Choosing The Right Lamp Shades For Your Home

Lamp shades contain both decorative and functional benefits and it should be given significant thought when choosing furnishings for your home. A nicely decorated lamp shade can enhance the look and feel of a room.

It can also improve the light needed to meet the function of the room. Whilst appearing to be an easy decision, choosing a poor lamp shade is much easier than you may think. We will discuss the investigation, dimensions & functional aspects to ensure this does not happen.

Investigation

Let’s look at the shape of the lamp first. If it has a round base then logic suggests that a round shade is the best option. Angular shades are better for square bases. Exceptions do apply to the rule however.

If a lamp sits on a round table and the lamp base is square a round shade may be a better fit. The surroundings of the lamp need to be taken into consideration to make a more complete decision.

Dimensions

Take a ruler and measure the height of your lamp. The lamp shade should be around two-thirds the height of the lamp. Picking a lamp shade which is too tall will result in the effect being too heavy, whilst picking a shade which is too short will have the opposite effect. Now measure the width of the base of the lamp and multiply it by two. This will give you the correct width for the lamp shade.

Functionality

The location of the lamp is also an important consideration. Ensure the lamp isn’t in a location where it can get knocked over. A lamp shade is designed to diffuse the light that the light bulb emits. Materials such as fabric or paper are great for creating ambient light sources within a property. Less transparent materials such as card are ideal for highlighting key features within a room.