Your One Stop Spot For Retro Lamps and Lights

Retro Floor Lamps for the Modern Room

A design style that is coming back into fashion in interior decorating circles in recent years is the retro fashion. The creativity and imagination from the 1950s are merged with the more outrageous designs of the 1970s in a way that is being appreciated all over again. An accessory piece such as the floor lamp puts the final exclamation point on a retro lounge room or bedroom.

Retro floor lamps such as Eames era floor lamps reflect the diverse fashion styles of the retro era. Lamp stands were made using new materials of the time like plastics and melamine. The lamp shades themselves boasted flashy prints or showy trimmings or were made with materials such as fiberglass. The changing fashion trends can be easily traced simply by noting the diverse materials used.

Here are a few popular, yet very different styles of lamps from the retro era.

The simple cone lamp was found in virtually every household in the 1950s and 1960s, however it was often the floor to ceiling lamp stand that spoke of the owners taste. The cone lamp shade complements any retro influenced design style. Often found in groups of three, these little metal marvels came in a variety of colors they were also commonly used as bedroom lamps.

Another popular retro lamp shade that was used either as a lamp shade or as a ceiling light fixture is the translucent glass light shade. The fishbowl-shaped light shade was often seen in amber and featured either a bubbled surface or else a panelled, pumpkin skin-like look. This kind of glass lamp shade gives a room true retro authenticity but does so in an understated manner.

These examples of retro lamp shades illustrate the fact that retro fashion can either be muted and understated where it simply looks at home or it can make a statement with its edge and daring.

A big part of constructing a retro room is adding furnishings in keeping with the retro style. Finding the perfect retro floor lamp for sale is a major part of finishing that room.

The Impact of A Retro Table Lamp

While planning the new design for our dining room one of the amazing revelations that came to me was the impact that lamps can have on a room. A modern retro style was the sort of thing we were aiming for and decided that a couple of retro table lamps would set the entire room off. Choosing table lamps can be much more than simply placing accessories thanks to the options they give you.

Starting with a plain pottery retro table lamp design that would sit at either end of the sideboard. The process of searching threw up a impressive variety of lamp stands with endless detail work or lovely paintwork, or both, to choose from. We then altered our preference for matching table lamps to more eclectic pieces preferring the imbalance it created as well as the chance to buy two pieces.

We also discovered Tiffany table lamps and that gave us the whole stained glass retro table lamps to choose from. The stained glass table lamps definitely made a statement in the room but we felt that they were somewhat overwhelming for a small dining room.

Other types of retro table lamps that really caught my eye were small Atomic table lamps, some snappy gourd table lamps and, going for the more modern side of the retro look, a range of space age influenced chrome lamps.

It’s not surprising that the entire mood of the room changes depending on the sort of retro lamp that is on display. The type of lamp shade and the strength of light it allows helps create the atmosphere. Choosing a suitable retro table lamp is a part of the process that must be taken seriously.

Retro Swag Lamps

Swag lamps were a popular type of ceiling lamp that was popular in the 1950s, although the peak of popularity didn’t really arrive until the 1970s with almost every house sporting at least one swag lamp hanging from the ceiling.

Swag lamps got their name from the hanging technique that was used where they had two hooks and a swag in between. They were invariably made from the latest wonder material of the time, being plastic and were produced in large quantities. The swag lamp is distinguished by the fixture to the ceiling by a long chain with the electrical cord running through it. Installation is quite simple.

Nowadays these retro swag lamps are once again sought after as the retro style is being replicated and this mainstay of the retro era drips with the look and feel that sets the room off.

You can buy a retro swag lamp from the selection displayed below, or simply click to enter eBay and browse further from the extended selection of lamps available there.

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RETRO VINTAGE MULTI COLORED PANEL MOD SWAG LAMP SM NR
US $99.99 (0 Bid)
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Vintage Art deco Stained Glass RARE Retro Swag Lamp
US $29.95 (0 Bid)
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RETRO VINTAGE MULTI COLORED PANEL MOD SWAG LAMP LG NR
US $199.99 (0 Bid)
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VINTAGE Retro 60s-70s METEORITE CHUNKY LUCITE SWAG LAMP
US $72.99 (8 Bids)
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VINTAGE RETRO MODERN DANISH EAMES SWAG HANGING LAMP NR
US $20.50 (2 Bids)
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VINTAGE RETRO EAMES ERA AMBER GLASS HANGING SWAG LAMP
US $79.99 (0 Bid)
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As with all lamps produced during the retro era the styles vary greatly from the quietly tasteful to the loudly outlandish. But each swag lamp is distinguishable and unique. There is a large enough selection of swag lamps out there to ensure that you will find one that will fit in with your own decor. Swag lamps are also available to suit specific rooms such as the kitchen, bathroom or lounge room.

