Agree with you completely. I do not like coming home to a dark house. I have two lamps with LED bulbs on 24/7 on my first floor and I usually have a lamp on upstairs also with an LED bulb on 24/7. I also have several photosensitive night lights with LED bulbs--one in the kitchen and one in the bathroom. I also have two LED photosensitive lights above my garage door. The bulbs throw no heat, use very little electricity, and seemingly last forever.

Hey, Jan,

Did they know you were coming to visit?

When you are trying to sell your home…you turn on every light….and, wow!

At first I thought I was going to be reading bad news about Sherwin Williams, about which I could not care less. But Sophie Wheeler? That is very devastating. Her advice should be canonized in a specially bound collection. She is the best, always full of great kitchen design advice that I never want to but needed to hear.

Lamps. I don't used during the day unless for a task - desk lamp, reading lamp. Night time is when I use them for different lighting levels around the room.

Yes, there should be a book of “Sophie Wheelerisms”

Yes! Locally, we have "janisms"!I I consider "it doesn't owe ya a damn dime" to top the list lol

Judy.

Yes, home and one was behind me flicking off the lights I turned..........ON! I needed a seeing EYE dog for Gods sake. I talk to myself in the car..... a lot.

Good quality light is the most important element for every interior. I like low lights to up light plants, good quality soft light from shaded lamps and overhead lights to highlight certain areas in the room like art or table tops. However, if the lighting color is off it can ruin the most expensive room. Just changing the lighting in this kitchen changes the color of the cabinets, walls and countertops.

The most annoying lighting issue IMO are the number of homeowners still using one lone torchiere in a living room and thinking this is a lighting solution for the room. If there is a halogen bulb in the fixture it's using up energy like crazy and casts a hot spot on the wall or ceiling.

Recently we had a scheduled home showing (my house for sale). I turned every light on in the house before I left for the weekend. The showing was the next day. My dad (at my house for the weekend) called me and gave me the business for leaving all the lights on. I said dad please leave the lights on until the realtors are finished. They will turn them all off when they are done showing. Getting the house sold will make us much more money than turning the lights off will save. He grumbled but reluctantly said ok. Next morning the realtor calls asking why I didn't leave the lights on. Smh. Dad couldn't help himself.

I agree about the need for light as we come home. When our younger daughter went away to school I installed timers to turn on lights before I came home to a dark house.

Yesterday was the day after a snowstorm, full sun. Our house looked beautiful with all the wonderful light and reflection from the snow.

We old folks need light, not only at night but during the day. I was delighted to find matching lamps, one has only one bulb, the other has two. The first has one focused light on a bendable tube, the other has two such lights. (Both also have outlets to recharge your cellphone.) So, not only do we have ambient light, but also focused light for reading or crocheting. It was worth the price.

It's certainly an interesting topic, right down to the types of light people prefer. We have preference indoors or out. The high and bright light of mid day, mid summer........the lower light of that same day, much later. Overhead and a full wash of light, or pools of it lower and next to a chair or sofa. Dimmed, not dimmed. We can tweak the way light enters a home and how much enters the same home, we can change whether it is warm or cool in temperature with siting. . Which means light isn't just necessary, unnecessary, practical or not practical., it's emotional as well.

But it remains astounding to me, that the SAME person who tosses every left over with abandon, won't go in the basement due to the incredible waste staring back when they do...........is right behind me dousing lamps like the meter reader was behind them with a billy club. : ). THAT......is the ( pun intended ) disconnect for yours truly.

There are just some people for whom this is a way of life. I don't think it's got anything to do with money. It may be reflexive from a poor childhood, it may be environmental concerns, it may be guilt over all the stuff in the basement :)

In any case, I have a little motto that might help in this situation: "Never try to apply logic in an illogical situations. It will just drive you nuts!"

I looked at Circa floor lamps and they are quite nice. But, I still wonder just what is it that makes them worth that price? I understand that they are "designed" , but ............well, aren't they all, really? I am financially comfortable, but that is a lot of money for my casual and modest home.

Still, I would like something better than Target lamps. I would like to at least have one with a proper and lasting weighted base. As far as repair...it is not usual that a lamp needs any repair, really. All of that is pretty simple stuff.

