Tag: Lighting

Braxton Lighting

We’re going to add lights to the front and back porches. Hooray, we’ll be able to see as we walk down the stairs! I’ve ordered a flushmount and sconce from Restoration Hardware’s Braxton Lighting Collection.

Look at what the electrician left us with in the kitchen though. Are there better looking light switches that go one above the other? There is not enough room for the standard side by side switches that I was expecting, and I would like something, you know, less ugly. The electrician said that he could replace the switches with white ones, and I suppose a new switch plate and some touch up paint will help. Still, I miss the simple standard switch that we used to have.

November 30, 2009
IKEA Maskros Pendant

Remember how the Maskros Pendant was all over the design blogs after IKEA showed it at the latest ICFF? And it was supposed to be in select US IKEA stores by August? I think the light would look great in my bedroom, and it is now in stock at my nearest IKEA! I’m going to have to take a little trip out there to see it in person…

September 13, 2009
The New Light in the Library

We finally got our hands on the Chase Ceiling Mount I had wanted for the library, and we’ve already installed it! Brandon did most of the work while I held Eleanor and read the instructions to him.

It’s so much better than the light that was there before.

It’s understated, but it’s a perfect compliment to the room.

June 25, 2009
Plans for the Library

Our “library” (the landing at the top of the stairs) looks pretty good. I mean, it was even in a magazine not long ago… but I’ve always thought that it could look better.

(photo by Janet Mesic-Mackie for Home Magazine, September 2008)

The little light in the room is horrible and it doesn’t even fully cover the hole in the ceiling for it, but I’ve had a hard time finding a replacement because our ceilings upstairs are only 7.5′ tall. I had ordered this Jonathan Adler light previously, but it was far too large for the space and we used it in my studio instead. I did see this light recently, and it may work since it’s a bit smaller.

The stairway woodwork has been painted mustard yellow (“Campground” by Behr), which does look nice with our current curtains, but I was never a huge fan of those. They’re okay, but not great. I’ve always loved Amy Butler’s Lime Primrose fabric, and seeing it recently as pillows made me revisit the idea of using it for new library curtains.

I’m just a little worried that the fabric won’t work with the yellow wall. Brandon’s mom gave us a curvy wooden side table recently (and the go-ahead to paint it or do whatever we want to it), so maybe it would be nice if it were painted the same yellow? I also have a neat little side table on the way that could be painted. Or we could keep a dark brown side table to match the legs on the chair and ottoman, and rely on the mustard yellow throw that’s in the room (which was just $1 at goodwill). The Orla Keily pitcher from Target that I’m eagerly awaiting (used as a vase with some pink flowers) would be nice too.

I love the fabric so much, I’m determined to make it work.

February 9, 2009
No More Popcorn Ceiling

The popcorn has given way to a smooth, flat ceiling, thanks to Brandon’s hard work. As I mentioned before, the ceiling did not contain asbestos (always check before removing because many popcorn ceilings do), so we felt comfortable trying to remove it. It came down easily enough in just a few hours (he sprayed it with water and scraped it off), but smoothing the resulting mess took a little longer. He did a rough sanding (60 grit) first, wiped all of the dust away with a damp cloth, smoothed over all of the imperfections with joint compound, and then sanded everything again (220 grit).

I’m the more handy one out of the two of us and I felt bad that I couldn’t help, but we didn’t think it was a safe job for a pregnant lady. Oh yeah, I’m also a wee bit of a perfectionist… It was really hard to not go in there and obsessively sand and smooth and do things myself. After priming and painting though, the ceiling looks really good.

The new light looks great, though we did have to run out and grab a ceiling medallion. I’m not really a fan of them, but Brandon had a hard time smoothing out the ceiling near the light, and the medallion was an easy solution to hide the remaining popcorn texture. I haven’t decided yet if I’ll leave it white or if I’ll paint it the same color as the rest of the ceiling.

Now, I know people get a bit nervous when dealing with electrical projects (we do too), but changing a light fixture is EASY. We’ve done it six times so far in this house (in the living room, dining room, kitchen, bathroom, studio, and nursery). You just make sure the power is off, take down the old fixture, connect like wires to like wires, attach the ground wire to the little green screw on the mounting bar, and then attach the new fixture.

We decided to keep the room the same color (Wheat Bread by Behr), but it needed a second coat of paint. Really, it’s always needed that second coat, but I think I was too tired when working on the guest room before and I just figured ‘good enough’ (which is so uncharacteristic of me). It has bugged me ever since. So now we’ve painted the ceiling and walls, and even did some touch up work on the trim, and the guest room is officially ready to be switched over to a nursery.

January 5, 2009
Shapely Ceramic Lamps

People ask all the time about the lamps in my living room, but they’re no longer available. I bought them years ago from Crate & Barrel, and they were made by Robert Abbey.

Now, I know these aren’t the same (pale pink vs. white, different silhouette), but they are fairly similar. Feel free to ignore or embrace the fact that they are Mary-Kate and Ashley brand.

(Mary-Kate and Ashley accent lamp and table lamp available at Target.)

December 17, 2008