Lighting your dining table

The right lighting can make a room sing, but often our rooms are  off key. When you have a house of a certain age (30 years for me) there comes a time when you know you have  to update your look. When I started to change the lighting in my home, I began with the two over my tables because they would have the most impact.

Kitchen table 

When you're buying lighting to hang over a table you should consider these  factors:

 Height of ceiling

A taller ceiling  often requires  larger fixtures; many new home builds in my area now have 9 foot ceilings.

Size and shape of table

Your fixture should complement not overpower your table.  You can also have lighting fixtures that are too small for a table.  I am particular about  what shape fixture I mount over a round table; I like to repeat the shape with a circular format, but that's just me.

Height of homeowners

It is a fact that tall homeowners have a greater chance of continually bumping into lights hung too low over a table when they are setting or removing dishes.  Some people are so tall your would never mount pendants high enough!

Height above table

The specifics of how high to hang your fixture can be confusing because you will find a range of suggestions depending on which sites you consult.  Don't let that deter you.  My adage is "Common sense prevails".

 I tend to think in terms of a range while taking other factors into account including: personal preference, the height of the homeowners, fixture size, style of fixture, ceiling height, task to be illuminated etc.  Read on for examples.

Light Planning and Styling Guide 

The general recommendations for  hanging a fixture over a table is 28 - 32 inches above the table if you have an eight foot ceiling.  This graphic from wegotlites recommends 30 inches from the table for an 8 foot ceiling.   I placed my kitchen table pendant  at 32 inches from the table top so I wouldn't continually bump it when working. It works most times, but when I reach in too far I still bump it.

Art by Mike Gough 

My dining room pendant is 34 inches from the table.   Being able to view my art collection to best advantage in very important to me, so  I moved the  dining room pendant up an additional two inches from the hanging height in the kitchen  so visitors can  view the art over the buffet without disruption while sitting in the living room.  You may not find this consideration in any lighting guide!

Another set of guidelines recommend measuring  from the floor  to the bottom of the shade and suggest 60 - 66 inches as reasonable.  Most tables are 30 inches high.  That would put the height from the floor  to my kitchen  shade at 62 inches, and my dining shade at 64 inches, both are within this guideline.

If you have ceilings higher than eight feet, go up 3 inches for each additional foot above eight feet.

 Size of fixture

 For most applications the diameter of your light fixture should be at least 1/2 the width of your table or even up to 2/3 the width of your table.   My kitchen fixture is exactly one half the width of the table at 18 inches in diameter.  That's the proportion I like.  I could have gone with a diameter of up to 24 in. without it looking too large.  My dining fixture is only 16 inches  in diameter, but looks larger.

Sizing based on room dimensions

Light Planning and Styling Guide 

There is another guideline for determining the size of your fixture. Add the length and width of your room together ( eg., 11 feet +14 feet ) and convert the sum to inches (25in.) and that should be the diameter of your  fixture.

 Of course that is not a hard and fast rule, but it will provide a light fixture that is a focal point for the room.  This formula works better for a statement fixture  in an entrance or stairway.  You can see how it could get out of control in a dining room.  Eg. 15 feet + 20 feet would give a fixture diameter  of 35 in.  That's the width of most dining tables. 

Function of fixtures

The illumination given off by drum shades  is soft and calming,  but  bright enough to provide lighting for an entire room.  When a large drum pendant is hung over a table it not only anchors the vignette, but if placed on a dimmer the fixture can provide brighter light for any tasks done at the table and softer light while dining. While I don't have anything against chandeliers, I don't have any in my own home.I'm definitely into clean lines and a very sparse contemporary feel.

I am planning another post about lighting selection for various rooms as I get ready to replace the fixtures in my summer house.   Stay tuned.  

What variables do you consider when hanging a light over a dining table?

Adding greenery to contemporary decor

After a dreary northern winter I begin to long for a spot of green in my decor.   I've even given my blog a new green look.

 Last spring I wrote about my lucky bamboo,  my default plant that resulted from an aborted shamrock search.  Poles apart, I know!  Choice is often limited when you live on an island; you can convince yourself it's what you wanted all along.

 I've been enjoying my bamboo and it seems to love my house.

 I went to look for one for a friend for Christmas.  None to be had, but I could find a shamrock.  Go figure.

What a difference a year makes. 

There's nothing like a plant or a grouping of flowering branches to bring a space to life.  Even the most neutral colour schemes sing when there's a little green around.

Pinterest  

Can you have too many plants?  Yes, in my opinion.  You don't want a jungle. One or two plants  get noticed and more than that becomes a bit of a mess.  You may disagree.  

Just Blush!

 The Oscars are always a spectacle, sometimes inviting, sometimes confusing  or repellant depending on your life view.   I have my issues with them, but that's not what this post is about.

In addition to rooting for my favourite actors and movies, Oscar night is a great opportunity to see how fashion trends (always connected to decorating trends) play out on the red carpet.  The best and worst dressed are a matter of opinion.  This is obvious when you read several sites and compare the observations with your own.

