Mix Your Lamp Styles for Major Interest

Poor, dear, neglected lamps. By the time we get to them in the design process, our brains are fried and our budget is exhausted. So we settle for “Any old lamp will do.” Although I’m always saying that lamps are the jewelry of a room, I think some people think of them only as earrings and always select a pair.

Instead, think of lamps as you would a magnificent jumble of necklaces or bracelets — designed to be worn with great panache, all at the same time.

It’s not that there’s anything inherently wrong with matching all the lamps in a room. But if any other approach makes you twitch, you should probably stop reading right now.


If you want to mix your lamps in the safest possible way, replicate this design, in which the chandelier, kitchen pendants and table lamp are different but unified by their similar color and finish.


Here’s another safe approach: a mix of black lampshades set atop different styles of bases. It’s hard to go wrong with this method!


But if you want to bring imagination, an eclectic ambience — even a little glee — to your rooms, take a more adventurous approach. This starkly contemporary black metal floor lamp is enticingly paired with an exotic table lamp in a brass finish. They remind me in the most wonderfully oblique way of R2-D2 and C-3PO. (And yes, you may mix your metals as well as your lamps. In fact, please do.)


Here a modern arc floor lamp in a smoky finish is paired with a white table lamp, admirably mirroring the black and white theme of the room. A matching table lamp would have been just fine. But really, where would the fun have been in that?


The design adage that a classic blue and white lamp goes with everything is masterfully demonstrated in this loft. The rusticated brick and beams, and the eclectic mix of accessories, are complemented by the choice mix of floor and table lamps.


Nothing says you can’t use a pair of lamps — like these colorful floor lamps — with a different-style stand-alone lamp. It’s the best of both worlds.


Paired lamps would have been absolutely pedantic in this room filled with pattern and personality. Take note: One lamp has a colored base and a white shade, while the second sports a white base and a colored shade. The third lamp, although basic brass, is placed between two fabulously colorful chairs. Together all three help explain the success of this room.


Although the metal finishes are essentially the same on these two lamps, and both are curvilinear, they still read as a wonderful mix. That feeling is enhanced by the completely different shades: one large, tall and fabric; the other small, portly and metal.


I love this imaginative mix of floor lamps. Each lamp speaks its own language, but used together, they bring warmth and interest to the room.


The scale of these two lamps entrances me — one almost impossibly big, and the other so small and svelte. But the purple shade of the giant lamp calls across the room to the upholstery on the Louis-style chairs, while the color of the diminutive lamp mirrors the chair frames. Perfectly done. Plus, nobody could ever claim this room lacks pizzazz.


Once again, verve and imagination reign. The orange architect’s lamp juxtaposed against the table lamp (whose base resembles a standard poodle) makes a remarkable statement. Opposites do indeed attract.


I love to see different lamps used on matching nightstands. It’s just another approach to his-and-hers.


Lest you think I don’t practice what I preach, our diminutive living room sports five — yes, five — different lamps, although this photo shows only three. One is an early-20th-century santo that we made into a lamp. One is a you-can-never-get-it-wrong blue and white classic. And one is a floor lamp with an animal-print shade.

I hope you’re inspired to mix and match your own lamps!

More: How to Choose a Lampshade

URL: Mix Your Lamp Styles for Major Interest http://www.decor-ideas.org/cases-view-id-23757.html