Giving the Simple Gift of Light #9 You might think that crafting lighting designs for hundreds of homes would get boring after a few years. How many ways can you light a kitchen before it all starts to blend together? As it turns out, thankfully, the answer is “to infinity, and beyond!” Creativity is tough […]
I believe light is a gift that can help us live better lives. A powerful combination of human history, personal experience, and deepening research backs me up: light can help us sleep better, wake up easier, heal faster, feel happier, suffer less pain, reduce the symptoms of aging…and the list goes on. My teenage sons […]
The Right Light for Kitchen Counters (Read the companion story on Houzz.com) After the paint is dry and the counters are set in place, the kitchen becomes the most difficult place in the house to change. Getting lighting on the countertops has to be done right the first time, and here are a few tips […]
My latest Houzz article shares four ways to brighten up these long, dark nights at home. I forgot to add that wearing an LED headlamp might also help, but anyone who lives with you will get very annoyed. On second thought, stick with the four options in the article. Click on the image below, and […]
It is winter, between Christmas and New Year’s, and a perfect time to write about lighting and darkness. All around town, otherwise nondescript homes are festooned with thousands of tiny lights. Twinkle lights on downtown trees add glow to the sidewalks and storefronts, and in many living rooms are even more trees and more […]
I am delighted that Houzz.com continues to publish my stories in their news feed and newsletters. This week I pulled together information from several of my languageoflight.blog posts and a handful of images from the vast photo library on Houzz to simplify chandelier/dining room pendant purchasing. I made use of common wisdom and a few […]
Another one just came across my desk: a kitchen where the plans call for lighting placed precisely in the wrong place. Chopping with large knives and dealing with hot pans is no place for poor lighting and obscuring shadows, and this is just one reason kitchens have the most at stake when it comes to […]
T Brand, the paid content arm of the New York Times, recently launched a post on cutting-edge lighting in cars. Paid for by Audi, the relatively short post has fabulous graphics and quotes from experts across the country on how light affects us. About half-way through the article there is a quote from an architectural […]
Today I send a big THANK YOU to the fabulous editorial team at Fine Homebuilding for shaping my article for their readers. It was a fun experience for me and I am delighted with the final product! Read it online. […]
“Sacrifice for beauty,” someone once said. Not in my house. Lighting is not immune to questionable fashion trends, and we’re in the middle of one right now that makes many dining experiences less enjoyable. “Transitional” design has given birth to the open-structure chandelier, the philosophical equivalent of an umbrella without its fabric cover. You and […]
Here’s a fun challenge to do when you should be washing dishes, mowing the lawn, or cleaning your teeth: Go shopping online for wall sconces and see how many of the product photos have the light turned on. Or you can skip the search and trust me. There are not very many. Most manufacturers and […]