I looked but the website really reveals very little about the product other than height and the standard stuff. I was surprised to see that some of them still, at that price, require you to do more than simply put on the harp and/or the shade. A couple of them that I looked at still had you doing some assembly of the upright poles. I was surprised to see that.

And, some of them I looked at had you choose your finish on the metal or the wood. I guess that means that it is a basic metal or wood that is finished to look like a specific metal or wood rather than actually being iron or maple wood or brass or cherrywood. That surprised me, too.

For that price I expected to see descriptions such as " soft honeyed oak", or " bent metal", or "polished brass", or " hand forged iron", or "artisian glass", etc...

If I were to pay that much for a floor lamp, I would expect it to be fully assembled. Ok, attach the shade. But I would expect it to be packaged/wrapped/ respectfully delivered to me ready to use.

Other than the fact that it comes with a designer name attached to it, what is the inherent worth?

I really would like to know, sincerely and honestly.

I will have to spend some quality time with Mr. Google and see what I can find out about lamps that cost that much and why.

I was thinking more in the neighborhood of from one to two hundred dollars for a decent and simple floor lamp with a durable weighted base and a little simple style. My life is simple and low keyed. But, I cringe at buying junk. I am looking for something still decent between Target and the designer ones. Surely, there must be a market for such.

I leave lamps on, they are rarely turned off. I even run one all night in the family room.

Lighting is my most favorite thing in a space. It makes everything work! LEDs have not met my standards except in select applications and there is some research that young people’s eyes might be developmentally damaged by the intensity of the beams. I have all my Christmas decorations up with a mix of LED and incandescent bulbs and have them on programmed devices with remote controls. I love them on and since i have them installed properly leave them on most of the day and love coming home to the feeling they evoke. Layered lighting is wonderful way to illuminate a home and you can do it in all budget price points. So I continue to do my part to educate people on lighting and the value of it to design and great living! A lot of misinformation out there on this subject. This thread can help folks understand some of the considerations and joy good lighting can bring.

Love this subject. I know too many people who have no table lamps or floor lamps at all. So cold. It’s sunny where I live and I get lots of natural light, but on those days when it’s dreary and rainy I want lights all day long. I like incandescents too, although I have LED in the kitchen and master bath.

Lighting is [almost] everything. I keep my lights off when I am out BUT I have Alexa light the house up like Times Square when I walk in - ALEXA I'M HOME!

I need light, lots and lots of light to see details. I don't know if being extremely nearsighted has anything to do with the quantity of light entering my eyes, but I have noticed all the people I know who don't use lights are either farsighted or don't wear glasses. Every time I walk into a room, I turn on the lights and rarely worry about turning them off until bedtime. I use LED bulbs almost exclusively so energy cost is not an issue and I really hate walking through a dark house. My husband will sit in the dark with only his computer screen and gooseneck reading light until I come home and start flipping switches.

I feel much better when I walk into a brightly lit space. My kitchen has 3 LED cans, two wall lights over the sink and DW, and two overheads each with spaces for four bulbs although I only use two in each light. I also have lights in the range hood and intend to add some under cabinet lights when I do the backsplash. I rarely use all the lights but I like being able to choose to direct light onto the countertops where I am working, not just get shadows from the overheads. My master bath has 4 LED ceiling cans, a vanity light and a shower light and I just feel energized when I flip on the ceiling lights. At night, I turn on the vanity light only and that is plenty of light for most purposes, just not for trying to drag myself into a suitable frame of mind to be productive.

For quality table and floor lamps, I prefer the vintage versions. They may be old fashioned but I still like them and they certainly will not fall apart. My mother has a beautiful example with an alabaster base which has a separate light bulb that turns the base into a very elegant and useful night light.

"My mother has a beautiful example with an alabaster base which has a separate light bulb that turns the base into a very elegant and useful night light"

Oh hey! My parents have a pair of these and they're amazing. They are extremely old, having belonged to my great great grandfather. They still work and are definitely some of the most beautiful lamps I've seen.

I love antique lamps - I've been meaning to shop for some (to replace the motley collection of contemporary lamps that were fine in our post-college apartments but not so much in our Victorian). Antique lamps will give you unique and timeless looks and lasting quality. I think they can look good anywhere from a modern setup to super traditional ones (of course).