Bedroom Lamps

Bedroom lighting is an important aspect of giving your bedroom the right feel. The best kind of lighting suggested for a bedroom is soft, subdued and sexy, if possible. The soft and subdued part of the requirement is somewhat easy to meet, considering the wide range of soft lighting options that are available today? What do you do about the sexy part? It is indeed difficult to acquire the desired look and it is easy to go overboard and end up with a garish bedroom. On the other hand, it is easy to make the room look dark and monotonous if you dim your lights too much.

A stained glass bedroom lamp will provide the right kind of light for your bedroom, soft and subdued. On the other hand, the stained glass will provide the bit of appeal you were looking for. Whether lit or unlit, they provide a veritable eye candy and can be very artistic and playful at the same time. The choice of colors and designs available is extremely wide and in fat, you can create a stained glass bedroom lamp to your own specifications and choice of design and colors. This ability to personalize a lighting accessory is unmatched in its flexibility and beauty. When they are lit, they will give out sparkling light in numerous colors add the right amount of sex appeal to your bedroom.

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Art Deco Vintage Retro Bedroom or Accent Light Lamp
US $0.99 (0 Bid)
End Date: Saturday Jul-04-2009 22:55:18 PDT
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VINTAGE 1950's RETRO MARBLE GLASS POM POM BEDROOM LAMP
US $9.99 (0 Bid)
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1960 Retro Dollhouse Furniture Bedroom Suite, Elec Lamp
US $19.99 (0 Bid)
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Retro Mid Century 1950s Custard Colored Bedroom Lamps
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So, how do you attain this magic formula of getting the right kind sexy lighting which is artistic as well as playful? Simple, use a stained glass bedroom lamp! A stained glass bedroom lamp will complement any décor you may have and you will not need to make any changes to your room to accommodate a stained glass lamp. Instead, the stained glass will add a touch of color and vibrancy to the part of the room you place it in.

Alternatively a retro floor lamp may be a useful alternative to the table lamp, making a measured statement over the bed or in a disused corner.

Retro Ceiling Lamps

Retro Ceiling lamps are a great option to consider in decorating your home. They provide a touch of elegance and class to any décor you may have and they are suitable in practically every room of your house. On the ceiling, retro ceiling lamps add an array of colors on a usually drab and single colored surface.

Retro ceiling lamps are lamps made out of pieces of stained glass. The very first lamp to be made with stained glass was a table lamp and was deigned by none other than Louis Comfort Tiffany. He got the idea of using pieces of stained glass for a lampshade when he saw discarded pieces of stained glass during the construction of a stained glass window. Over time, this beautiful and artistic style was adapted to create retro ceiling lamps giving us Tiffany ceiling lights.

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Set of 4 IQ Pendant Light Modern Ceiling Lighting Lamp
US $62.91
End Date: Saturday Jul-04-2009 2:54:26 PDT
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Set of 2 IQ Pendant Light Modern Ceiling Lighting Lamp
US $44.91
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Detailed PANDA BEAR Ceiling Light Lamp Pull Style 2
US $5.99
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PRINCESS DORA the EXPLORER CEILING FAN / LIGHT PULL
US $6.99 (0 Bid)
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Two Matching Vintage Shades for ceiling light Fixture
US $30.00 (1 Bid)
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FOXY the POMERANIAN DOG CEILING FAN/LIGHT PULL
US $6.99 (0 Bid)
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Retro ceiling lamps can be made to look as artistic and colorful as you choose. Today, it is possible to choose your own design and get retro ceiling lamps custom made for you also in the colors of your choice. If you choose, you can have different retro ceiling lamps of different colors in different rooms of the house and give the house a unified, yet varied look.

Since, the retro ceiling lamp is going to be directly overhead, it is important to ensure that the pieces of stained glass are securely attached to the surface of the lamp. On the other hand, you also need to ensure that the pieces of stained glass are not unevenly or thickly coated on the glass. This will prevent the light from passing through them effectively, and may even make unseemly shadows on the floor of the room. You also need to remember that the color is after all applied to the glass, and it should also not be so thin a layer than it starts to run.

Reading Lamps

It is extremely important to choose the right reading lamp. Reading in bad lighting, whether too dim or too bright, can not only cause temporary eye strain, but it can potential cause long term and irreversible damage to your vision.

