As Oscar Wilde said – “Good taste is its own reward”. In opening with this well known Oscar Wilde statement, I was lead to try and define just what “good taste” actually means.

What I found was a queue of definitions, all eager to be heard. However, the following definition seemed to me, to strike a note -:

“The power of perceiving and relishing excellence in human performance, the faculty of discerning beauty, order, congruity, proportion, symmetry, or whatever constitutes excellence, particularly in the fine arts, and belle – letters, critical judgement and discernment”.

When it comes to our interior design choices this is certainly true. Interior design is a complex process and, of course, a very personal one, reflecting, both taste and personality. We usually begin with the broad concepts, such as colour and style and ending with finding just the right finishing touches, usually, with seemingly endless choices to make!

Today, interior design is an important aspect of building a home for many people and getting the choice right is crucial. It is the finishing touches that will pull your scheme together and taking care of details such as lamps and lighting, should be considered at all stages. Lamps have been called “the cherry on top of the cake” and have always been high on the list of details, as their inclusion in a design can totally complement, or completely change the design of a room.

Antique Lamps are a choice for many homes, both period and modern alike, choosing the right lamp and using them effectively is relatively straight forward.
Antique lamps come in a vast array of styles, depending on the period you choose, from Georgian candelabra through to Art Deco, every era of history has had its own range of styles when looking at lamps and lighting.

One style which has been a long term classic is the Oriental porcelain lamp, which has been popular for, at least, the past 250 years, with designs and styles changing as fashion changes. Oriental antique lamps are extremely popular, with their ability to immediately produce a sense of elegance and style.

If you are decorating a period home, the era that you are attempting to recreate, will naturally benefit from your choice of period fittings, including your choice of period lamps. However, don’t be afraid to mix and match with styles and eras, which can result in a surprisingly authentic look.

Any visit to one of the many English stately homes and country houses will illustrate that these homes are the result of a range of styles and periods. Even architecturally, these buildings are a comfortable mix of everything from early Tudor through to Victorian and Edwardian. The decor is usually a wide range of styles and periods, jostling each other quite happily.

Traditional lighting has a style and very often, a value. A good antique lamp is not cheap and if you see one that is, it’s probably not a good antique lamp! Like any good quality product, a quality antique lamp is going to be more expensive. What shouldn’t be forgotten is that a lamp will combine decorative and functional value.

With antique lamps, you will want to acquire lamps that have already been converted for electrical use; lamps from the Edwardian era onward will probably have been produced for electricity. When an antique lamp has been converted, always remember to have a safety check made by an electrician.

For preference and certainly from an aesthetic point of view, a successful lamp conversion should not show wires trailing around; a good specialist dealer should provide lamps that have been sympathetically converted.

Antique lamps, when used at a reception desk, or executive desk, will make an immediate statement of good taste, as will antique decorative lamps seen positioned in studies, libraries and hallways. Other areas may include landings and bedrooms to create a comfortable, homely feeling.

A stunning antique lamp can provide a central feature to a favourite room, with the lamp shade as a complement to the interior decoration. For large spaces, lamps, of course, will provide subtle lighting and often require a range of lamps and modern lighting systems to create additional light as required. But, there is nothing like antique decorative lamps to achieve the right balance of lighting for an intimate evening by the fire.

Even the most modern apartment can benefit from a stunning period lamp as a feature. This is an excellent design trick, using just one, or, two antiques against a modern interior, which can set off both the old and the new to startling effect.

Whatever the style of your home, antique lamps will add interest to a room, contributing both pleasant lighting and a feature of decorative interest. Specialist dealers and the internet can provide great sources of information and advice relating to antique lamps.
But beware! Once you have started complementing your interior with antique lamps, you may not be able to stop. Antique lamps can be used to subtle effect to create a real sense of taste and style in a wide range of settings. From period homes, to modern apartments, adding an antique lamp can speak volumes about your sense of design.

Author Bio: The Antique & Vintage Table Lamp Co specialize in antique lamps with an on-line range of over 100 unique, antique and vintage lamps on view.
Lamps are shipped ready wired for the U.S, the U.K and Australia.
You are invited to visit their web site at -: http://www.antiquelampshop.com

Category: Arts and Crafts
Keywords: antique lamps,lamps,vintage lamps,table lamps