My family laughs at me because I will choose a dark room over any lights. I love to get up before the sun comes up and there are no lights allowed in my space, at all. The thought of greeting the day with a blaze of lights is supremely unpleasant to me. like a slap in the face.

I only use a small night light in the bathroom and rarely, rarely ever turn on the vanity lights.

I love that time of dusk and of dawn and don't want anything to spoil the natural light in the house. They are both such beautiful and peaceful times of day.

When lights are on in my house, it is never over head lights. One exception is a dark stairwell that I do use a light on. These stairs are recessed away from any natural source of light and I want to walk safely. It gets turned off as soon as I get to the bottom.

I love a dimly lit room. If there is a task at hand, I will turn on some more lamps. Even in the kitchen I only use some under cabinet lights and the ones over the stove, never the overhead.

If I find myself in a room that is lit from above, I can't wait to get out. And, I don't like skylights, either. They are like overhead lights that you can't turn off.

We have been in our house for a couple of decades and have never changed the bulbs in the over the table ceiling fan. They so very rarely ever get turned on. There is a floor lamp to the side that gives off a nice soft glow to dine by.

Over head lights that are dimmed are almost more objectionable that full force overhead. They make me feel as if I ought to be able to see, but can't really quite see, kind of like a bad dream.

My SIL insisted on putting in overhead lights in their home. I told my daughter to tell him that it makes everyone ugly and shrinks his manhood.(just kidding, of course) But, it didn't deter him. He put them in anyway. UGH!

Bright and natural sunlight in the daytime is totally welcomed into my windows and doors! Love it!

It can be a bright sunny day and I turn the lights on! I have to have LOTS of light. Reveal bulbs preferred. (Discovered yesterday that Home Depot isn’t stocking them anymore :( )

Electricity for lighting is only 14% of the average home's electrical use. That figure is from 2008, so I'd bet it's lower now because of the increased use of LEDs.

The Center for Global Development says that Xmas lighting in the US uses 6.6 billion kilowatt hours of electricity each year. That's more than the country of Cambodia uses in an entire year! And it's more than Nepal uses and El Salvador and Tanzania and... But it's just 0.2% of our entire usage.

So, I agree with Jan...shine on!

And speaking of throwing out junk... The amount of carpeting discarded in the US each year is equal to the weight of the Empire State Building. I learned that from watching This Old House.

I also am a light-aholic. I have transitioned most light bulbs to LED in my house, so they are economical to burn day and night, home or not. I do turn on lamps at night in rooms not used because I like how it looks when I walk by. I refuse to come home to a dark house; I find it depressing. I also feel dark houses, when viewed from the outside at night, seem a bit sad, whereas houses with lighted windows seem quite cheery. I realize this is an emotional response to light, and others (like my adult son!) have quite the opposite response.

I recently put a motion detector switch for the first light at the bottom of the basement steps. It serves our needs well and we never have to touch anything when we walk down the stairs carrying something. I am also thinking of putting another one in the main floor hallway leading to the bedrooms and bath. I hate living in the dark! It is pitch black outside and the only light on the main floor is my husband's reading light.

Lyndee Lee: We have motion detectors that trigger the under-cabinet lights in the kitchen, 2nd floor hall, and master bath. It's great.

Usually all we need in the kitchen are the under-cabinet lights, the hall light is 25 or 40 watts--plenty bright enough to see your way, and the master bath is 25 watts--enough to function in the middle of the night without turning on the bright lights.

My mother always said developing a lighting plan was one of the most important steps in interior design. Lighting sets the mood and affects everything it touches.

As for people who waste money on junk and then feel virtuous about turning out lights- it reminds me of those who exercise and then have extra dessert as a treat and then wonder why their diet isn't going anywhere.

I am so sorry to hear about Sophie's stroke. I loathe FB and have not gotten over there, grrrr.

