemed like they were in line with the DR table. That leaves the desk/filing cabinet in their own little space. It feels balanced.

But you're all right about the lighting. What if I remove the end tables and get a sofa table? Then I could put one lamp on the sofa table and another on the file cabinet. (Blechh! I know.. not many people have file cabinets in their living rooms. But I need it next to the desk.) Or would the 28 1/2 inch lamp be too tall behind the sofa?
This new layout is more true-to-scale.

bbstx - I did the google search and the cross-dressing guy with the pearls is a hoot!

bumblebeez - Old lady here, too, but maybe I need to change my paradigm about pearls. Other posters have pointed out they're not just for formal occasions but for the beach and the bedroom, too! But I would need to forget how expensive they are before wearing them out and about.

lynn_r_ct - No daughters, but 2 sons. But I do have a niece that I am very close to. She's a real girly-girl and would absolutely love those pearls.

So.... I am still waffling between the lamps and the pearls. I like the idea of purchasing cheaper lamps at Home Goods and selecting the pearls from the catalog. But I would need to wrap my brain around using pearls as my "everyday" necklace.

Why not switch the filing cabinet to the corner where the plant is now, move the desk to where the couch is, and move the couch to where the desk and fling cabinet are now?

You then create the work area as a separate space and at least a little of your seating actually faces the tv. You should, if the scale is right, have room for at least one end table by the couch, if not both.

If you might wear the pearls more often, get them . . .then you aren't stuck rearranging the room for those lamps. Who knows-- maybe standing (not table) lamps would work better?

I am still voting for the pearls. Pearls match everything and once you have them you will think of ways to wear them. I think they look great with blue jeans and a denim shirt. How classy is that?

I just think that if you need a lamp you will go out and buy one someplace - but will you ever buy yourself pearls? Probably not - so treat yourself.

And when the day comes I can thing of no greater gift to give to your niece to cherish the special moments you had.
Okay - read I am a mush.

Almost all pearls sold today are cultured--are these freshwater pearls (which can be round) or regular cultured pearls? I'd still get them--you can always have them restrung with turquoise or other beads, if you don't like the look of them by themselves.

Thanks everybody for your input.
It took me a long time to finally make a decision but I ordered the pearls. Although they may not be worth as much as the lamps they are a more personal gift that I can even wear to work (and maybe even to the beach).
I rearranged the LR to include a small round table and found a nice lamp on CL to put on the table.
Next is deciding tablecloth fabric but that'll be another thread. :-)