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Reading Lamps Table lamps Lot of 3
US $9.99 (0 Bid)
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2002 Subaru Legacy front reading lamps
US $4.99 (0 Bid)
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Bronze Wall Sconce Light Lamp Read Reading Mount Vanity
US $39.99
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Gold Table Lamp Reading Desk Angel Statue Children
US $49.99
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Almond Desk/Reading adjustable lamp
US $22.66
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Tensor, vintage clip on reading lamp
US $7.50 (0 Bid)
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The right reading light does not imply bright enough light to allow reading, but the right kind of light to cause reduced eye strain. Here are some tips to help you choose the right reading lamp:

  • Evaluate the space you have to keep the lamp. Make optimum use of space and the lamp should neither be too big or too small for the space it is kept in.
  • Think of where you usually sit to read. If you regularly use your desk, you need a table lamp. However, if you use a chair or a couch, you will need a floor lamp. Ideally, do not consider wall lamps and ceiling lamps for reading purposes, as they may be too far away to be effective and they also restrict the space you can use to read as they are immobile. Also, it is important to have reading lamps at the right level, and ceiling or wall lamps can hardly be placed according to those parameters.
  • Choose a reading lamp whose neck is flexible and can be adjusted. This will allow you to change your position without worrying about the direction of the source of light.
  • Different people are comfortable in different kinds of light settings. Sometimes eye fatigue and strain also makes us change our preference of light settings. Choose a reading lamp that comes with a dimmer, so that you can adjust the level of lighting according to your convenience.
  • Finally, use a lampshade that is open at the bottom, so that it can directly throw light on your book or papers. Ideally the lampshade itself should provide softer lighting than its bottom. Dark colored stained glass lamps makes perfect reading lamps for this reason.

Retro Lighting

Retro Lighting is an indulgence of the senses and practically never goes out of style. While the primary function of lighting is to brighten the room, artists for the better part of the last century have also sought to provide a touch of art to lighting. Retro Lighting is perhaps the pinnacle of this combination of functionality and art.

Retro Lighting primarily refers to lighting accessories made during the 1950s, 60s and 70s. The style of the Tiffany lamp plays a prominent part in the retro lighting look, although it was first invented by Louis Comfort Tiffany in 1899, when he got the idea of using stained glass pieces to make a lampshade while observing the construction of a stained glass window and seeing the discarded pieces of stained glass. Since then, more than a century later, stained glass lighting accessories continue to captivate our heart and indulge our senses.

Pieces of stained glass allow for the possibility of great eye-catching designs. They also allow the use of thousands of different colors and can make practically every design unique by the choice of color used. Whether they are lit or not, they provide a touch of art and elegance to any setting. They add color and vibrancy to any corner of the room they may be placed in or to the ceiling which is usually drab and single colored. When they are lit, they provide a soft and subdued light and soften up the entire room while providing a fantastic sprinkling of color. When they are lit during the day, they make artistic patterns on the walls or floor around them. No matter where they are placed, they add a little more life to that part of the room.

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FLASHING RETRO DARK & LIGHT BROWN ON YELLOW
US $1.50 (0 Bid)
End Date: Saturday Jul-04-2009 2:16:16 PDT
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VERY RETRO FROM BLAST STUDIO SIZE L CUTE LIGHT JACKET
US $3.99 (0 Bid)
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24 Vintage Retro Tin Christmas Tree Light Reflectors !
US $8.99 (1 Bid)
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Italian vintage retro Light fixture 12"
US $29.99 (0 Bid)
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Italian vintage retro Light fixture 8"
US $29.99 (0 Bid)
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Italian vintage retro Light fixture 8"
US $29.99 (0 Bid)
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There are a variety of lighting accessories in the retro style. Wall lamps, floor lamps, table lamps and even ceiling lamps all make striking features while serving the functional purpose of lighting the room. You could use a different accessory in different parts of the house to create a unified yet vibrant theme.

Retro Stained Glass Lamps

Retro Stained lamps were first created in 1899 by Louis Comfort Tiffany. He came upon the idea of creating lamps with pieces of stained glass when he saw them as discarded pieces while a stained glass window was being made. The first stained lamp was made on a bronze stand and the pieces of stained glass were soldered together with the help of a copper foil. Since then, stained glass lamps, which came to be called Tiffany Lamps have become the rage in home decoration.

Retro stained glass lamps can be used with practically any décor and they never fail to add a touch of elegance to any room they are in. They add fantastic colors to the part of room they light and give out soft, subdued light for a touch of class. Even during the day, if the lamps are switched on, they make beautiful and colorful patterns on the walls or floor around them and add a little cheer to the entire room.