Rita - your mother was right. It always bothers me when folks don't pay sufficient attention to lighting, especially in new builds. They have an unrealistic "allowance" and it comes late in the build, so when not properly planned and laid out at the design stage, makes for costly changes. This is something I pay a lot of attention to right up front. JAN - great thread idea, and I hope it helps some realize the value of the lighting in a home and how to plan it out early and be realistic as to costs. Also, I will add Sophie to my prayer list and hope that she recovers quickly from her health challenges. She is such a wealth of knowledge and when you think about it, she gained this knowledge when it wasn't popular for a woman to be in this business! Wishing her the very best and while she put off many, I learned from her and got more than a laugh or two. You just had to be willing to look for the nuggets of truth in her postings.

@wednesday morning

The only one and two hundred dollar lamps are going to be on Wayfair or similar. Floor lamps are more expensive, and will need a minimal assembly. That's a shipping issue, allowing safer travel, a more minimal box. No matter who , where they may come from. Which.....................is China. The degree of quality varying greatly , obviously, from awful to very fine.

A reading "machine" such as Holkotter is made in Germany. Hubbardton Forge......that bears a hefty tag as well. For something like this below.........at 135?? Wayfair. No..........it won't be the quality that is Circa/Visual Comfort. It may be a lot better than Target : ) Bear in mind a beautiful Champman lamp , standing or otherwise, was several hundred dollars thirty years ago : )

https://www.wayfair.com/lighting/pdp/fangio-lighting-60-swing-arm-floor-lamp-fg1310.html

Incandescents give off light in the infrared spectrum WHICH IS NECESSARY FOR HUMAN HEALTH. LED lamps are bad for human health, as are CFLs. People in northern climes are suffering with worsening mood disorders because of the lack of exposure to vital lighting ( the sun is the primary source) in the winter months.

I remember learning, back in design school, about human’s affinity for low placed lighting sources in dark spaces ( i.e., lamps) developed over hundreds of thousands of years from sitting around fires at night.

Living with overhead LEDs as your primary lighting is like living in a garage, or a trailer with only the single ceiling mount and tv blazing.

Fascinating thread. The "need" word has popped up over and over. For some of us that's need to SEE ...or I NEED the room to look great and I need to see! But do I need to see now? No. Or Who cares..in case I want to see, or I simply like passing through and seeing that it LOOKS nice lol.

Then we get to temperature. Of the light itself, of the BULB!! Eco folks wail on this. But I can say in the dead of winter, I can lower my energy consumption with the temp on the thermostat a full two degrees lower by flicking on lamps! Gasp! So I can dial that to 65 vs 67. Someone will say, yea...."you have a literal campfire in the house with those incandescent bulbs.!!" Yup. PINK Light my fire baby, light my fire. A few of you will be old enough to remember that song............: )

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=deB_u-to-IE

Did I mention I hate skylights?.........

Oh I love this thread! I’m a light person. I drive my husband nuts finding the perfect lighting for every situation from entertaining a house full to sitting down over a charcuterie board. We live in a (IMO) cute little cottage - I even have welcome candles in all windows 24/7/365. Do not like LED lighting, incandescent is my friend. Light is everything to my surroundings. :D

I don’t know if what ulisdone said about the infrared spectrum is true when it comes to incandescents along with what someone else mentioned about the harm of LED’s, but I’m gonna say amen to it anyway cause it feels right! I think there are some things that have come down the pike in recent years due to concerns about energy consumption that are definitely detrimental to our long term health. I add to that list low e glass on windows which drastically cuts down on the natural light entering our homes (they are REQUIRED by code where I live). This one is a huge pet peeve of mine. So....the lack of natural light in the daytime hours combined with the pressure to use the minimal amount of lighting in the evening coupled with the crazy jump to all LED (even the best of those bulbs gives off a very unappealing type of light) ...I think we will eventually discover that many of these attempts to reduce energy consumption are harming us in the long term (not to mention that they detract aesthetically).

https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2016/10/23/near-infrared-led-lighting.aspx

Well, I guess it is my inner cave person coming forward because I abhor an overly lit room and prefer the soothing ambience of low level and natural light.

Jan, back to those lamps....not meaning to be contentious here or to single you out, only to seek to continue the conversation as to what makes a good lamp...with you or with anyone who has an opinion or any knowledge.

