Different Types of Lampshade Shapes

Lamp Shade Shapes

Once the use of electric light became common place in households at the start of the 20^th century there has been a requirement of lampshades to mask the harsh effects of the light and to add an element of class and design to home lighting.

There are a number of classic lampshade design shapes and in this article we look at five classic lampshade shapes and the different moods and lighting effects that each of the shade shapes can help to create.   

A well-chosen lamp with the right bulb, shade and position can add that extra touch of class and drama to a room.

Empire Lamp Shade

The Empire Lamp Shade is the most common type of lamp shade and is designed with gently sloping sides to the bottom so that the top is narrower than the bottom but within stylishly proportion.  Empire shades come in a wide range of sizes, finishes and can be used for celling lamps or standing lamps.

The empire style fits well in Victorian styled rooms. It is mostly commonly used in table lamps and the top diameter should be half the size of the bottom diameter.

Bell Lamp Shade

The design of the bell lampshade is similar to that of the empire shade with an added touch of 1950’s glamour. The design has the narrow top and wide bottom of the empire but has more flair in terms of a bell shaped wave at the end. They are popular for table lamps and floor lamps.

Drum Lamp Shade

Drum lampshades are flatter than both the bell and empire lampshade shapes. The have the shape of a snare drum with the top and bottom of the shade the same size with a thinner middle connecting the top and bottom.

Retro drum shades are more open at the top with a steeper slope than the classic empire and bell shapes. Drum lampshades work well on table lamps and on the ceiling of larger rooms. Drum lamp shades are great because they can diffuse light outward through the shade fabric, but they also reflect light downward and upward where it can light up the ceiling.

Tube Lamp Shade

Tube lamp shades tend to be the most common type of lampshade that you see in homes. They are very similar to the drum shade, the opening at top and bottom are the same size, however the central piece of the shade is much wider and longer.

They are commonly used in bathrooms, hallways, landings and kitchens. Tube lampshades have been in production since the early 1900’s but the design can be keep very contemporary with modern materials and finishes.

Coolie

The coolie lampshade is sometime called the flare lamphade. Coolie’s feature a sharp pitch between a narrow top and a much wider opening at the bottom. A coolie lampshade works very well with certain table lamps – especially end table lamps

It is very close in term of design to that of the bell shade. However the coolie lampshade is shorter and squatter with a more pronounced difference between the top and bottom of the shade.

Lighting Works - Lamp Shades online 

Property Market Trends and its impact

English: Bacton Hall Adjacent to Church Farm, presently advertised as for sale on the property market. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Property Market Trends and its Impact

According to Halifax, house prices were up very slightly in March. Compared with February they rose by 0.1%. They are still down by 3.3% compared with March 2010 though.

The number of people buying homes has drastically slowed, and this is something that is worrying many in the property market. Some have suggested this could be because house prices are not coming down enough. People would rather stay put for now than reduce the asking price of their homes, meaning people aren’t being encouraged to buy the way they would if prices had fallen more significantly. With many worse off than they were a few years ago it means that despite lower prices, people are actually less likely to buy. With it being harder to get a mortgage than it was and with higher deposits required, it makes it even more difficult. All these factors mean that to some extent the property market is in flux.

The question is what would need to happen for the market to become more active? As already touched upon, prices falling further would liven up the market, although property owners may not come out of it well. This does seem unlikely though, or at least unlikely there will be any significant drop. If prices were low enough it would encourage people to take the opportunities while they can, and make it affordable to a wider group of people. If this doesn’t happen, it seems likely that we will have to wait until the overall economic situation improves across the country.

The government has come up with a new scheme whereby first time buyers can borrow up to 20% of their deposit for a home, therefore only having to pay 5% themselves. It is hoped that this could have a similar impact that the scrappage scheme had for cars had. This is good news for many first time buyers looking to get on the housing ladder and for property developers, but not so good news for the property market in general. The scheme only applies to new builds so for those looking to sell their existing home it will make no difference, or could even have a negative impact.

Although the above news affects much of the country, it doesn’t mean the property market is dead everywhere. There are always people with money and there are always sought after areas. In particular there are areas of London where the property market is still relatively active, with areas such as Kensington and Fulham, and suburbs such as Wimbledon and Richmond, not suffering the way other areas are.

Another influence that the current state of the property market is having is the lettings market. With prices of homes lower than at their high, there is the opportunity for some to buy-to-let. And with many unable to get onto the housing ladder it means that rented homes are in high demand. With prices bound to rise in the long-term, there are those who will be able to profit from such a market.

Andrew Marshall (c)

Winchester White are a Letting Agents Wimbledon.

A History of Surf Music Part One

The term surf music is linked in popular culture with the Beach Boys and those classic hits. However the music has a rich and varied history that predates the Beach Boys. Surf Music is a by-product of the surf culture that developed in Southern California in the 1950's and 1960's. Although surfing has a history that goes back much further than the 1950's it is the arrival of the teenager in these years that kick started the surfing craze.

Surf Music is a by-product of the surf culture that developed in Southern California in the 1950's and 1960's. Although surfing has a history that goes back much further than the 1950's it is the arrival of the teenager in these years that kick started the surfing craze.