Blush pink and its variants was the stand out colour for me.  Even some of the gowns described as white had subtle pink undertones. 

Blush Pink appeared in late 2014 as a trend in fashion and decor  and is continuing into 2015 especially in the European market.  It is a delicate hue that looks especially good with soft whites and/or pearly grays.

This style board gives a good representation of how the trend plays out in furniture and accessories. 

 And in fashion ...

from the merest hint of blush

 Kerri Washington

 Viola Davis 

Karolina Kurkova

Jennifer Aniston 

 Oprah

Zoe Saldana 

Jennifer Lopez

to its darker depths

Gwyneth Paltrow

and more vibrant applications. 

The pinks have it.  

Could you live with a little pink in your life?

5 decorating solutions for one traditional mantle

Mantles can bring out your inner decorator or cause you frustration.  I hope at the end of this post your inner decorator will be leaping.  If you don't have a mantle, but have a buffet, console table or even a wide window ledge all the principles/design tips  still apply.  for additional information about  decorating above a fireplace check here.

Come along to a traditional home that is getting a foyer facelift.

Fireplaces and mantles are usually a focal point in a space.  Often there are other architectural details that ensure it is a dominant feature.  In this case, there are two archways on either side of  the fireplace, one into  the living room and the other into the dining room.  While the fixtures in the home are traditional, the homeowners have mixed in contemporary furniture while still honouring the original feel of the house.

Original photo from homeowner

Initial observations:

The mirror:

• reflects the chandelier adding interest 
• has simple traditional styling  that relates well to the  the other architectural features
• will  reflect what is put in front of it adding  visual depth
• frame has same tones as floor only darker
• fits the width of mantle, but seems to overpower it (less so when you are in the space)
• is heavy and mounted on original plaster walls, it stays 

Thanks to the program Olioboard, I can import the original photo from the homeowner and layer options on top of it. That's designer's dream when presenting ideas to a client.

With the central position of  the fireplace between two archways, a symmetrical design would  be a fitting line of design. l

Solution One:

 Emphasize a vertical layout using art to bring the eye up.

Including art work with a white matt  connects with the mantle colour (try to match the white matt with mantle, yes, this one is a tad too bright). You can play with the style of art work.  Sometimes adding a modern piece is a way to combine styles. 

Thoughts:

I like the simple calla better  because  the lines are vertical and the simplicity of composition and colour scheme is calming and works better with whatever objects you choose to put beside it.  I like rounded shapes next to verticals or if not rounded, something with soft, irregular  edges.  My choice would be the vases  rather than the topiaries because I like a lighter, softer look.

Here's the same idea with a more traditional painting without any white.  The look is dark and a little overpowering and with no overlapping it looks a tad to boring.  All of this can be adjusted of course.  Which  painting works best? 

Solution Two 

Bring your eye in from the sides of the mirror by creating two strong verticals. 

This is the opposite of the first solution but you are still using verticals to direct the  eye up. Having the flowers in a dark/clear frame connects with the darks in the fireplace, and also with the white in the mantle.  The vases are contemporary as is the sculptural piece but they all "play nicely together".


Solution Three 

Go neutral contemporary and layer symmetrically.

This arrangement still brings your eye in from the sides of the mirror and emphasizes the vertical, but it is an overall softer look.


Solution 4

Pick up the  colours in the fireplace and layer symmetrically with a mix of traditional and contemporary.

Solution 5

Use battery operated console lamps and soften  the arrangement in the centre.

Just for fun...

the girls in the house would pick this one!

and I am  more comfortable with asymmetrical designs.

There are so many options  and each has its own reasoning.  In the end it all boils down to personal taste. Which would you choose if you were the homeowner? 

Re-working the egg

I couldn't resist carrying on the egg theme from my last post.    How about some of these cosy re-workings of the basic egg shape for furniture with a difference ?

Houzzz

 It's a sofa with egg shaped pillows!  Definitely for the younger crowd.

 source

Do I ever have a spot for this bed!  It could get a little cool though on the edge of the Atlantic in May. I think a room with one glass wall would be a better bet.  New room addition to the summer house maybe?

 source

You don't have to stretch the imagination much for this bed design. The egg shape  in open cutwork is very pleasing as are the curved legs of the tables.

 source

This is about as functional as you can get for patio furniture and the lines will fit in with any landscape .

source

 If you want a statement piece for you space, look no further.   How could you not like this colourful sofa?  Might have to move a few pillows to the floor.

 source

Barbara Barry's egg coffee table is a classic. 

source

As is this beautiful black tub perched on the edge of a slab of marble.  

If you chose one for you home which would it be?

From snow to eggs

 We are hunkered down for a winter storm with 40 cm. of snow predicted.  Everything is closed so there are no schedules to keep. It's the kind of day where I have lots of time to let my mind wander where it may.  That's a dangerous thing when you can go from one thought to a hundred in a minute.  So let's see how I got from snow to this post.