I looked at the ones on Wayfair and from what I can find there is nothing significantly different from the Target one and the ones on Wayfair. As with many consumer items, the specifications do not really reveal the details about the product. The same with consumer reports. CR will not reveal to you that the product has that one little part hidden inside that is a weak link and will cause the whole darned thing to be useless in short order.

Recently, America's Test Kitchen did a review of appliances such as the Instapot. They actually took them apart to show where the elements were located and why it made a difference. They will do that on their videos and that is the most helpful of all. THAT is good information.

Aside from the fact that the entire weighted bottom fell out of one of these Target lamps, another weakness in them is that there is nothing but a narrow diameter washer/bolt that is holding a tall pole to a flat base. There should be a wide flange of some sort to support the weight and wiggle of a tall pole emerging from a base. But, no. Eventually, the lamp pole begins to topple towards the side because there is really not much to hold it upright.

When I did my hack repair on the offending lamp, I layered some wide diameter washers in there as best I could to give the upright some support, then layered in wet mortar into the base.

From reading the reviews on Wayfair, it seems that these lamps had the same issue as did the Target ones, but maybe worse, since the design flaws seemed to be evident from the start. At least the Target ones took a while for the weakness to manifest itself.

These are the kinds of hidden structural weaknesses that you only discover when it all goes wrong and you take it apart to find out why..

Thanks for your responses, Jan. I guess you must be in the business of making a house a home, right?

Your clients may have the disposable funds to buy such expensive lamps, but it is out of context with my life. Just that there were more sturdy consumer items squarely in between the designer high end stuff and Target quality.

By the way, when I went to Target to replace the broken lamp, I found that it was obvious that the quality had deteriorated in the Target item. Instead, Home Depot had a better quality product.

I guess Target and Home Depot are not the shopping destinations for folks who hire a decorator! LOL!!

From the experience that I have had with cheap lamps and from what I know from better quality lamps that I have salvaged from the curb, here are a couple of quality issues that come to mind as pertains to floor lamps.

1) A floor lamp needs a very solid, heavy and durable weighted base of a wide enough diameter to suit the logistics of holding up a pole that is probably top weighted with the shade/canister or swing arm. It needs balance between the base and the weight at the top. In the old lamps, that weighted base is solid iron.

2)That base needs to be affixed and sandwiched to the pole with a fastening method that is also of a wide diameter.

3)The manufacturer needs to be upfront about the materials it is made from and not just list the "finish" of the product.

4) If it has a swing arm or any moving parts as such, it needs to have some type of ball bearing mechanism or greased joint or something that makes it easy to move and that guarantees that it will move easily for a long time. If it has a gooseneck, it needs to be made with some quality and possibly be replaceable.

5) There needs to be some strengthening inside of the pole to guarantee it's upright integrity. The old lamps that I have pulled out of the garbage have a solid metal reinforcing pole running inside of the decorative poles. The ones that you have to assemble yourself have only a locking nut and a very short metal nipple at each juncture that is supposed to hold the upright weight. It is extremely ineffective in doing that. It needs to run the whole height of the pole.

So, those are some of the quality issues with floor lamps that have been drawn from experience. There is not much in any description of any product, whether it is priced at fifty dollars or five hundred dollars, that will tell you what is inside. It will tell you about the style on the outside, but not the substance on the inside.

I actually prefer a simple style and high end design features are not a high priority. What is desired is some quality in construction. A floor lamp is really such a simple thing! It does not need to be so hard, rare, or expensive to just have some basic quality. There is not much material involved and most lamps don't need to do many tricks or tasks or need to be too high tech.

This is one reason that I don't buy much of anything anymore. I prefer to do without rather than to buy more darned landfill! That is why I don't have a toaster oven or a coffee maker. CR does not tell you about that little thermo/techo doodad that burns out and renders the entire slickly designed on the outside appliance into a piece of junk to be removed from the kitchen countertop and tossed into the garbage along with all of its now useless attachments/ baskets/trays and carafes. No, no, and no more.

Lamps are an important element in the ambience of the home. But, it is so hard to find any quality. A high price tag is not a guarantee. That is true of almost everything on the consumer market.

People in Northern climes get issues in the winter because they don't go outside. No artificial light currently used in housing effectively replicates a natural daylight spectrum. I suppose you could put up plant grow lights. But even those are really tweaked for the best stimulation of chlorophyll, not the best stimulation of you.

