Lighting Trends

"It looks like somebody's got a case of the Mondays." That quote from 'Office Space' should give you a good indication of how I'm feeling on this particular Monday. I must say that my spirits were brightened slightly when I read about this new conceptual piece from designers Jun Bum Park and Kim Jin Sook. 'Punch The Lighting' is a punching bag designed to calm both the user's mind AND body. While your standard punching bag is a great way to relieve stress, 'Punch The Lighting' takes it to the next level. Simply start punching away and an LED light will start radiating out of the punching bag. According to the designers, the experience will leave the user feeling cool, calm and collected, refreshing his or her mind. This definitely sounds like something I could use! Lights out until next time! - Via Tuvie and Designzen

I remember, back in college, when I used to stop in Urban Outfitters after class I'd find cool pillows, wall hangings, and of course clothing. Urban was always the perfect place to shop for dorm room decor - I absolutely loved it! In the home decor section of the store, there was always a pile of those brightly colored paper lanterns that you hang from your ceiling. Despite their flimsy nature, paper lanterns are a relatively inexpensive and stylish way to decorate your college living space!

So, I'm older now and I'm starting to think about ways to decorate my apartment instead of a dorm. Adding a cool lamp or two is a pretty simple way to shake things up. I've been living in the same apartment for about 4 years now and it's definitely time for a change! While those Urban Outfitters paper lanterns are a bit on the 'cheap & tacky' side for me, I've found some other paper lanterns that are just a bit more modern and sophisticated. Here are some of my favorites. Enjoy and lights out until next time!

From Top To Bottom:

Spheres Table Lamp by Adesso
Suki Floor Lantern by Adesso
Noguchi Table Lamp Model 2N by Isamu Noguchi
Lumalight 48 Model Floor Lamp by Roland Simmons
Bruno Munari Falkland 53 Pendant Lamp by Danese Milano

I've always been a fan of modern designer, Karim Rashid, and for good reason! He's left his mark on many famous brands including Alessi, Offi, Giorgio Armani & Prada, Mikasa, Dirt Devil and many others. The Egyptian-born designer has designed everything from furniture to fashion and everything in between.

Now Rashid lends his talents to help promote a new variety of Rose Champagne from world famous champagne house, Veuve Clicquot. Globalight - Rashid's latest creation - combines his signature asymmetrical design aesthetic with the soft glow of pink LED lights and is featured in a luxurious ad campaign promoting the champagne. Bathed in this soft pink light, the rosy hue of the champagne could not look more sensual and delicious.

Part isotherm bottle carrier, part lamp, this totally stylish, limited edition 'wine basket' is the ultimate bar accessory! Representing Rashids's modern reinterpretation of a traditional French Chandelier, Globalight illuminates the bottle while keeping it cool for up to four hours!

Available to order starting in October on Eclicquot's website, this baby will set you back about $1,500. Just a side note, Globalight is the second collaboration between Rashid and the eponymous champagne house. The Clicquot Loveseat consists of two opposite facing chairs, joined in the center by an ice bucket. Form meets function in an innovative way, with this beautiful creation, also in a soft pink. Beautiful! Lights out until next time! -Via NotCot

Large Blossom Chandelier: (seen below)
Dimensions: 65" x 35.5"
Height: 57.5"
Weight: 37 lbs.

While perusing Like Cool today, I found a post about a nifty new twist on the energy saving light. The Coin Lamp comes to us, courtesy of British designer Jethro Macey and while it's not yet available to the public, it's already creating quite a stir in the blogosphere!

The concept is pretty simple - add coinage and the lamp turns on for a predetermined amount of time, eventually shutting off by itself. No longer do you have to worry about leaving the light on all night! Simply pop in some coins, do your thing, then go to bed! Pretty cool! According to Macey's website, the "Coin Lamp is the first product in a range based on the concept of values and reward, it subtly heightens awareness of consumption through design."

While details on the availability, price point AND the 'cost' to light up are scarce at this point, the lamp should be on the market soon, according to the designer's website. You can sign up for updates online.

In the meantime, check out the rest of Jethro Macey's site for other cool design pieces including the sweet Dot Shade made out of birch wood! Beautiful! This handcrafted, laser-etched shade's random pattern is formed during construction when many of the little dots fall out. This beautiful fixture will set you back about $430 and is available on the designer's website. Lights out until next time!

Lighting can often times affect ones mood. IF that is the case, then I can’t think of anything more relaxing than a room full of these swaying grass LED floor lights. These lights shine in soothing white and sky blue and are battery powered, so there are no cumbersome cords to deal with. The lights sway gently and are almost hypnotic. All it takes is the simple act of walking past lights to coax them into a dance that lights up the room.

These lights are also remarkably cheap. Retailing at only around $20, they make excellent accents to either a college dorm room or the most immaculately decorated home. I personally would love to fill up a room like a field of tall grass and watch these lights work their magic. Since they are cordless they would also be great for patio parties and BBQ’s. Lights out until next time!

Happy Thursday folks! While looking at the 'Just Cool Design' blog, I found these REALLY sweet Alien floor lamps by German designer Constantin Wortmann, designing for Büro für Form. 'Just Cool Design' is one of my new 'Bright Spots,' or cool sites and blogs that I love. Written & maintained by artist, Wendy Presseisen 'Just Cool Design' features posts about anything and everything related to art, architecture and home decor. There's even a place for you to buy original artwork by Wendy! Check it out!

