All that glitters: lighting tips to brighten your home

Wrenda Goodwyn • special to the Fort Myers News-Press/USA Today Network • Sept. 4, 2021

Lighting is a lot like jewelry. It can be the final piece that that you put into your decorating plan. Or you can take a fantastic lighting fixture and build an entire room around it.

A beachy, glam statement piece for a dining room or entry, this Biscayne chandelier from Serena & Lily is a mix of brass and coco shells. Made by hand, it features two tiers of cascading coco slivers, crowned with slender abaca and finished with an elegant brass chain. Photo: Serena & Lily.

Books have been written about lighting in the home and I promise I will not write one here. Just a few suggestions.

We all know that really great design is in the details. Lighting is one of those details that is many times overlooked and often is the last item in the budget. As a Southwest Florida interior decorator I see far too many beautiful homes where lighting is an afterthought and builder grade lighting has not been updated. Here’s a little secret: you don’t have to spend a fortune to make it look spectacular. There are lots of options in all price ranges.

Lighting is especially important in open floor plans where it can be difficult to light dark corners. You need two things before you start randomly making purchases: think strategically about the entire home and have a plan.

This unique Freeport bedside lamp is beautifully crafted with each piece of rattan steamed and bent by hand for a truly one-of-a-kind look. A square stone base and a crisp linen drum shade add the perfect amount of polish. Photo: Serena & Lily.

A few of my tips that I use when creating a lighting plan for clients:

Lighting sources in each room

• Ambient lighting which includes track lighting, recessed lighting, chandeliers, fan lights.

• Task lighting which includes table lamps, desk lamps, floor lamps, pendants, vanities, under counter.

• Accent lighting which includes niche lighting, sconces, decorative, statement lighting.

Recommendations

• Skip the recessed lighting if you’re building a new home or doing a renovation. It’s a waste of money, messes up the ceiling and tell me this, how often do you turn on those bright ceiling lights? Plus, no one looks good in recessed light! If you have them in your home, install dimmer switches.

• Everyone needs more lamps. Most homes are suffering from light deficiency: add more lamps and up the wattage. A lamp on every table is a good rule of thumb.

• Gourd lamps in lots of colors are good for living rooms; a mini accent lamp on the kitchen counter, laundry room, bathroom.

Simple and striking, the Cornwall sconces add a touch of elegance with an elongated brass finial. Photo: Serena & Lily.

• The eyes love pairs so make sure you have some pairs instead of a collection of mismatched lamps. It makes a huge difference. Think about your favorite hotel room: two lamps by the bed, two lamps on the dresser/desk and a standing lamp in the dark corner. Remember: less is more. Not too many styles.

• If you have a home with high ceilings throughout, hire a lighting designer to get it just right and avoid shadows.

• Select your largest lights first. Pendants over the island/bar area, chandeliers, entry lighting.

• Hang dining or eat-in area chandeliers/large lighting between 30 and 36 inches above the top of the table. This range assumes you have an 8-foot ceiling. If the ceiling is higher, the recommended standard is to raise the chandelier 3 inches for each additional foot of ceiling height. For example, if your ceiling is 10-feet-high, you might hang your chandelier 6 inches higher than you would in a room with an 8-foot ceiling. This guideline is generally the same for hanging pendants over a kitchen island or bar.

All that glitters: chandeliers

They are romantic and sexy. The right one with the perfect dimmer switch setting makes anyone look beautiful. They are dazzling and add style and a touch of refined culture to a space. They go anywhere in the home, including bathrooms, closets, a walk in pantry. I have even seen one in a laundry room. You can spend a little or you can spend thousands.

Chandeliers are an accessory that can make an entry or dining room. It does what the perfect necklace does for an outfit. In southwest Florida, many homes sacrifice chandeliers for ceiling fans but I find that women are most likely willing to say goodbye to a fan to add a beautiful, sparkly chandelier.

Wrenda Goodwyn is a Southwest Florida interior decorator, A.S.I.D. associate and gold member of the Interior Redecorators Network. She helps homeowners throughout Southwest Florida with timeless, affordable ways to create beautiful spaces and solves decorating problems. Her articles appear the first Saturday of each month. For more information, visit her website at spectacularspaces.com. Call her at 239-850-5800 or e-mail wrenda@spectacularspaces.com. For more decorating tips, articles and photos, visit spectacularspaces.com/blog

Bringing the Downtown Abbey look into your home

The holidays are over and the next big event happens tomorrow night: the return of Downton Abbey! And if you are like me, you can't wait for the new season. Check out my article in the Fort Myers-News Press today for a few tips on bringing a bit of the Downton look into your home. 

Wrenda Goodwyn • special to the Fort Myers News-Press• January 4, 2014

It begins again at 9 p.m. Sunday on PBS — the fourth season of the award-winning “Downton Abbey.”

We pick up six months after the shocking finale that ended with the death of Matthew Crawley. And now we will find out how Lady Mary and baby George are coping. Will she be able to save Downton? What dark secrets and new romances will unfold upstairs and downstairs? We have so many questions.

But let’s face it. The star of the show is the house, a manor house set in Edwardian England at the turn of the 20th century. The show revolves around the estate and it details the daily life and scandals of the family of wealthy Robert Crawley, the Earl of Grantham and his American wife, Lady Cora Grantham; their three daughters and household staff.

