Design – Light Fixtures

This weekend the CPA and I did something that we both love to do – look at other people’s houses.  The annual Virginia Parade of Homes was being held in the DC Metro area and we were like kids in a candy store.  (Pictures of the homes to come later.)  

There is something about walking through a new home… the smell of fresh wood, the spotless floors, the shiny granite counter tops, it is an aphrodisiac to me.  I love looking at how the other half lives and dreaming about the day when I, too, will have an elevator in my home.  Well, not really the elevator part, but at the very least, some of these incredible light fixtures:

First, we have this beautiful draped piece of glass (I’m sure there is a designer term to use here, but I’ll just use “shell” because that is what it looks like).  I believe it was in a bathroom and there was one on either side of the vanity mirror.  Isn’t it fantastic?

Then they started to get a little fancier and more whimsical.  This fixture was in a bathroom too I believe.  (Yes, those are speakers in the ceiling – they were part of an elaborate sound system piped throughout the house and were standard in most of the houses we visited.)

For a modern look, these suspended lights do the trick.  They remind me of Halloween night when the neighborhood is lined with milk cartons filled with candles to light the way for children.

This hanging chandelier is one of my favorites.  The wrought iron together with the yellowed bulbs make me think of the 1800s and something you may have seen in a stately mansion.

Speaking of mansions… no mansion is complete without the obligatory crystal chandelier.  This particular piece is made of Australian crystal.  Beautiful.

Another view…

These fixtures were part of the master bedroom suite.  They are gorgeous without being too over the top (at least they weren’t too over the top for the rooms that used them).  

Here is another modern fixture and one that could be easily used in most homes.  Simple, tasteful, chic.

And here we have another ornate piece – one that works best in a dining room or formal living room.  Or perhaps a ballroom if you’re fortunate enough to have one. 

And finally, my absolute favorite.  Isn’t it beautiful?  The amber teardrop crystals and the curved glass make it look so delicate, almost antique.  It was found in one of the bathrooms that we saw.  

Ahhh… one day I too, will have a crystal chandelier in my bathroom.  

I can dream, can’t I?