does this thing turn on?

It wasn't a spring break project per se, but a project that Alex and I had been thinking about for a while. The sconces over our mantle were horribly outdated, slightly tacky (even with the fancy black shades, haha) and pretty cheap [looking]. Take a look:

They weren't so offensive when viewed from across the room, but up close even the faceted bulb couldn't hide their poor quality. After searching for a few weeks, I finally settled on the style below, which I found at Restoration Hardware. I liked the simple look of the sconces, but I was really annoyed that they charged me $17 for shipping. And I'm clearly not over it yet since I'm writing about it.

They arrived last week while Alex was away, so installing them was high on his to-do list when he was home for three days this week. Here's a look at the process (which actually went a lot smoother and quicker than I had anticipated): 

This is what Alex found when he removed the old lights. I was kind of scared. I don't know much--and by much, I mean anything--about wires and electricity, so it seemed complicated to me.

Alex wasn't worried. Once upon a time he removed the ceiling fixture in Catcher's bedroom in our house in Charlotte and replaced it with his great-grandmother's antique chandelier. This was simple, he assured me.

Old lights off: check. Time to install the new ones.

Tillie looks on with anticipation/doubt. I think she's sizing up the new look of the mantle versus the old. Check out the before and after:

Better? Here's another look, close up:

Once the new lights were installed, however, we ran into a little snafu--there's no on/off switch. I was in the kitchen making lunch for Tillie when Alex called out to me, "Does this thing turn on?" I thought it was a silly question considering a) it's a light and b) he was the one standing there looking at it and not me, but then I thought about the $17 shipping charge and got angry all over again. "It better turn on," I replied, "if they're charging me $17 shipping." I don't know what the $17 shipping has to do with the lights functioning or not, but clearly it's a sore spot with me.

To answer the question, yes, the lights turn on. However, "turning on" means screwing the lightbulb in until the light flickers and then stabilizes, and "turning off" means grabbing an oven mit--or some other means of protecting your fingers from the burning bulb--until the light flickers out. Remember: righty tighty, lefty loosey.

idea bulb

Look what I found on etsy. Cute, right? I generally don't have the patience to go sloshing around the site looking for things I don't need--or things I want but don't have the room for until the house sells--but tonight I was playing around and happened up this little guy. Here's his brother:

This light in the wooden variation led me to search for more wood until I happened upon this cheeky little thing:

Quick...can you name the state? If you answered "yes" to the previous, can you name the city represented by the heart? You can even customize where you'd like to place you're heart (how cute!). If only I could think of someone who's heart belongs to this state...

Or maybe this one...

Now that I've started, I could keep going all night with the etsy, but I promised Alex we would watch Survivor from last night. Redemption Island, here we come...

found object

I've had this lamp since college. It's probably the only thing left that I own from my college days--except a few books from my history classes--and I can still remember the day I went to Lowe's (that's right!) and picked it out with my stepfather on the eve of moving into my first off-campus apartment. Fast forward 15-ish years, and here sits the lamp. The lamp that survived three years of college, six years and six different apartments in New York City, a long (very long) U-Haul ride to Charlotte, a year in a box, two years sitting on the floor in our "guest" quarters and two years in Catcher's room. This lamp has seen a lot, so I figured what object was better prepared to come in and light up our living room in a time of crisis. Okay, so it's not really a crisis, but I did decide it was better to use something I already had than go out and spend money on something I don't really need or want right now (see Alex, I can be frugal!). 

in the dark

Bourgie table lamp, YLighting

Today was day #3 of New Year's vacation for the kids (i.e. the third day in a row that I was left alone with the kids...all day) so I let down my guard a little bit and let Catcher throw his mini football around the living room while I was watching real football on Alex's big TV. Tonight I have a broken table lamp.

It's not that I even care about the lamp so much; I'm just bothered by the fact that our living room is pretty (which means very) dark, and we need all the lighting we can get to make this house more appealing to buyers, as it were. Thus, I'm given the task of finding a replacement lamp that serves its purpose here but will also translate to the new house, whatever that may be. My thoughts are kind of all over the place on this one, making me think I'm putting way too much thought into a simple table lamp. But is it that simple? Do I go mid-century in the hopes that we'll find an amazing redo and the lamp will fit right in? Do I go West Elm to save a few bucks (in that case, I might as well go Ikea and not be afraid to toss the thing once we find a new home). Do I choose lighting efficiency over style? Who knew table lamps could be so expensive, by the way?

Isis table lamp, YLighting

Fluted-glass table lamp, West Elm

Kulla table lamp, Ikea

Cooled globes table lamp,  Anthropologie

hanging inspiration

Ingo Maurer's Zettel'z 5 Chandelier

Generally speaking I'm not a romantic, but there's something about the love letters suspended from German artist Ingo Maurer's Zettel'z chandelier that speaks to me. Like discovering a piece of artwork you're drawn to, sometimes you just don't have a reason for why you find something intriguing. I will say, though, that the fact that the chandelier comes with blank pages that allow you to participate in its design makes it even cooler. If I had an unlimited budget and a space to hang it, the Zettel'z would be mine.

Images from YLighting

light up my life

When we were visiting Sleepy Poet last Sunday, I was fascinated by the myriad of light fixtures hanging from the industrial ceiling. Lighting is one of those crazy design elements that is at once simple yet complicated. On the most basic level, the purpose of a fixture is to bring light to a room, but it's so much more than that. The right light can serve as a room's focal point and completely define a space. I've changed every light fixture in our house (some more than once) and wish there were more rooms to attack with my lighting prowess.

The quatrafoils add a touch of "churchiness" to this piece. I would love too see it hanging in the entryway of a modern home; totally unexpected.

A simple way to add a touch of elegance to an otherwise blase chandelier is to coat it in shiny black spray paint--instant drama.

I have a thing about twigs and antlers--what can I say?

It must be my inner geek talking because I love this fixture that reminds me of Julius Caesar and my days studying Roman history. I totally see this in a wood-panelled library (not 70s wood-panelled).

I love this oversized chandelier that resembles a giant jellyfish. With a grandma Tiffany-inspired shade that cascades into layers of capiz shells gone awry, I've never seen anything so gaudy yet inspiring.