3 eco-friendly lighting tips to brighten your day (and night)featured
Disclosure: This “all things eco-friendly lighting” post is sponsored by Lowe’s Home Improvement and GE Lighting. Although I was compensated, all thoughts, opinions, and gorgeously (and dimmably) lit corners of my home are entirely my own.
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Let’s talk eco-friendly lighting, shall we?
I’ve been on a mission to downsize the clunky, utilitarian lamps and fixtures from our home for years now…but that doesn’t exactly mean I want to sit in the dark, either. Here are three of my absolute favorite ways to perfectly light each room and nook (without harming the environment or the contents of your wallet).
Reduce, reuse & upcycle
Talk about my kids’ definitions of “vintage:” For our wedding, we had wrapped strands of delicate, paper party lights around tent poles and draped them around the reception space. All of that gorgeous pastel greatness shouldn’t be wasted, right? (Right.) Spared from the landfill, these (yards n’ yards) are now used as night lights in each kiddo’s bedroom! The soft glow amps up a reading nook- especially in my 6 year-old’s fairly magical bunk bed haven- and my 4 year-old son loves how his makes it look like “it’s always a party.” Not just when he needs to talk about his feelings at 2am, either.
(And no, children, “ten years ago” may seem like eons and eons, but it isn’t. So stop asking if we had actual music back then.)
Treasure hunting can be illuminating
I feel like I’m forever showing you people my desk, but I just love the look of smallish, Tiffany-inspired glass lamps. And put together, in a grouping of sizes, heights, and styles? Instant curation (and extra light cast). Play around with this one, peeps. The best part of finding your style with a project like this is that, generally speaking, it’s one of the cheapest ways to revamp a corner of a room with found treasures that there is. Salvation Army? Garage sales? Your grandma’s attic? Eco-friendly lighting is closer than you think.
Step away from the Pottery Barn: it’s not needed at this time.
Love Your Light with Bobby Berk, Lowe’s Home Improvement & GE Lighting
Remember when I met Queer Eye’s Bobby Berk and learned about all things lighting with Lowe’s and GE? (I’m still beaming- ha ha- about it. He’s so great, and if you’re not watching the show you really oughta be.) So, he’s a longtime GE Reveal lighting fan (dating back to the days when he had an apartment with dingy, yellowed walls which he initially thought could be “brightened” with fluorescent bulbs…Oof). And once he made the switch? “Who knew high-def existed for lights?” I also got to check out the newly redesigned Lowe’s lighting aisles, see the revamped LED options for the home, and discover how they’ve taken the guesswork out of lighting up your life. (Pro tip: the light boxes in each aisle are so fun to use, and cast realistic hues to what it’ll be in your place. Also, they’re great spots to take selfies. You’re welcome.)
Bobby loves the vintage-style lights that look old but are still LED. (Did you know that 60% of lightbulbs in lighting aisles are LED now? “It’s the future, you guys!”) His tip? Try them in bathroom sconces for an unexpected look and a warm hue. “Lighting affects you more than you realize…it affects your mood.”
And how. After adding a 60W Vintage Style, Warm Candlelight bulb (in amber glass, and dimmable) to a dark corner of my living room with a simple vintage-style pendant light, it’s incredible to me that I went so long without it. (And I won’t go without it for a long, long time, either; these bulbs average 13 years before they need replacing. Mercury-free, these are also worry-free when it comes time for disposal. And the estimated energy cost of one of these babies? 72 cents. Per year.)
Doesn’t that just give you a nice, glowy feeling?
Brighten my day- add your own tips!
Comment below!
