Readers may recall my fascination with Jun'ichirō Tanizaki’s beautiful book, In Praise of Shadows. It’s a heartfelt essay on aesthetics in which Tanizaki suggests that lightness and darkness become more beautiful when viewed in relation to one another. In the heat of the summer, we sought shade whereas now – as we approach the shortest day – we're able to control and direct our own light sources to magical effect.
Lighting is the ultimate tool for creating atmosphere. This is something I’ve noticed more and more on screen where there seems to be an increased appetite for shadow, with darkness often being used to create intensity, drama and intrigue. It’s a neat trick that I think translates to our homes, too.
There is a romance to a room that draws you in with painterly pools of light. The lower level of visual stimulation is instantly relaxing as we seek a primeval safety in the shadows. I am forever playing around with the light levels in any room I inhabit, even if it’s a hotel room I’m staying in for the briefest moment. I will head straight to the dimmer and even remove light bulbs if necessary: it drives my family nuts!
The right lighting will make a huge impact on your home. Firstly, lighting is something you can approach in increments, one room, or even one lamp, at a time. Plus it needs very little intervention (no builders required). Lamps are also incredibly flexible and forgiving: there really is no such thing as a bedroom lamp, or a kitchen lamp. They migrate happily from one room to another and – at NH&Co HQ – we firmly believe that you can never have too many lamps. They act like little punctuation marks dotted throughout a space.
I especially love to see lamps in unexpected places. For example, in my own home (we’re currently renting a townhouse in Bristol), I have a desk lamp peering over my cooker, because I couldn’t stand the blue light that shone down from the extractor fan. Elsewhere in the kitchen, I’ve modified a table lamp so that it hangs low over the kitchen table, creating an intimate gathering space. On the mantelpiece in my living room the art works that are propped up are lit by a vintage red Anglepoise lamp I picked up at a flea market.
The vintage Anglepoise lamp is a design classic that inspired our own Focused Desk Lamp, which is available as a floor, table and wall lamp. Our customisable design incorporates a useful handle that enables you to pool light in any direction. Lighting is where Nix began really and, as with all our designs, we focussed on a recurrent need and worked backwards to find a design that would address that need – borrowing ideas from vintage designs that had passed through our projects along the way.
Building a collection of lamps gradually over time allows you to experiment with different periods and different price points. Looking around, I’ve actually still got lamps that I had as a student and I feel just as excited to live alongside them now that I’m (almost) a grownup. Their usefulness is entirely undimmed. My advice is to be brave: experiment with shapes and shades and remember to think not just about how they look during the day, but the effect that they create after dark.
We have named one of the lamp shades in the Nix collection the Whimsical. It is a brilliantly bold shape inspired by the lampshades of the 1970s that were tall and over-sized. It’s a great example of how you can completely transform a simple lamp base into something a lot more impactful. It's got enough about it to light up – in every sense – the corner of a room.
The makers at Nix have deployed another neat trick. Our Rise Straight Empire, Townhouse Hexagonal and To the Point lamp shades are made with a dusty pink liner that is incredibly flattering to even the most weary complexions. The magic happens after dusk when your room will be lit by a warm, rosy glow.
Lightbulb Moment
Needless to say, bulbs are a bugbear of mine. They make an enormous difference to how a room feels. I buy Zico LED bulbs, which have a wonderful warm, almost tactile, quality to them. Paired with any of our Spotty Dotty Tan lamp shades – which are made from handmade Nepalese Batik paper – the soft, uneven, caramel tones of the shade create a beautiful quality of light that resembles the warm glow of a naked flame.
Fragrant Flames
Which brings me neatly on to scented candles ... I truly believe that our homes should speak to all of our senses and actually, a good quality scented candle is a luxury that I would find it hard to let go of. If they are beautifully made, you can use them sparingly and they will fill your home with an aroma that will become personal to you. Cire Trudon is a heritage brand that produces some beautiful fragrances, and Paul Smith has a collection of scented candles that have been poured into tinted glass vessels with contrasting lids. With names such as Storyteller, Daydreamer and Merrymaker, I admit they have captured my heart and earned a place at the top of my Christmas wish list.
