A table lamp does more for the feel of a room than any ceiling light. It brings light down to the level where you sit, read and talk. Here is how to choose one.
Height
- Bedside: the bottom of the shade should be roughly at eye level when you sit up in bed.
- Beside a sofa: similar, so light falls on a book rather than in your eyes.
- Sideboard or console: go taller or bolder; it is seen from across the room.
Shade
Fabric and linen shades spread a soft, even glow, like the Hashira table lamp. Opal glass glows all round, like the JWDA. Coloured glass, like the Normann Copenhagen Amp lamp, tints the light and becomes a decorative piece in its own right. Metal shades direct light downward, which suits reading.
Base
A heavy base, such as the marble Amalfi Medina, keeps a lamp steady and adds weight to a light piece of furniture.
Light
Choose warm white bulbs, around 2700 K, for living rooms and bedrooms. A dimmer, or a lamp with more than one setting, lets one lamp do several jobs.
Cordless
Rechargeable lamps go where there is no power point: a dining table, a shelf, a balcony. See the Hashira Portable and the Zone Harvest Moon.
Browse table lamps and portable lamps.
