Lighting Blog

We`ve been busy at Lighting Styles these last few weeks adding new plaster pendants, wall lights and sculpural lighting (or is it art?). The majority of this lighting comes from Atelier Sedap a French manufacturer who have been manufacturing and producing the finest plaster fittings for many years.



Almost all the lighting is available in either a natural plaster finish, white paint finish or a RAL colour. The natural finished products are beautiful and it would seem a shame to paint something that looks so wonderful left in its natural state. Of course if you have a particular colour scheme the option to paint your fitting is a bonus.



We particularly like the sculptural fittings and we have been selling these to architects, designers and home owners who want something a different on their wall to provide interest and lighting. The Gemme plaster wall light has been a firm favourite and looks stunning either lit or unlit.



As well as wall lights, corner lights, pendants and downlights there is also a range of children`s lighting which is whimsical yet beautifully designed.



Whatever you are looking for to light your space there is something in this group of products that is sure to impress. Take a look through the ranges and let us know what you think.

Tags:  plaster wall lights, plaster downlights, architectural plaster lights, corner plaster wall lights

These Funk shades are great for mixing and matching. They are for use with the Funk lamp holder and are available in TEN different colours. The joy of this product is it can be matched or mixed with the same flex or a different colour flex as you wish. Great used singularly but real impact can be made if you mix up several and use in one area.


By investing in this new Funk shade 50p of your purchase goes in full towards providing girl orphans in India with an opportunity for a safe childhood and a future where they can fend for themselves.


There are three transparent colours: turquoise, clear and purple. The solid colours: white, red, black, blue, purple, yellow and lime green all with a white interior.

Tags:  Funk, pendant shade, ceiling lighting, bedroom ceiling light

Many may believe that downlights are a relatively new light fitting but they were first developed in the early 1940s. However it can be hard to fit downlights into a more traditional setting. These traditional style downlights, which are availble in four different finishes, are great for use in say a period study or living area.



For thoese people who know nothing about downlights they are a recessed light (or downlight) which is a light fixture installed into a hollow opening in a ceiling. When installed it appears to have light shining from a hole in the ceiling, concentrating the light in a downward direction as a broad floodlight or narrow spotlight. Many people opt for downlights as they can provide a good spread of light in a room rather than a single pendant or wall lights.



There are two parts to a downlight, the trim and the housing. The trim is the visible portion of the light. It is the insert that is seen when looking up into the fixture, and also includes the thin lining around the edge of the light. The housing is the fixture itself that is installed inside the ceiling and contains the lamp holder.



Take a look at our downlight sections as there are many different varieties, styles and finishes to choose from.

Tags:  downlights, mains downlighters, LV downlights, low voltage downlights

With fashions changing the Vintage and Victorian look have been in the media. Interior design follows suit and lighting uses many influences from this period.



Using replicas from the Victorian and Edwardian era makes lighting quite distinctive. Lighting Styles has a stunning range of Period Lighting including Carriage lamps and Period Torchiere Wall Lights. Handmade from solid brass with a number of finishes available including Light Antique and Bronze. This is something a little bit different from the norm and truly a lovely possession.



Whilst you may wish to change your whole house into a particular style it may be wise to just do one room first. You can recreate the period era by using velvet fabrics, strong colours and enhancing the Brass look from these stunning products. We love to showcase our homes and high quality features really make the difference.




Have a look at our range of Period Wall Lights, Ceiling Lights, Table Lights and Exterior Lights.

Tags:  Victorian, Period and Traditional Lighting, Wall Lights, exterior lights, exterior lights.

Lighting Styles has sold illuminated shaving and vanity mirrors for a number of years and one common question is the availability of battery operated mirrors. So why would a battery operated shaving mirror be required? Ease of installation means a battery illuminated mirror can just be screwed to the wall and switched on. No electrician is required and any existing decoration and wall tiles are not disturbed by the need to channel out the wall to provide and electrical supply.
However the high energy usage of halogen and fluorescent lamps made them impractical to operate on batteries – the batteries simply would not operate the lamps for a long enough period of time or would give insufficient light to make them worthwhile. Once high output LED lamps became available their energy efficient use of electricity and their requirement for a low voltage DC supply made them ideal for use on batteries.

So with new technology providing a low energy light source Lighting Styles went through a design exercise to make the most practical and stylish design for a mirror that would use the LED light source. The first requirement was to have a mirror that gave a magnified image. Popular levels of magnification for use in vanity and shaving mirrors are 3x and 5 x magnification. This level of magnification makes it easier to apply make-up with accuracy and enable a close shave that doesn’t miss hairs in more awkward places.

Also in the design process was the requirement for the mirror to be flexible enough for use by all member of the family. So the design was based around a vertical rail that allows the height of the mirror to be raised or lowered to suit users of different height. Other practical design requirements include the ability to bring the mirror closer to the user and make it easy to fold away so an arm is used that brings the mirror 150mm forward for close-up work. Next to suit all bathroom layouts the design incorporated a ball joint that allowed the mirror to tilt and rotate so that the user can see a clear image when using the battery operated mirror.

With the design aesthetics of the battery shaving mirror in place the practicalities of providing the best light source was considered. Behind the magnified glass is a printed circuit board with 36 “T” type LED chips that emit light to the side where a opaque plastic ring surrounding the mirror catches the light an illuminates the face. Another practical requirement for a battery operated shaving mirror is ensuring long battery life and consideration was given to how this would be achieved. After careful trials Lighting styles discovered that incorporating an automatic timer into the on switch would be a good and reliable way of ensuring the mirror was not left on after use. Many of us are in a rush in the morning so it would be a mistake to make a battery operated mirror that does not automatically switch itself off! This function saves the batteries and ensures long time between battery replacements. Lastly a few other improvements were made including a soft push button that switches the lights on and allows for three levels of brightness.

Now you can have a stylish battery operated mirror in your bathroom that is made from sturdy steel with a polished chrome finish with a glass mirror illuminated by LED lights.

Tags:  Illuminated mirror,