White, cold, wishing for spring,  Easter, eggs, decorating eggs, symbolism of eggs, egg imagery through history, eggs in art, design trend for 2015 (read it on Houzz this week),  Las Vegas Market trends Winter 2015, should write a new blog post because I have time today, anyone else predicting eggs are hot, search Pinterest.  Yep!  That's how my head works.

What is a trend?

Decor trends  are predictions based on patterns recognized from multiple viewings of similar material.  Anyone can make trend predictions if they have enough information and time to look for patterns.

 Here are some of the patterns I'm seeing on Olioboard, Pinterest and design blogs that indicate that eggs and egg shapes or oval shapes are appearing in textiles, lighting and home accents.

Sometimes  eggs are represented literally and recognizable as what they are.  You will often see nests accompanying the eggs as in the pillow and art works above.  Sometimes the egg shapes are abstracted and used in repetition to create patterns.  These are the ones I find most pleasing.  

Is it just me or do you find anything egg shaped or hinting of it pleasing/soothing to the eye? This characteristic makes it a perfect shape to choose when you want a lighting fixture to just sit there and hold a place without being  too dominant in the decor.  Sometimes this is not what you want!  For excitement do not choose  of the lights above (except the red one).

Jeff Koons, Cracked Egg- Blue

Egg shapes have always been a favourite of artists through the centuries.  Not only is it a pleasing shape, but the symbolism of promise of things to come, fertility, and creation  makes eggs a multifaceted starting point for many artistic explorations.

Paul Lichetenhan - Nest 

This work created by Paul Lichtenhan couldn't be more different than Koon's  reflective, slick and very large cracked egg above.  In this piece the aged patina of the recycled metals stand in striking contrast to the delicate ceramic eggs. 

Andy Goldsworthy 

 Goldsworthy, an environmental artist, makes a different statement with his large, stone egg defying our usual interpretation of this delicate, fragile shape. 

Ron Layport

Finally Ron Layport creates  intricate, egg shaped carvings from wood.  In all of the presented  works the material used to create them is as important as the subject matter.  Each has its own beauty. 

Eggs, simple or complicated, realistic or abstracted, may appear in some form in your decor this year. Perhaps you are ahead of the game!  Have you noticed egg motifs in your online viewing or shopping experiences?

What every neutral colour scheme needs

I love serendipitous events that add to my thoughts on an interior decorating topic.  I recently experienced this  as I was preparing to write about neutral colour schemes.  Just like a gift  La Dolce Vita, one of my favourite blogs, appeared  in my inbox with the perfect visuals to support  several of the points I wanted to make.  Paloma always finds the best spaces to present to readers! Check out her blog, you won't be sorry.

 Making a neutral scheme work requires skill.  Once you  remove colour from the equation you have to make the most of the  other elements of design especially: pattern, texture, value/contrast and form.  Of course the principles of design remain in tact. Every successful space  has  good balance, harmony, emphasis, scale/proportion and rhythm.

Sounds great, but what does that look like in a space?

Check out all takes of this  living room  by Bill Ingram & William McLure of Bill Ingram Architect.

 Quiz time:  Jot down what  you think makes  the space  work.  If you are used to colour being your main decor element you might need to shift gears for a moment to see the beauty in neutral schemes.

Contrast

The first element that jumps out at me is contrast.  You cannot have a successful room without good contrast, even when you have lots of colour.   It's the same way in art.   I wrote about this  topic in depth here.  You get contrast by manipulating your values from light to dark.  This space goes from black to white and has every conceivable value in between.

Texture

This space also gets an A+ for texture.  Not everyone can have the stone work evident in this space but you might have a stone  or brick fireplace   Check out the wood stacked in the open hearth, the tree stump table and the rough wood planters.   A variety of textiles are used from the subtly textured obviously wool carpet to the white smooth fabric on the drapery and chair.  The knit pillows are perfect by the stone,  nothing like the garter stitch for obvious texture. But the coffee table is the show stopper with its reflective high gloss.  Don't miss the folded fur throw on the chair.   There is also subtle texture on the frame of the gold chair, the doors of the armoire and the statue.

Pattern

Geometric motifs predominate with diamonds, stripes  and circles repeated around the room.

Form

This can be a hard one if you like everything matched in furniture style.  I think use of a variety of forms make this space.

My own element that every space needs -- organic elements 

Imagine this space without the two fig trees.  I rest my case.  You need organic references in every space and this one has it in spades.

Only one thing

If I could change one thing about this space it would be the scale of the artwork between the windows.  Love the art work, but it needs a little breathing space around the edges.  Too much competition with the grids in the window. Sorry, it's the artist in me.  On the other hand I love the large scale fig trees and they might account for the scale of the art!

True, this space might not be your cup of tea, but it is interesting; it invites the eye to move around and to touch the various elements in the space.

Now it's your turn...
What are your thoughts on this space?  Could you live here?