This post is for you if…
- You have art or shelves you love and they’re not getting their moment
- You crave a library, office or living room that feels layered and warm, not overhead-lit and flat
- You’ve got plaster walls, no outlet where you need one, or no desire to hire the electrician right now
Jump to: The shortlist · Picture lights · Table lamps · Sconces · Finishing touches · Old house lighting rules
My hydrangeas are doing the hard work of hiding the cord.
There’s a specific quality of light in a room I want to live in. Warm, layered, directional in places, ambient in others, and never (EVER. EVER!) coming only from the ceiling.
In the rooms that make me feel like I’m LIVING RIGHT, whether it’s a room in a home or a fantastic hotel, bar, or restaurant, there’s almost always picture lights shining, a lamp or two doing something dramatic and useful in a corner, and sconces that are more about the feeling than the function.
The story they tell together makes a room feel cohesive, and warm. And inviting.
My hot take? The picture light is the hardest piece of that equation to solve.
A lamp you can move. A sconce you can swap. A picture light makes you commit: to a piece of art, to a wall or shelf location, and in my house, to a mounting solution that doesn’t destroy plaster or require a call to the electrician.
What we use at Rosemont: the minimal but super flexible Situ plug-in picture light is my first choice. Yes, It’s spendy, so I make sure of the placement and the art itself before I commit.
“I love lamp.”
Brick Tamland, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)
Best Picture Lights, Lamps & Sconces for an Old House
Some links may be affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you choose to purchase, at no additional cost to you. I only share products I like, would use in my own home, have researched and feel confident recommending.
| Pick | Price | Why it’s here | |
|---|---|---|---|
Picture lights | Light your art · What I use Situ Plug-in Vision Series · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $$$ | Remote control and tunable color; the one on my wall |
Light your art · Look for less Dimmable LED Picture Light · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $ | Hit it with Rub n’ Buff to give it some age | |
No outlet · Splurge Situ Cordless Rechargeable Micro Series · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $$$ | High quality when you can’t plug in | |
No outlet · Look for less Rechargeable Picture Light, 3 Color Temps · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $ | Three color temperatures to match the room | |
Shelves · My next splurge Cabinet Maker Double Library Light, Visual Comfort · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $$$ | Perfect classic look just right for Old House shelving | |
Shelves · Look for less Pooky Bronte Cordless Bookshelf Light · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $$ | A rechargeable lamp that sits right on the shelf | |
Shelves · Etsy find BookBulb Handmade Bookshelf Lamp · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $$ | Handmade from an upcycled book; plugs in | |
Table lamps | What I use Henley Task Lamp, Visual Comfort Signature · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $$$ | The sexy little lamp at our living room games table |
Design classic Verner Panton Flowerpot Lamp, VP9 · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $$$ | A cozy glow, lit or not | |
Look for less Flowerpot-Style Dimmable Lamp · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $$ | The look for less you can take with you | |
Sconces | Closest to mine Blueprint Lighting Centric Mesh Sconce · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $$$ | Handmade; the closest current style to ours |
Similar look Modern Forms Blaze 24″ LED Wall Sconce · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $$$ | Spendy, with a beautiful glow | |
Look for less Raw Brass Dome Wall Sconce · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $$ | Incredible in multiples down a hallway | |
Soft glow Alabaster Wall Sconce · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $$ | Warm and soft lit or unlit | |
Finishing touches | Change the finish Rub n’ Buff Gold Three Pack · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $ | Like everything but the finish? Change it. |
Rewire a find Lamp Rewiring Kit · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $ | For the Marketplace lamp with an iffy cord | |
Hide the cord Paintable Cord Covers · Check price ↗ · Learn more ↓ | $ | Paint them the wall color and they disappear |
$ budget · $$ mid-range · $$$ splurge
Lighting Art With a Picture Light: You’ve Got Options
- Plug-in if there’s an outlet within reach. Best light for the money. Plan for how you’ll deemphasize the cord: paintable cord covers solve most of it, and a well-placed plant or stack of books solves the rest.