Surfing culture has influenced everything from beachwear, bikinis to board shorts, language, film and music. Surf music can be divided into Surf Rock and Surf Pop and within these sub genres there is also instrumental music and vocal music.

The first time a link was established in popular culture between surfing and music was the release of the film Gidget in 1959. The film starring Sandra Dee, Cliff Robertson and James Darren is widely credited with introducing the subculture of surfing to the wider American public. The music in the film is performed James Darren and the Four Preps. The sound is classic late 1950's pop without a hint of rock and roll or the treble heavy sound that came to dominate the sound of surfing.

The King of Surf Guitar and the originator of instrumental surf music is Dick Dale. Dale took the instrumental sounds of Duane Eddy, Les Paul and Link Wray and added a surfer's twist to the sounds. A set of heavy gauge guitar strings and liberal use of the inbuilt reverb on Fender amplifiers help Dale to produce his signature sound.

During a six month period that in 1961,Dale's performances at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa are credited with the creation of the surf music phenomenon. Dale had to move to the 3,000 capacity venue occurred when the local places he was playing sold out.

Lets Go Tripping unleashed in September 1961 by Dick Dale is widely seen as the first ever surfing song. The instrumental lasting just over two minutes was released on Dale's own Deltone label. The song was later covered by The Beach Boys on Surfin USA and even became the theme tune to the BBC Radio 4 radio show Home Truths. The song was picked up by Capitol Records and reached number 60 on the national charts in the USA. Dale followed up with a cover of Greek track Misirlou a one string wonder of a song.

Other records were soon released. Dick Dale's first album "Surfers Choice" was released in early 1962 and was mostly recorded live at the Rendezvous Ballroom. The Los Angeles based The Challengers, an offshoot of another surf band the Bel-Airs released the second Surf music LP with Surf Beat just a month after Dale's debut. The LP was recorded in one single three and a half hour session and contained versions of many of the songs that had influenced the surf sound and covers of Dick Dale's Let's Go Tripping and an instrumental take on the first Beach Boys single Surfin' Safari.

The Beach Boys and Jan and Dean would add glorious harmonies take the surf music sound overground in the coming years.

Tony Heywood ©

I am a big music and surf culture fan. Surf Music Information and L Designer Swimwear for Men

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6768860

History of the Regent Street and Oxford Street Christmas Lights in London.

One of the signs that Christmas is close is the turning on of the Christmas lights in Regent Street and Oxford Street in central London. This year the lights were switched on by Bill Nighy, Ashley Jensen, Kelly Clarkson, Matt Cardle and Emma Bunton on the 8^th November. The switch on this year was also accompanied by a firework display and a gospel choir.

The lights stretch down the length of the grand Georgian thoroughfare of Regent Street in London’s Mayfair. I can remember visiting the Christmas lights as a child in the late 1970s and many Londoners view the switching on of the lights as official start of the Christmas shopping period. The lights and lamp shades light up the dark London night with the magic of Christmas.

Although the lights are now a firm fixture on the Christmas calendar there history does not extend back as far as the famous Blackpool illuminations. The Blackpool illuminations started back in 1879 at the creation of electric light. The Regent Street lights are relatively new comers with the first set of lights being installed in 1953. There had been Christmas trees in 1948 and partial lights from 1949 but the first full set of lights came in 1953.

The lights in the more popular but less grand Oxford Street first started in 1959. . A number of different celebrities have had the pleasure of pushing the button to turn on the lights in Oxford Street. The celebrities chosen to switch on the lights are like a history lesson in English popular culture. In 1982 it was Daley Thompson the athlete and other notable people have included Bob Geldof in 1985 and the various soap stars and pop bands.

The lights in both streets have carried sponsorship for a number of years with West End shows such as Scrooge , films such as Flushed Away, mobile phone firm Nokia, ASDA and even Birdseye frozen food.

The lights are paid for by the traders in the two streets and because of the harsh economic climate in England in the mid 1970’s there were no Christmas lights between 1972 and 1977.

This year’s Oxford Street lights are giant twinkly snowflakes and in Regent Street we have branded lights for the family film Arthur Christmas. The twin thoroughfares no longer have a monopoly on Christmas lights in central London. There are now impressive displays in a number of other locations including St Christopher’s Place, Carnaby Street, Marylebone, Convent Garden, St Pancras Train Station and Trafalgar Square.

The lights in Trafalgar Square focus around the huge Christmas tree which has been in place since 1949. A tradition that pre dates the Regent Street and Oxford Street lights. The tree is a free gift from Norway to the London and is always decorated in a Norwegian style. The UK provided safe haven for the Norwegian Royal Family and Government during the Second World War and the tree is sent every year as a token of the Norwegian people’s thanks for the help provided in those dark days.

London’s Christmas lights give the city a magical feel during the run up to Christmas and if you are in London during December it is always worth a trip to see them. The lights in Oxford Street and Regent Street intersect at Oxford Circus and this getting out at Oxford Circus tube station. This is a great place to start exploring the Christmas lights in London. You can then walk down Regent Street, see the Carnaby Street lights and carry on down via Shaftsbury Avenue to Trafalgar Square. It is a lovely half an walk through the magic of Christmas.