As to lamps and quality - try not buying them online or at big box stores. Hunt around until you find the local lamp shop and repair source. They do exist! The one in the nearest large city to me is impressive, to say the least. He not only has the catalogs and access to all the new pieces that are available, but also makes a sideline out of restoring older lamps. He'll repair what you've got or sell you something new with equal delight. And if you have issues with it, he'll fix it.

If you want something that's really yours and goes in your space, stop shopping at Me Too and The Exactly What, Inc.

As one VERY picky designer? I love both the quality and the style of Circa. Repeat picky. I buy at better pricing, but still not "cheap"

i dont know what to tell you other than to haunt antique stores! But? They will very often need a new shade . Sorry!!!!

If it were so easy? You'd be making your own lamp! Doable.....more work lol

Also, a price tag while not an absolute guarantee? Is still a very good indicator. What you want,........will not be found at 100, 200, 300..........bucks. : ) Not unless previously enjoyed. The rest is style, quality of finishes, style.....WEIGHT.....etc. and more style, and a decent shade. As with all else, for the most part you get what you pay for in THIS decade, and not one several ago.

Most people don't recognize quality when they see it. Many years ago, I spent quite a bit of time volunteering at my local Habitat ReStore and my speciality was lighting. We received donated lighting from big box stores, maintenance supply warehouses, local lighting shops, contractors and homeowners with a incredible variety of styles, quality and condition. Many fellow volunteers priced material without any consideration for quality or rarity but I put a premium price on certain items, knowing that I could always reduce the price if I was wrong about the desirability.

I remember an incident where another volunteer wanted to reduce my price for some lampshades. She said that no one will pay $25 for a lamp shade here. I said they were extremely high quality and the right person would be thrilled with the deal. She was upset with me but my price stood and I contributed a few hundred dollars more to Habitat with that decision. These were brand new, high end silk shades, wrapped in protective plastic, and ready to fit in any elegant house. I remembered my mother paying over a hundred bucks for a similar style and quality many years prior so I knew my price was still a great bargain. Some of the shades were creme and some were the most beautiful shade of aqua. I was not planning to change a lamp shade at my house but after looking at them for a while, I could not resist. I happily paid the $25 and haven't regretted my choice. The lamp pictured was in my grandparent's house when I was a child and the original lampshade had not aged as well as the base.

Another time, we had a reproduction fixture made by Arroyo Craftsman donated due to slight shipping damage. The fixture was priced about $800 from them and I priced it at either $200 or $250 and publicized on our webpage. Another volunteer told me I was crazy for putting such a high price on that fixture so I said call me crazy if that does not sell this week. We had tons of calls and the fixture was sold the next day.

For new lights, it was easy to price them as I could find MSRP on the web and I would typically price from 25 to 30% percent of list price or 50% of typical internet price. New old stock, vintage, MCM were more difficult but I tried to be realistic and balance the wishes of buyers looking for steals with the goal of raising funds for the organization. Some buyers would ask why this fixture wasnt the same price as the cheaper one and I would suggest that they buy the cheaper one but the response was usually "but I like this one more...my point exactly! My comment was the fixtures most easily sold were comparatively more money than the fixtures which would only be usable for a small subset of buyers.

Interesting topic, thank you. Any advice to type of lamp and bulb to use in a room that has no overhead lighting?

I love Circa lighting as well. They have never let me down. As for their prices, well, you should check out Charles Edwards in the UK. They have a pendant I dream about.

I know no room that can be lit with one lamp. At least not well lit. You could see your way around a small living room with a 50, 100, 150 3 way bulb in a table lamp wired to accept that bulb. Maybe if it were next to a chair, you could read : )

Phillips Hue lightbulbs on a schedule are terrific. Seriously cringe at my other lamps that don’t have that need to be manually turned on.

In re why your clients were turning off lights behind you, maybe it’s a generational thing or perhaps regional, but I must have heard “turn off the light when you are leaving the room” thousand of times as a child. It becomes, if you will excuse the pun, practically hard wired. If you were there on business your client is thinking, as you are leaving the room, “well, we are done here” ...click. Splurges in other areas, like holiday decorations for instance, maybe also means that we double down on habitual frugality. No, it doesn’t make any sense, at all. In my case I have a mostly LED lit home ( love the warm white bulbs) and the whole house is nicely illuminated if anyone is visiting, but if I’m alone...click.