- Rechargeable if there’s no outlet and you won’t run a cord. Rechargeable lighting has gotten good, and the best ones look right at normal viewing distance. Here’s where quality matters. Be sure you check the light temperature works with your overall desired glow, and know how often you’re going to have to recharge.
- Hardwired when the electric is already available, or when you’re planning your next electrician visit to do some of the heavy lifting.
Best Plug-In Picture Lights for Art
Situ Plug-in Vision Series
The one I live with. LED, tunable and remote-controlled, so I can warm the light to the painting instead of the painting fighting the light. Lots of sizes and finishes, remote controlled, and made in the USA by a company that started as a father and son team.
Power: plug-in Price: $$$ Used at Rosemont: yes
Dimmable LED Picture Light, 2700K/3000K/4000K
Same idea at a fraction of the price. It reads newer out of the box; a little Rub n’ Buff fixes that. A great placeholder to get your glow going even when the budget is tight.
Power: plug-in Price: $ Color temp: 2700K to 4000K
Best Rechargeable Picture Lights (No Outlet Needed)
Situ Cordless Rechargeable Micro Series
The answer when the art lives on a wall with no outlet and you refuse to run a cord across plaster. Situ’s light quality and battery capacity justify the cost.
Power: rechargeable Price: $$$
Rechargeable Picture Light, 3 Color Temps
Three color temps in one fixture. An option when you need light but need it to be light on your wallet.
Power: rechargeable Price: $ Color temp: 3 settings
Best Bookshelf Lights for Built-Ins
Next on my (loooong) project list: library lights on our living room built-ins. I’ve got my eye on the Visual Comfort Cabinet Maker Double Library Light so I can angle the light directly onto the shelves. That one happens when the electrician adds outlets at the top of the shelving, so it can plug in without a cord running down the books.
Cabinet Maker Double Library Light, Visual Comfort
My next lighting splurge. Adjustable arms great for lighting cabinets, shelves, and art.
Power: plug-in (can be hardwired) Price: $$$ On the Rosemont project list
Pooky Bronte Cordless Bookshelf Light in Bronze
A no-electrician answer for stylish shelves. A tiny but vibey cordless lamp that sits right on the shelf, with warm 2700K light and touch dimming. Many finishes and (MANY!) adorable shades on Pooky’s site to make this one your own.
Power: rechargeable Price: $$ Color temp: 2700K Shade sold separately
BookBulb Handmade Bookshelf Lamp, Etsy
The Etsy find for upcycle enthusiasts. A husband-and-wife shop turns used library-sale books into shelf lamps that sit on the shelf like a bookend. Every one is different. Use a warm LED edison bulb.
Power: plug-in Price: $$ Handmade, one of a kind
Related: Sourcing Stunning Art for Your Old Home (at every price point)
Best Table Lamps for an Old House
A good table lamp in the right spot is the difference between a room that feels like a warm hug after dark and one you abandon for somewhere more comfortable.
It doesn’t have to be precious. Or expensive. It has to be in the right place, at the right height, with a shade that diffuses rather than points.
In an older house, look for bases with weight and history: ceramic, turned wood, aged brass. I have scored many an inexpensive-but-fabulous lamp from charity shops, garage sales, and Facebook Marketplace.
The magic of a warm lamp lighting the night never gets old. I’m a huge fan of lamps in windows, so at night the house glows gold inside and out.
One of my favorites at Rosemont: the Henley Task Lamp from Visual Comfort Signature in the living room window. Short, stout, and brassy with a heavy glass diffuser that makes the prettiest light.
Related: 6 ‘Sneaky Modern’ Old House Upgrades, including how the dawn lighting automation works
Henley Task Lamp, Visual Comfort Signature
The lamp in our living room window. Short, stout, with a glass diffuser that makes the prettiest light.
Price: $$$ Used at Rosemont: yes
Verner Panton Flowerpot Lamp, VP9
A cozy glow that looks amazing lit or not. In an Old House room, it’s the epitome of Modern + Patina.