Tony Heywood ©

The Blackpool Illuminations Early Years

Lamp Shades

The Blackpool Illuminations are the one of the highlight of the late autumn early winter in the north west of England. The annual festival of light takes place between early September for 66 nights in the seaside town of Blackpool on the Irish sea coast. Blackpool is a magnet for UK holiday makers and the population of the town increases in the months the lights are switched on.

It takes a massive twenty two weeks each year to install over a million lights, lampshades, wiring and rigs that produce the wonderful display. It then takes another nine weeks to take down the lights and store them away once the Illuminations have finished.

The origins of the Blackpool Illuminations reach back into the late 19th Century when the local council invested in the first electric street lights in England and maybe even the world. The "artificial sunshine" lights were first used on Blackpool promenade in September 1879. The eight arc lights emitted light that equaled 48,000 candles and the switching on of the lights was advertised across the UK. The lights caused a national sensation with somewhere between 60,000 to 100,000 visitors to the town to witness the new technology.

A royal visit that of Princess Louise in May 1912 is viewed as the birth of the modern day Illuminations. The Princess was visiting to open a new part of the seafront promenade and the local council strung up a garland of lamps to provide an extra touch of glamour to the opening. In comparison to the modern displays the first Illuminations where fairly small. Only 10,000 lights were used in the show. The lights were a huge success and the Blackpool local chamber of commerce and a leading business people in the town lobbied the town council to run the lights again in September.

The lights were a huge success drawing visitors to the town from all over the UK. The Princess Parade as the lights were know a the time were deemed so successful that the council looked to stage the event in September every year. The lights in 1913 were another massive draw but sadly the outbreak of World War I,in 1914, meant that the lights were not put up again until 1925.

Once the Blackpool Illumnations returned the size and scale of the displays grew and grew. The lights were now much large and more complex in design and decoration. The length of the display also grew from the small scale display that had informed the first Princess Parade back in 1912. In that first display post the First World War the Illuminations ran the length of the seafront from Manchester Square to Cocker Square and in 1932 the first moving displays were added. The popularity of the yearly light show was increasing all the time but was again curtailed in 1939 by the outbreak of the Second World War. Although the lights were very briefly in place in 1939 they were soon replaced by a huge searchlight on top of Blackpool Tower.

The difficult economic climate after the end of the war meant that the lights didn't return in all their bright eyed glory until 1949.

Louis Oliver (c)

I have a passion for lighting, lamps and everything associated with light. Visit Lighting Works for wonderful Lamp Shades and Light shades

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/5177670

The Early Years of the Blackpool Illuminations.

The Blackpool Illuminations are the one of the highlight of the late autumn early winter in the north west of England. The annual festival of light takes place between early September for 66 nights in the seaside town of Blackpool on the Irish sea coast. Blackpool is a magnet for UK holiday makers and the population of the town increases in the months the lights are switched on.

It takes a massive twenty two weeks each year to install over a million lights, lampshades, wiring and rigs that produce the wonderful display. It then takes another nine weeks to take down the lights and store them away once the Illuminations have finished.

The origins of the Blackpool Illuminations reach back into the late 19^th Century when the local council invested in the first electric street lights in England and maybe even the world. The “artificial sunshine” lights were first used on Blackpool promenade in September 1879. The eight arc lights emitted light that equalled 48,000 candles and the switching on of the lights was adverstised across the UK. The lights caused a national sensastion with somewhere between 60,000 to 100,000 vistors to the town to witness the new technology.

A royal visit that of Princess Louise in May 1912 is viewed as the birth of the modern day Illuminations. The Princess was visiting to open a new part of the seafront promenade and the local council strung up a garland of lamps to provide an extra touch of glamour to the opening. In comparsion to the modern displays the first Illuminations where fairly small. Only 10,000 lights were used in the show. The lights were a huge success and the Blackpool local chamber of commerce and a leading business people in the town lobbied the town council to run the lights again in September.

The lights were a huge success drawing visitors to the town from all over the UK. The Princess Parade as the lights were know a the time were deemed so successful that the council looked to stage the event in September every year. The lights in 1913 were another massive draw but sadly the outbreak of World War I,in 1914, meant that the lights were not put up again until 1925.

Once the Blackpool Illumnations returned the size and scale of the displays grew and grew. The lights were now much large and more complex in design and decoration. The length of the display also grew from the small scale display that had informed the first Princess Parade back in 1912. In that first display post the First World War the Illuminations ran the length of the seafront from Manchester Square to Cocker Square and in 1932 the first moving displays were added. The popularity of the yearly light show was increasing all the time but was again curtailed in 1939 by the outbreak of the Second World War. Although the lights were very briefly in place in 1939 they were soon replaced by a huge searchlight on top of Blackpool Tower.

The difficult economic climate after the end of the war meant that the lights didn’t return in all their bright eyed glory until 1949.

Louis Oliver

For more information about lighting, lamp shades and lighting design visit lighting works.