You have caused me to consider a New Year’s resolution. :)

Un wire a bit : ) Your tree lights won't darken planet earth.Or empty your wallet.

On a more serious note darkness is depressing. The very fact that we light up at the holidays is borne of history, candles, and the fact that 12/22 is the "darkest" day in a dark month : ) I'd add that gory old cop movies always show the "perp" sitting under a naked ceiling bulb......in a dark dingy police station with bad light ? YIKES.

Very interesting topic! Thank you for the civil discourse.

I am very sorry to hear about Sophie. I am not on Facebook. Thank you for keeping us updated.

I find myself turning on lamps when I enter a room, they are on switches! And I turn them off when I leave. No idea why. But, I keep outdoor lights on, a night light in the bathroom and hall way lights on.

I work evenings and come home when everyone is in bed. I expect and demand that lights be on when I come home. I hate coming home to a dark house. I use a lot of overhead lighting, but I spend a lot of time in the kitchen...hallway....laundry room! My computer is in the kitchen. TV is in the family room.

If you are a scavenger of things, the best place to do that is around the campus of some of the more expensive universities. When these students leave to live in student apartments, they take with them the older things from many well off homes. When they graduate, they jettison them in mass numbers.

Again, not the place that professionals find items for clients, but is makes for some pretty interesting scavenging.

What search terms would you suggest I use to find local lamp and lighting stores?

I googled "lighting stores near me" and "lamp stores near me". I got commercial lighting companies, one high end lamp store, and some online sources.

I live in the affluent and cosmopolitan burbs, so there must be more around here than I am finding in my online search. I would like to take a look/see.

Buying high end , designer and expensive furnishings is outside of the parameters of my lifestyle now, so I will just continue to use and repair what I have. Lighting up my home and life is important, but it will have to come as is.

I would like to have the "volkswagon" of the lamp world....good, sturdy, simple, affordable and repairable.

I was recently in Habitat for Humanity stores and was amazed at some of the great deals and the variety that they had. The one near me is not that great, but my daughter lives in Va in the DC burbs and the one near her is extensive.

Just coming back to update you, JAN MOYER...

I began turning on our lamps every morning after this discussion. Thought it would please you to know, if I happen to forget, DH either turns them all on himself, or asks, 'Why didn't you light up the rooms this morning?" Happy Houzzing! :)

Larri

That makes me VERY happy for you both! .........or as we say ..you 'brightened" my day : ) Good for you AND your home.

It’s funny. I have various levels of light on all day and night til 1-2am. I dislike light from LEDs and have mostly incandescent. (Don’t report me!). The funny part is our electricity bill is substantially lower than our neighbors. I do use dimmers and remotes to turn on lamps and misc lighting. But this combo has worked great for a decade or more.

I am a reader. I MUST have light on around me to read. That means LAMPS, not overhead lights. I always have two “welcome lights” on tables at my front and back doors. and I leave them on ALL NIGHT LONG! I have a stash of incandescent warm white lights in my closet. SHHHHHHHHH! LEDs have a place. But NOT in my reading lamps. And don’t get me started on “bright white” anything! UGGGGH!

I am with YOU Flo and ptreckel, and don't report me either ! I have ALL incandescent, most in table lamps are actually soft pink ( lovely warm and flattering glow ), I will buy the last on this earth...) Ditto the "all night light" and the only unfortunate outcome of that is if the walks are icy, or there's major heavy snow, my neighbor calls me at five am to warn me thinking i'm up and at 'em. : ) Spare me the wrath coming, and spare me Kelvins and Lumens. too. I'll go kicking and screaming to anything else. PS......These lights have zero and I mean zero effect on my minimal electric bill. Summer AC? Yeah.......that is different, as I like A MEAT LOCKER.

Hi Jan, where do you buy your soft pink bulbs ... I used to buy them at Target online but they are no longer available. I ordered some on Amazon but they are not even close to the old ones I used to have. I would love to stock up on those !