My Creative Blog:
Lighting

Did you guys know that Monica and I love discovering and studying small businesses, right? We both have owned our own businesses, and now run this blog which has turned into a small business in it's own right. We find it fascinating to watch people do what they love to do and turn their gifts into a fulfilling career! There's just something so inspiring about the whole thing. A few weeeks ago, I gave you a peek into my dining room complete with three new fabulous light fixtures from Lucent Lampworks. We thought it would be fun to let you in on what it's like behind the scenes with Brad at his home, and how we both fell in love with a few lights for our own homes.

This is Brad. (and his adorable daughter, Lia)

He is not an electrician. He is not a trained lighting designer. He is a self-proclaimed tinkerer with a creative side who one day decided to make a few custom lights for friends and family as Christmas gifts when money was tight. He opened an Etsy shop, had a sale a few days later and is now creating fabulous light fixtures out of old barn pulleys, found items and whatever gets his creative juices flowing for people all around the world. People, this guy is seriously talented. Since 2010, his lights have been showcased in the following awesome places: *Extreme Makeover Home Edition — Beautiful New Home in Texas that aired in 2012 *The Winter Collection Catalog for Stylish Home Magazine — www.stylishhome.com
*History Channel show — Abandoned — aired August 2012
*Featured in Soulemama.com
*Food Channel — Restaurant Takeover — Canadian version airing this fall!

Monica and I went to visit his little"shop" in his basement to see how he does it all and quickly realized how out of our element we were when Brad started talking about all the old reproduction wiring, vintage plug ends and exposed sockets.: ) But what we did know was that Brad was passionate about that stuff and it showed in his work.

Brad styles all the photos of his lights himself and has an incredible set up. See all those different backgrounds? He makes most of them himself so that his lights pop against them.

He doesn't mess around with lighting his"sets" either. Every thing this guy does is done right.

See what I mean? We got a few ideas for creating backgrounds for our finished projects, so, thanks, Brad!; )

Cage light anyone?

Monica got two of these gorgeous green enamel shades made for her. You have to wait for Spring to see what she did with them, but they are incredible!

I had to get my cheesy pic with that cobalt blue beauty and Monica was totally digging this glass cylinder pendant. 

And, in case you're wondering, this trip to his shop was where I first spotted the white, enamel pendant light that is now proudly living above my dining room table.

I also spotted this cage light which inspired the industrial cage light sconces that flank the art in that same room. Brad took my idea, researched and found cages from the early 1900's and turned them into awesome sconces. I loooooove them! 

Isn't that amazing? We strongly encourage you to take at a look at Brad's shop to see what other awesomeness he has going on there. You will not meet a nicer guy and he'd be happy to help you create the light of your dreams (please tell me I'm not the only one who dreams about lighting…) Oh yeah, one more thing just for you guys! You can get 10% off your order at Lucent Lampworks by using the coupon code EC2tenoff! You're welcome! Do any of you have a small business? Leave us a comment with the name so we can check it out! It's one of our favorite things to do!

My dining room. Well, like everything else around here, it seems like it's taking forever to pull together. I am oh-so-close to doing a full reveal for you (like next-week-close!), but I wanted to give you the juicy details about the fabulous lighting that we installed that totally completes the look I was going for. Love it when that happens! The last time you saw this space, it looked like this:

Awesome planked wall, beautiful white-washed table and the doesn't-quite-fit-in spray painted chandy. I'm happy to report that it has come a long way since then. When this picture was taken, I was feeling so stumped as to how I could make this room feel like I wanted it to, and I knew that what was holding me back was that coral chandelier. I mean, don't get me wrong- I love the color, but it was definitely limiting me. And limits I do not like. That's when Brad, from Lucent Lampworks, stepped in and said he might be able to help me.

His lighting. Oh, his lighting. It's gorgeous and simple and modern and vintage and industrial and cool all at once. Brad invited us over to his shop to take a look at his work and we were blown away. He's not a lighting guy by trade, but creates some beautiful fixtures in his spare time. Just recently one of his lights was featured on Extreme Home Makeover, so you know if Ty P. is sold, then this guy is the real deal. Anyway, I digress. I told him what I wanted, and you know what? He made it for me. Custom. And they're awesome. And his prices are ridiculously reasonable. See? I like Lucent Lampworks so much I can't even write in complete sentences. Let's just cut to the chase, shall we?

I really wanted two sconces to flank the piece of Marbled Paper Art that fit in with the whole coastal, cottage feel. Brad searched for these cages and found them on Ebay and turned them into fabulous sconces. I absolutely love them- all they need are some edison bulbs, but I keep forgetting to pick them up when I'm out!

I love the contrast between the industrial sconces and the marbled paper art.

I'm still messing around with the final touches for the dining room (for instance, those plant pots aren't staying that color, but it's been too darn cold to spraypaint!), so most likely this buffet will look different next time you see it.
As for the pendant light for above my dining room table, I decided to go with a white enamel shade (similar to this one in his shop) that Brad reclaimed from the Scranton Lace Factory. This light is probably from the early 1900's, which I love! It has loads of character and chippy goodness.

It's perfect, isn't it? And, I am thrilled with the view from the kitchen, now that it includes my fabulous lights!

The pendant has really soft uplighting from holes in the top of the shade that is just beautiful and helps illuminate the space better at night.

I seriously could not be happier with my new lights! If you guys are in need of any lighting, head over to Lucent Lampworks to see all that Brad has to offer! You will not find a nicer, more accomodating guy than Brad and he is super talented. Use the code EC2tenoff to receive 10% off your order and tell him we sent you!
Tell me, what does your dream light look like??