If you enjoy reading in bed or playing games on your computer, having the right task lighting is essential. Today, we’ll share with you our Top 5 Picks For Swing Reading Arm Lights for your bedroom, but, before we do, there’s something you’ll need to do – or ask your designer to do.
MEASURING
If you’ll be installing an electrical outlet next to your bed for your swing arm wall mounted reading lamp, and you care about getting it just right so you’ll be comfortable when you’re laying up against your pillows, you’ll need to know the total height of all of these elements added together: your bed, from the floor to the top of the largest pillow.
Here’s what you’ll need to add together: the height of your bed’s frame, mattress and box springs, the height of your sheets and coverlets, the height of your headboard at the edge where you’ll be placing your swing arm light, the height of the highest pillow insert and if the pillowcase on that pillow has a flange edge { like the one on the pillowcase in the picture above } you’ll want to measure the height of that, too.
Once you know all these measurements and add them together {and take into consideration other elements that will be seen on the same wall – like your art, curtained canopies, other furniture } then you can { or you can ask your designer to } render an elevation of your bedroom’s wall, in 1/4″ scale, looking at it straight on, like this. Once this is done, your electrician, with confidence, will know exactly at what height and width to install the electrical box for your swing arm lights.
OUR TOP FIVE PICKS FOR SWING ARM READING LIGHTS { and what you might want to consider before you purchase yours }
Our #1 favorite is the one below from Ralph Lauren, for it’s height adjustability and the elegant on/off chain which is easy to feel for in the darkness, if you’re looking to turn on the light.
When you look at these wall mounted swing arm reading lights, they all look beautiful and they are all functional, but are they functional for you? If you’re seriously thinking about these for your own home, here are our tips for what you would you want to consider:
1. How far out does the swing arm extend and what does your clearance need to be over the headboard and pillows, over the depth of the pillows and over the shoulder of the person who will be using it.
2. The wattage of the bulb. For instance, the 5 swing arm reading lights we’ve chosen as our favorites each use a different wattage: [ 1] uses a 75 watt bulb, 1 uses [ 1] 150 watt bulb, one uses [2] 75 watt bulbs, one uses [1] 100 watt bulb and 1 uses a 50 watt halogen bulb. You’ll need to consider which wattage is right for the eyesight of the person who will be using it.
3. How hot the lightbulb{s} might be. Would a 50 watt halogen bulb be too hot for you? Can you adjust the head of the lamp to take a bit of that heat off, if you need to?
4. Is it wired for dimming or can it be set on a dimmer so that it casts a soft light and is not quite as bright when you’re not using it?
5. How does it turn on and off? Is that comfortable? If you’re buying this for an elderly person’s bedroom or someone that is extremely heavy, will it be easy for them to lift themselves up a bit, turn around and reach behind themselves to turn the light off? If not, which choice would be best for that person?
6. If you have a canopy bed, can you reach the on and off switch easily? Can you pull the swing arm towards you easily? Does the head of the reading light need to adjust or , if it is a shaded light, is the light spread from below the shade enough to see by, easily, depending on where the person is sitting up in bed..or laying down to read or play on their computer?
7. How do the shade options mix with the shade options on the bedside table lamps you might be using? Are customized shades needed { or available as standard} so the two shades coordinate?
8.. Can the cord hang loose or can it be hard wired. or is one or the other standard? A loose hanging cord can sometimes be preferable so it can be hidden easily behind a headboard or pillows.
9. Does the manufacturer have a specification sheet available for you and your electrician, architect and designer? Let’s take an example. This beautiful wall mounted swing arm reading light, below { one of our Top 5 Picks } was designed by Thomas O’Brien. Below it, you will see the specification sheet so you will know whether it will really work for your needs or not. However, notice how you can’t see where the on/off switch is -either in the picture or on the specification sheet. You would need to ask.
10. Does the swing arm move easily so that it can be pushed back in place easily when it’s time to sleep? Will it discolor if touched by hands a lot? Does it come with, or need, a special protective finish?
Here are our other Top 5 Picks.
And last but not least, an option in nickel plated solid brass from our friends at Frederick Cooper, who also make the most beautiful standing reading lights we’ve seen.
And lastly, please keep in mind, should you choose to work with a professional decorator like Leslie Hendrix Wood or your own designer in your own locale, or a designer like California’s Suzanne Tucker who designed the beautiful bedroom above, questions like the ones we’ve suggested you consider will be common ones for them to ask you, in each and every step of planning your home. Your thoughtful answers will help them know how to make your home as comfortable, functional, gracious, elegant and aesthetically pleasing as possible for your family – down to the tiniest detail.
As fashion designer Carolina Herrera so eloquently puts it:
Readers, now we’d love to know what you think of our top 5 Favorite Wall Mounted Reading Lights. Do you have others that you prefer? Do you have additional tips for buying considerations? Has this post been helpful to you? Please let us know in the comments. We read each and every one and appreciate hearing your opinions and, as always, thank you for reading Hadley Court.
Leslie Carothers
for
Leslie Hendrix Wood
Decorator
Chancellor Interiors
Midland, Texas
Founder, Editor In Chief of Hadley Court
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Gracious Living. Timeless Design. Family Traditions.
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