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Multi-Colored Bobble-Head Stained Glass CAT Lamp
US $50.00
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KICHLER LEADED STAINED GLASS TABLE LAMP*NIB*ORIG$420.00
US $49.99 (0 Bid)
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KICHLER LEADED STAINED GLASS TABLE LAMP*NIB*ORIG$450.00
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Custom Built for You - Stained Glass Lamp Shade
US $79.99
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Tiffany Style Stained Glass Mission Lamp "Aspen"
US $104.99 (0 Bid)
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BEAUTIFUL LRG STAINED GLASS HANDEL LAMP-MINT&CA 1900!
US $3,249.98
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The first stained glass lamp was made by soldering pieces of stained glass on a copper frame. Today, they are made by fusing colored enamels to pieces of glass and firing them at a very high temperature of up to 1100 degrees Fahrenheit and are just as beautiful. Thousands of different colors can be used in making retro stained glass lamps and these days it is even possible to custom make retro stained glass lamps to designs of your choice. This allows you add a personal touch to your home décor.

There are a few things to keep in mind when purchasing a retro stained glass lamp. Firstly, all the glass pieces have to be perfectly attached and there should be no risk of them falling off. Secondly, the glass has to be transparent for light to shine through them. Finally, you need to ensure that the color on the glass pieces does not run.

These types of pieces are typical of the items you can get if you’re trying to decorate your home with retro lighting.

Retro Tiffany Lamps

The name Tiffany has long been associated with style and innovation. The Retro Tiffany lamp is one such creation. Legend has it that Louis Comfort Tiffany, a highly creative man, came up with an innovative idea to use pieces of glass that were discarded during the making of stained glass window. He used them to make a beautiful and highly decorative lamp!

This first Tiffany lamp was created in 1899 with a bronze base. These lamps became so popular and the name Tiffany came to be so well associated with stained glass lamps, that now even ordinary stained glass lamps that are not designed by Tiffany himself have come to be called Retro Tiffany Lamps, even though they never really go out of style!

Retro Tiffany Lamps are made by fusing colored enamels to pieces of glass and firing them at a very high temperature of up to 1100 degrees Fahrenheit. The most important feature to look for in a Retro Tiffany lamp is that the colors on the lampshade are transparent enough for the light to shine through them and that the colors ought never to fade. The beauty of a Retro Tiffany lamp lies in the fact that there are thousands of colors that can be made to use in this piece of stained glass art. Similarly, there are thousands of designs that you can make with the pieces of stained glass. In fact, it is now possible to custom make a Retro Tiffany lamp in the design of your choice.

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Tiffany Style Butterfly Lamp
US $18.97
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Kathy Ireland Vintagecraft Tiffany Glass Lamp
US $99.99
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Tiffany Style Stained Glass Mission Lamp "Aspen"
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ESTATE LEAVES & FLOWERS TIFFANY STYLE GLASS LAMP SHADE
US $12.99 (0 Bid)
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Tiffany Style Stianed Glass Jeweled Pyramids Table Lamp
US $79.99 (0 Bid)
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New Tiffany Style Stained Glass Diamonds Desk Lamp
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Retro Tiffany lamps provide soft diffused lighting and can be matched with practically any décor. On the other hand, if you use a retro tiffany lamp during the day, the colors of the stained glass will make interesting patterns on your wall or floor and give it a very artistic look.

Dazor Table Lamps

The Dazor company has been producing quality table lamps since 1938 when Harry Dazey teamed up with Washington University professor Albert Perbal. They came up with the design for the “floating arm” portable light which launched their manufacture of specialized task lights.

It was during World War II that Dazor lamps were used extensively by the government because they were highly efficient and cost less than the other lights of the time.

Dazor lamps were the first lamps to combine the technology of the portable task light with fluorescent light bulbs. The lamp was popular with draftsmen and architects who needed strong, sharp lighting for their work and this is what these lamps produced.

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NICE VINTAGE DAZOR DRAFTING ARTIST DESK LAMP/LIGHT
US $49.99
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Replacement Ballast Dazor Lamp Electrial Tools Jeweler
US $4.50
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Vintage Dazor desk lamp mdl. 2002 Champagne machine age
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Vintage Dazor desk lamp mdl. 2002 Seafoam machine age
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VINTAGE DAZOR DRAFTING WORKSHOP FLOATING LIGHT
US $21.99 (0 Bid)
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Vtg. Dazor Magic Arm Desk Clamp Mount Drafting Light
US $19.99 (0 Bid)
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