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A table lamp is more than just a secondary feature in interior design. A table lamp adds class and detail to spaces while providing ambient and task lighting not offered by ceiling and floor lamps. Choosing a table lamp and a bulb for such a lamp depends on where it will be used and for what purpose.
table lamp types
Every living room, dining room and many bedrooms and hallways deserve a table lamp. Table lamps can also sit on bedside tables, windowsills and shelves.
There are many types of table lamp including buffet lamps which are somewhat taller, tend to come in pairs and are often found in entrance areas and hallways. Task lamps are a common find these days and are almost always adjustable so that the light can be focused onto a specific area when working, reading or writing.
Bedside lamps are usually small with heavy shades to offer a contrast with lighting elsewhere in the home. Sofa lamps are those usually found in living rooms often next to, or behind, a sofa with elegant shades and providing a more mellow brightness to the ceiling light overhead.
Console lamps are taller lamps which traditionally were found on buffet tables and were commonly found in pairs. A pottery lamp is one of the most common types where style can trump other attributes. Ginger jars and geometric lamps are pottery lamp styles seen in living rooms and bedrooms.
Tiffany table lamps imply elegance with their use of floral patterns, geometric shapes and bright colors. This style first became popular a hundred years ago and can be ideal for hallways though often a bit garish for modern living rooms.
Glass table lamps describe lamps which adhere to a neutral color scheme with transparent and textured effects. Such lamps are also largely sustainable and easy to look after. The Leola Lamp is one such example. Clamp lights are a fairly simple affair and can be attached to most surface edges allowing for extra light in areas that other table lamps might not reach. They are easily portable and installation is a bliss.
TABLE LAMP examples
table lamp shades & maintenance
Finally, once you have the perfect table lamp be sure to take care of it. Simple dusting is required every few months to prevent dirt from affecting the fixtures and bulb intensity. Check cables regularly for evidence of split wires or other damage.
table lamp bulbs
Choosing a bulb for a table lamp needn't be too hard though the options are pretty mind-boggling it seems. Firstly, never exceed the maximum bulb recommendation for the lamp being used. An 'E27 40 watt' light bulb is a 27mm screw-in bulb (also known as an 'ES', Edison Screw) with 40 wattage (for old incandescent lights). Meanwhile an 'E14 40 watt' bulb is a 14mm screw-in bulb (also known as an 'SES', Small Edison Screw) with 40 wattage. These days you will need to convert the wattage to the LED equivalent.
An incandescent 40 watt bulb is equivalent to a 5 watt LED bulb. An incandescent 60 watt bulb is equivalent to a 7 watt LED bulb. An incandescent 100 watt is equivalent to a 12 watt LED bulb. You can roughly divide the old incandescent wattage by 10 to get the approximate wattage for an LED bulb.
When thinking in terms of luminosity a 40 watt bulb will produce up to 470 lumens while a 60 watt bulb will produce as much as 810 lumens. Color temperature is also a factor when you are choosing LED bulbs. These temperatures are expressed in kelvins. A cool white bulb is 5,500 - 6,000 kelvin, a neutral white bulb is 4,000 - 4,500 kelvin, a warm white bulb is 2,500 - 3,000 kelvin while a yellowish white bulb is around 2,000 kelvin. The lower temperature bulbs produce a more reddish light which may be more suitable for bedrooms while the higher temperature produces a bluer color which may be better in hallways and living rooms.
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