Photo provided by PBS.

Each week it lets us peek into life inside the manor house. It is as though we should not be there listening and watching. But we can’t turn away. The captivating writing and stunning appearances transport you to a time that marked a turning point for England and the entire world. And for the Crawley family, it is about holding on to a lifestyle that is slowly slipping away.

Inspired by the opulence of Victorian English chandeliers, this Rococo iron and crystal chandelier from Restoration Hardware adds sparkle to any room. Photo: Restoration Hardware. 

Inspired by the opulence of Victorian English chandeliers, this Rococo iron and crystal chandelier from Restoration Hardware adds sparkle to any room. Photo: Restoration Hardware. And it is the lifestyle that captivates us. Even though we don’t have a library that holds 5,500 books, some dating back to the 15th century, and a dining room table that seats 32, we still long for a tiny bit of the feeling of opulence, taste and sensibilities of that period.

As a Fort Myers interior decorator, I always ask my clients how they want their home to feel when they walk in the door. Not look, but feel. So if you would like to put a little of the Downton Abbey feeling into your home, think about these tips.

Pottery Barn gilt finish frames. Photo: Pottery Barn.

Pottery Barn gilt finish frames. Photo: Pottery Barn.

• Add some gold touches. Gilded is the look and you can achieve this with metallic paint or spray paint on chairs or the legs of a table. Find a small chair (or two) that needs some work. Paint it gold and reupholster in a beautiful new fabric.

• Hang family portraits. If not yours, purchase some at flea markets. Stack them on top of each other and cover entire walls. Forget all of the rules that I have previously given you for hanging artwork. Stack them!

• Display crystal candlesticks. The more the better. They add sparkle and in the evening give that beautiful color that we love about this show. Purchase from consignment shops or flea markets. If crystal isn’t possible, try the beautiful antique mercury glass pillar and candle holders from Pottery Barn. They provide the dramatic display of silver and light that is so much a part of the Downton lighting.

Mercury glass pillar candle holders from Pottery Barn. Photo: Pottery Barn.

• Hang a chandelier. For sparkle and a beautiful, warm reflection off the walls like in the Downton drawing room. And sconces, especially in the bedroom and bathrooms.

• Embellish. With tassels, add them to lamps or for a more subtle touch, use them to tie back thick drapes. Or just loop a really gorgeous one around a doorknob.

• Create a library. It doesn’t need to be huge but a wall or part of a wall will allow you display your books and achieve that Downton look. If that doesn’t work, try Brunschwig & Fils outrageously fun, faux, library print wall covering and instantly add floor-to-ceiling built-ins packed with wonderful books.

 • Don’t forget the kitchen. One of my favorite Downton Abbey accessories is the wonderful standing tiered pot rack in the corner of the kitchen. Use colorful pots and of course, a few copper ones. A hammered steel cookware stand with the look is available at Williams-Sonoma.

Add functional style to your kitchen with a hammered steel cookware stand from Williams-Sonoma. Photo: Williams-Sonoma.

• Add a lady’s writing desk or vintage writing secretary. You may not wish to spring for the original rosewood Edwardian version, but the beautiful Bramwell writing desk from Pottery Barn works with its antique brass hardware and is an updated option.

• Display china and crystal. Bring it out of storage. Display it on a sideboard, shelf or arrange decanters on a silver tray. And to dust all of this, you will need an ostrich feather duster like the sassy one on the show!

• Layer everything. Drapes. Pillows. Rugs. This may be a little too heavy for Southwest Florida but layering can be done with lighter fabrics.

• Add damask paper to an accent wall in a modern color.

• Purchase something tufted. A sofa, ottoman or chair. This is a popular look now for any home.

• Oriental carpets, whether original or copies, are classic Downton Abbey.

• Add architectural details. Colorful moldings and chair rails. Paint inside doors panels a color for pop.

• Mirrors, mirrors on the walls. Gilded, patinaed or whitewashed. My favorite: the manor house whitewashed mirror from Restoration Hardware. The whitewashed look is casual enough for Southwest Florida homes and is a great statement piece.

Make a statement with this Manor House Whitewashed mirror from Restoration Hardware. Photo: Restoration Hardware.

• Color your home in Downton Abbey tones. The beautiful rose wall covering in Sybil’s room. And the wood tones, cornflower blue walls and the white ceiling in Cora’s room. The kitchen’s grays, browns and ivory. The reds, greens, blues and browns of the library. And that red velvet sofa.

The drawing room’s pastels and creams, the yummy green/aqua, pale rose and ivory. You can add touches of these colors by coming up with a palette and using splashes of color in accent pieces, fabric or on walls.

• Include palms for an opulent touch. The larger the better to fill corners. Palms were the hallmark of Victorian homes. This is the easiest tip of all for Southwest Florida homes!

Wrenda Goodwyn is a Southwest Florida interior decorator. Home Inspirations appears the first Saturday of each month. Visit her website at spectacularspaces.com. Call her at 949-1808 or e-mail wrenda@spectacularspaces.com. For more decorating tips, visit spectacularspaces.com/blog.

Want a home that makes you happy?

Call me. I can help!

Time to hire a professional? Read my tips for working with an interior decorator in the Fort Myers News-Press.