Anyway, back to the alien invasion! These eerie-looking free form lamps come in both a big and a small size and are available as a pendant light, table and floor lamps and even as an outdoor light! I love the shape! They kind of remind me of Casper or Slimer from 'Ghostbusters.' Unfortunately, these lamps aren't available in the U.S. as of yet but check out the Büro für Form website for more detailed distribution information.

With the way our economy is looking these days, it's no wonder that people are constantly seeking new ways to save money. There's no doubt that winter is fast approaching and that means high oil & gas bills. Cutting back on electricity use during the colder months is one way to counterbalance the higher gas bill. One way to do this, as I've discussed in previous posts, is to use LEDs and CFLs instead of incandescent light bulbs. While both types of bulbs cost more initially, they wind up saving you money in the long run.

Now, speaking of a long term investment, imagine buying a lamp that you KNOW will out last you, your children, grand children and probably your great grand children! Incomprehensible, right? Well, one designer thinks he's created a floor lamp that will last for over 200 years! Gravia is a conceptual LED lamp lit by gravity and human power.

As originally reported by Sawf News, Gravia won second place in the 2008 Greener Gadgets Design Competition. Designed by Virginia Tech student, Clay Moulton, Gravia's design is seemingly simple from the outside but is really anything but! Standing a little over 4 feet tall, Gravia is a cordless, noiseless technological masterpiece! With a little help from the owner, Gravia's hourglass-like mechanism powers a rotor-like device which in turn powers 10 high-output LEDs. According to Moulton, Gravia's light output is between 600 and 800 lumens (about equal to a 40 watt incandescent bulb over a period four hours).

According to Moulton's projections, with 8 hours of use 365 days a year, the lamp will last for more than 200 years. Amazing! Lights out until next time!

Photo Credits - Clay Moulton

Growing up in a town with a few Frank Lloyd Wright homes & other structures, I guess I've always had an appreciation for architecture. My grade school had an annual architectural walking tour towards the end of the school year, where students and teachers are led around town by experienced guides, learning about the many historic homes there. I was always amazed at how much history was around me. I learned something new every year! It's so easy to take that sort of stuff for granted. One blog that has a tremendous amount of respect for all forms of design, in particular, architecture, is Dezeen. One of my new favorite blogs, Dezeen features the perfect blend of architecture and decor-related posts.

During a recent read I found this really cool eco-friendly light lamp and just had to share it with you guys! It's called the 'Paper Pulp Lamp' and it was designed by new British genius, David Gardener. What's new and unique about this lamp is that the shade and base are made of paper pulp, doubling for the lamp's packaging! How cool! Once purchased, the bulb, plug, wire and socket are removed from the packaging and instead of being discarded, the packaging turns into the shade AND the base!

Presenting his design at the New Designers convention in London in July, Gardener explained: "The Packaging lamp was first inspired from my observations of how much packaging material is wasted from every new product bought. The idea is to eliminate this waste material by including it all in the final product."

It's 'no waste' design is both innovative and aesthetically pleasing. Add to that, the lamp uses compact fluorescent bulbs so it's totally eco-friendly! For those interested in purchasing this lamp, Gardener is currently sourcing pulp manufacturers to facilitate a short run of the product, though it would most likely only be available in the UK. So cool! Put on your 'green tinted glasses' folks, eco-friendly lighting is the wave of the future! Lights out until next time!

This time last year I had decided that I wanted to be out of my current apartment, living somewhere closer to the city. Having been living in this place for the past four years, I thought it was time for a change. While the whole moving process itself can be very stressful, getting settled in and decorating a brand new space can be fun and therapeutic.

Of course, as luck would have it, things didn't go my way and my roommates and I signed a new year-long lease for next September. I have nothing against my current apartment, I was just really looking forward to a change. I've shifted my focus from apartment-hunting to apartment-decorating and found it surprisingly therapeutic. While I may not be living in a new space, I can at least make this place feel new by sprucing it up and adding some new accent pieces.

First things first, new lamps. While surfing around Apartment Therapy, one of my favorite home decor websites, I found this great line of table lamps, floor lamps and pendant lights by California-based Seascape Lamps. Seascape's lighting collections range from the super modern to the more retro-traditional styles. Seascape lamps pride themselves on the unique and interesting slew of materials used to make their lampshades, including wood veneers, acrylics, linens, mica, woven bamboos, woven grasses and dupioni silk. My favorite pieces are designed by neckwear designer Thomas Paul, who has designed for DKNY, Calvin Klein and Bill Blass. Thomas brings his artistry as well as his knack for patterns and colors to a line of contemporary table and floor lamps and pendant light fixtures, exclusively for Seascape Lamps.

The great thing about these lamps is how versatile they are! They are perfect for kitchen, dining room, living room or bedroom. Coordinating colored bases for both table and floor lamps add that extra bit of versatility, allowing you to match perfectly with your rooms paint color. Having too many options is better than having too few options, right? In addition to the Thomas Paul collection, Seascape offers a variety of fun and more traditional lamp styles sure to suit anyone's personal style. Lights out until next time!