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The Safety Zone

The Simple Gift of Light Series #11 PPE, or Personal Protection Equipment, is a term learned quickly by everyone who works even occasionally in hazardous jobs. Going to a construction site? Grab your safety vest, protective eyewear, and hard hat. Hanging out fifty feet above a stage? You’ll need your safety harness. Headed to the […]

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Does it cost more?

An industrial ceiling with red lamps hanging down at intervals

One of the reasons that light in our homes and workplaces is not good for us is that our primary considerations are 1) how cheaply can we get lighting and 2) how few watts can we use.  I am often asked “will good lighting cost more than regular lighting?” Yep. Let’s say you hire a […]

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Lighting Malady: 4CnF Syndrome

A yellow triangular warning sign with a lightbulb symbol and crossbones below it.

The most common lighting malady I diagnose is CFLS, or Ceiling Fan Light Syndrome.  Statistically speaking (and I am completely making this up), CFLS affects three of every four Americans at some point in their lives.  If you or someone you know is suffering from CFLS, please contact your designer immediately. One common side effect […]

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Houzz, Bulbs, & Photos

A brightly lit modern kitchen with drawings of three people doing various tasks in it

My latest story from Houzz.com shares the same information from my light bulb buying guide but in National Geographic Style (lots of pretty pictures).  I think that helps the medicine go down a bit better! Read my version of the story. A Lighting Pro’s 5 Tips for Buying LED Bulbs […]

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Rainbow Red Velvet

An illustration of a person holding a prism with light going in and a rainbow emerging with these words on each of the colors: Change easier, Focus clearly, Feel better, Know more, Do better

The Gift of Light must be fully unwrapped to be understood.  Inside the gift box of white light are all the colors of the rainbow, only visible when we split the wavelengths apart with a prism or raindrops.  The power of light is also multi-layered, affecting our lives in many ways.  My approach to better […]

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The Good Old Days of Light

An icon of a sun on the left labelled: how we used to light. An icon of an LED light bulb on the right labelled: how we light today.

I like to believe that I am a forward thinker and not a person who looks behind longingly at The Good Old Days. Most of the time. When it comes to architecture, I love where the world is headed. We’re seeing modern homes with large expanses of glass, schools with huge amounts of daylight, factories […]

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Lighting can hurt you.

An icon of a red light bulb with a smile to the left of an icon of a blue light bulb with a frown. Underneath it says "lighting can hurt you"

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 […]

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Kitchen Counter Lighting

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 […]

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Long Nights Need Better Lights

A bedroom with a ceiling fan, several large pieces of art on the wall, and a low wide chest of drawers with a lamp on it. There are two lamps on either side of the bed.

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 […]

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Lighting & Darkness

A mantle with three photos of icy pines above it. There is a long garland of fake pine and holiday lights along the top behind several glass lanterns and a wooden candle holder with a camel

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 […]

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Light Can Help You