Should Lamps Be the Same Height?

Dear Melissa:

Should all of the lamps in my living room be the same height, and do you think that the lamps on either side of my couch should match? L. P., KY 

Dear L.:

The two most important things about lamps are (1) that you have enough light where you need it, and (2) that you aren’t looking up at the bulb when seated next to a lamp.

Lamps used as pairs should be the same height and scale, but these still don’t necessarily have to match. When you use lamps of various heights, survey the room to make sure your eye isn’t distracted by a large, showy lamp instead of being drawn to the focal point you intended.

If a lamp is too low, place it on a stack of leather-bound books for more height. Place a lamp that’s too high on a lower table, or try changing its harp or shade. Most rooms could use some height, so don’t exclude floor lamps. Why not consider a grouping of three funky accent lamps of differing heights, just for fun? M.A.K.

Optimizing Natural Light

Dear Melissa:

We have a room in the northwestern corner of our house, which is a ranch style. Because of the trees, we get very little light into this room. Can you suggest something we can do about more windows or skylights to optimize the natural light? K.G., NH

Dear K.:

Here are some tips on window placement for us in the Northeast.

When faced with a choice, choose horizontal windows with angled window jambs to admit more light. Sun blockage on the western side of your house is not a bad thing, particularly with deciduous trees, but you might want to increase the sunlight on the northern side. Since I wouldn’t remove any windbreaks, I would definitely consider a row of clerestory windows up by the ceiling. When one edge of a window is contiguous with an adjoining wall or the ceiling itself, light flows along this surface creating an extra glow. Windows above your head will also cut down on drafts.

You don’t mention which way your roof is pitched, so all I can tell you about a potential skylight is that you should avoid placing one in a southern- or western- facing roof, if possible. You don’t need the other extreme of sun blindness. M.A.K.

Hanging Chandeliers

Dear Melissa:

I bought a new chandelier and an electrician hung it for me. Now my friends tell me it’s too high. I don’t know who is right. Are there any rules for this? W.S., East Haven, CT 

Dear W.:

Let’s call them guidelines. We'll start with the basics. There are two types of chandelier installations: as general lighting in a room and directly over a table. In the former situation, the width of a chandelier should be equal in inches to what the diagonal of the room measures in feet; e.g., one needs a 24” wide chandelier in a room that measures 24 feet from one corner diagonally across to the opposite corner. (Good luck to those of you with open floor plans.) Make sure the chandelier will clear the head of your tallest friend or relative. Since the goal is not to knock a person unconscious, the higher the chandelier is hung, the better. Cords and chains are easily shortened and lengthened.

When placing a chandelier over a table, the chandelier should be hung as low as possible, while still allowing people seated around the table to see each other. Keeping in mind my favorite rule of thumb that heads and chandeliers do not mix, the chandelier should hang no lower than 30” above the tabletop. The width of the chandelier should be about 12 inches smaller in diameter than the smallest table dimension; e.g., use a 24” chandelier for a table that measures 36” X 48”.

Again, these are only guidelines. Aesthetics may require some modifications. A very heavy-looking chandelier may need to be smaller, while a very light and airy chandelier may have to be larger to look proportionate. Since you're going to shell out some serious cash, take it home from the store and hold it up to see how it looks, before installing it. M.A.K.