Home Decor Lighting Tips - Terms and Definitions

Use the terms and definitions below to educate yourself about interior lighting so you'll know exactly what to look for when shopping online.

* Accent Lamps - Decorative lights that are used to set a mood, enhance decor, or draw attention to a certain area of a room.

* Ambient - General light that provides the overall light for a room.  This is usually an overhead light in rooms that need brightness.  It can also be a dimmer light, depending on the purpose of the room.

* Banker's Lamp - A desk lamp that traditionally had a green glass shade, but now comes with
different shade colors.

* Baffle Reflector - A device used on lamp shades that have large top diameters to reflect light
downward and diffuse light upward, thus, reducing the glare.

* Base - A lamp's body, which can be made of metal, porcelain, crystal, wood, brass or other materials.

* Base Switch - Switch at the bottom of the lamp, used for turning it on and off.

* Boudoir Lamp - A bedroom lamp.

* Buffet Candlestick - An accent lamp that's tall and slender, and often used on consoles, mantels, buffets or night stands.

 
* Candelabrum Lamp - A lamp base that has a candlestick with branches or arms.

* Compact Fluorescent (CFL) - Small fluorescent bulbs which usually can be used in a standard
medium-base socket. The benefit of CFL is they use 20-40% less electricity than incandescent
bulbs and produce light close to sunlight.

* Desk Lamps - Lamps used to light an area for work and study.  Adjust these lamps to be
around 15 inches above the work area for best results.

* Dimmer Switch - Switch used to increase or decrease light intensity.

* Drum-style Shade - This shade has the same diameter at the top and bottom, and looks similar
to a cylinder.

* Empire-style Shade - A shade that's narrow at the top and a little wider at the bottom; shaped
similar to a triangle.

* Faux - Lamp base has a fake finish or uses fake materials.

* Finial - Decorative piece used to fasten the harp to the shade.

* Fitter - Where three prongs meet at a centered ring within the diameter of the top of a shade,
also called a spider.

* Floor Lamp - Lamp that stands alone on the floor, also called a stick lamp.

* Fluorescent - Energy efficient bulbs that use 20-40% less electricity than standard incandescent bulbs.

* Fluting - To make deliberate vertical lines as a decor method.

* Foot Candles - The amount of light that reaches a subject.

* Halogen - Bulbs used for accent lighting that are small and hot-burning.  These types of bulbs
provide more light per watt and also have longer life.

* Hard-Back Shade - A shade made with a paper or vinyl lining.

* Hardwire Lighting - Lighting fixtures that are wired directly to an electrical system instead of
being plugged into a socket.  These can be wall sconces, bathroom lighting, or overhead lighting.

* Harp - Brass piece used to secure a lamp's shade to its base.

* Hurricane Lamp - A lamp with a cylinder-like shade that was originally used to protect a
candle or kerosene flame from high winds. They're now used with electrical bulbs.

* Incandescent - These are standard bulbs, generally from 15-150 watts.  They screw in and
provide warm, soft lighting in a room.

* Lumens - The amount of light produced by a bulb.

* Mica - Thin layers of mineral which when fused together, create a translucent shade material
which emits a warm glow. Mica is used in its natural color or is often dyed amber.

* Mini Lamp - A small accent lamp under 15" in height.

* Pharmacy Lamp - A lamp with an easily adjustable shade, often used for reading.

* Pleat - A flat vertical fold of cloth used in many lampshade designs.

* Portable Lighting -  Another word for lamps or any lighting that can be plugged in and easily
moved from one location to another.

* Socket - Electrical connector into which the bulb is screwed that usually has a switch located at the base.

* Six-Way Floor Lamp - A lamp with six different lighting levels, often used for lighting large
areas.

* Soft Shade - A shade used to create an elegant decor that has fabric for both its inner and
outer materials.

* Swag - A decorative image of a garland of fruit and flowers or a cloth tied with ribbons and
attached to a background.

* Swing-Arm Floor Lamp - A floor lamp with a double-arm that can be swung horizontally for
adjustments.  This lamp is often used for reading.

* Task Lamp - A simple lamp used to light an area where a task is being performed.

* Tiffany - A glass-shaded lamp made from a mosaic of glass panels.  This lamp derives from the Art Noveau style of lamp designs by Louis Comfort Tiffany, designed in the early 20th century.

* Torchette - An accent table lamp that directs light upward.

* Torchiere - A standing floor lamp that directs light upward.

* Tray-Table Floor Lamp - A floor lamp that has a wood or glass tray, often used as a table.

* Twin-Pull Desk Lamp - A desk lamp with decorative pulls for turning the light on or off.

* Wattage - The amount of electricity a bulb consumes.