THE SWEETHEART
THE VETERANFinally, like most things in home d�cor, less is more. Outdoor lighting should call attention to the beautiful and unique features of your home. It should not be intrusive. Proper outdoor lighting calls attention to various parts of your home�s exterior, not the entire surface area. Over illumination is never attractive indoor or outdoor.Mix a flea market Colander-Wit an old-fashioned "squirrel cage" bulb (vintage colander; 30-watt tungsten-filament reproduction, $13, houseofantiquehardware.com).In high-traffic locations, install a cage around your bulb (Calypso Basics 3-qt. colander, $20, restonIloyd.com; Cooper Wiring bulb cage, $8.95, centerhardware.com).PHOTOGRAPH BY JEFFERY CROSSSo, whether you are looking for indoor or outdoor lighting, contemporary or old style traditional, you will find many options to choose from. From different colors to different sizes and styles, there are many. You can find them online or in home improvement stores. And, when you do make the changes, you will notice that your home looks a little different. It may be subtle changes that make you see your home in a different light.Another common mistake in selecting outdoor lights is in finding the proper lighting direction, or limiting �light pollution�. Outdoor lights should not obstruct one�s vision or interfere with one being able to see the entire landscape of a yard or area clearly. On a similar note, the lights should not shine directly into the road or a neighboring yard either. To avoid such issues, look for spotlights with glare guards.To find styles and ideas about your lighting fixtures, try checking into them at your local home improvement store. They often have many, many options and can special order things that they do not regularly carry. Or, you may wish to check out the online retailers that offer even more options for all lighting needs. You will find them by doing a simple web search for lighting fixtures using your favorite search engine on the internet. You�ll find many, many different websites to look into.Go disco with bright colors and a cut-glass globe (Calypso Basics 3-qt. colander; 45-watt crystal-cut halogen bulb, $6.95, buylighting.com).Planning to remodel a room? Consider light fixtures as one element to change. For instance, bathroom lighting fixtures can be changed from a bulb in a ceiling light fixture to lights sockets over the vanity and recess lighting throughout the room. The effect can be stunning. And all from just changing the bathroom light fixtures. You may wish to change the lighting in your home from dull, standard light to contemporary lighting fixtures thus changing the theme and style of the room instantly.First and foremost, it�s important to give a considerable amount of thought to the placement of your outdoor lights. Just as you would not place several lighting fixtures like table lamps or wall sconces in a single area of your living room, you don�t want to place exterior fixtures too close together either. This is a common problem when integrating pathlights into your outdoor lighting solution. Too many pathlights, too close together can make your walkway look more like the runway at an airport. Instead of placing the lights directly opposite one another on either end, try a staggered approach. The light will flow less harshly.FOR YOU HARD-CORE DIY TYPES (and you know who you are), we've come up with a few starter ideas, confident that you'll take this concept and run with it. For those of us who aren't quite at the rewiring-a-lamp-ourselves stage? Buy a hanging lamp kit, drill a hole through the colander--just don't use an everyday plastic one--and merge the two. And if changing a lightbulb pushes the envelope of your technical capabilities, never fear: The website Posh Living sells a kitchen colander pendant lamp ($150; poshliving.com) that's read to be installed by your friendly neighborhood handyperson.THE LIFE OF THE PARTY
PHOTOGRAPH BY JEFFERY CROSS
Author: Miranda Jones
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