Price: $$$ Designed 1968
Best Wall Sconces for Old House Living Rooms and Libraries
A sconce in a library, office or living room isn’t doing the same job as a bathroom sconce. They’re not lighting a task. They’re adding drama.
Sconces make a room or hallway feel lived in when the overhead is off (OR DIMMED! AS IT SHOULD BE!) and the picture lights and table lamps are doing their work.
The ones most at home in an older house: swing-arm sconces on a visible arm, plug-in where wiring isn’t practical, warm brass or aged bronze, and a shade that throws light where you want the eye to go.
Whether they’re a traditional look, a modern aesthetic, or something eclectic and handmade, sconces wash the walls with magical pools of warmth. Don’t forget the dimmers or smart lights, to maximize the effect.
And how could warm pools of light ever be a bad thing?
Blueprint Lighting Centric Mesh Sconce
Handmade in NYC and New Jersey. Our living room sconces are a discontinued Blueprint style, but this version is pretty close. Customize colors and finishes to your design heart’s content.
Price: $$$ Handmade
Modern Forms Blaze 24″ LED Wall Sconce, 3000K
A similar look to the Blueprint. Still spendy, with a beautiful glow.
Price: $$$ Color temp: 3000K
Raw Brass Dome Wall Sconce
Incredible in multiples down a hallway, with a handmade look for less.
Price: $$ Finish: raw brass
Alabaster Wall Sconce
Alabaster looks warm and soft lit or unlit. I don’t know why I love alabaster so much. But it’s got a hold on me.
Price: $$ Shade: alabaster
Finishing Touches: How to Hide Cords and Update Old Lamps
Lamp Rewiring Kit
Found a lamp you love on Facebook Marketplace but the cord is iffy? Rewire it.
Table and floor lamps
Paintable Cord Covers
The fix for plug-in picture lights. Paint them the wall color and they disappear.
Paintable
Related: Vintage-Style Light Switches for Old Houses + the Look for Less, the other finishing touch you touch every day.
Old House Lighting Rules: Getting Size, Color Temperature & Placement Right
Lighting Art Is Different in an Old House
New construction lets you wire everything where it makes sense. I have no idea what that experience is like, but I imagine it’s pretty terrific. And maybe boring?
In an older house with original plaster and lath, adding wiring to a new spot is a project, not a “let’s do it!” decision. Then there’s the wiring that’s grown up over the last 50 to 80 years: old circuits connecting unrelated rooms, new wire tied into old. It’s a puzzle that comes with every old house, unless you open up the walls and rewire completely. In ours, it’s a project that gets tackled over time.
That’s exactly why plug-in and rechargeable picture lights exist. Not all rechargeables are worth buying, so do your research. I trust Situ and Pooky because they have so many enthusiastic 5-star reviews. Plug-ins create an ugly-cord problem you have to solve, and rechargeables vary widely in battery life, light quality and color temperature.
What Makes a Picture Light Right (or Wrong)
Light it Right
Look for a warm brass, bronze, or aged metal finish, solid arm construction (not plastic pretending to be metal), a beam wide enough to light the painting well instead of creating a “hot spot”, and color temperature at or below 3000K.
Don’t get it Wrong
Avoid cool white LEDs or stark fluorescents, polished chrome or brushed nickel in a warm-toned room, plastic that reads temporary, and any light that outshines the art or shelves it’s supposed to be highlighting.
What Size Picture Light Do You Need?
Size to the art, not the wall. Be sure to confirm the light’s manufacturer size ratings. Choose fixtures that explicitly state the canvas dimensions they’re meant to cover. This will ensure you get the fixture designed to cast a uniform, even blanket of light across the entire surface of your specific art.
Beware the hot spot. Ignore raw lumen counts because lumens only measure how much total light is emitted in all directions. Buying by lumens alone will get you the opposite of what you’re craving. A harsh, bright “hotspot” at the top of your frame that quickly fades out near the bottom.
What Color Temperature Is Best for Lighting Art?
Stay at 2700K to 3000K. A 4000K picture light on a warm oil painting is a real problem: it drains the warmth right out of it. Color temperature matters more here than anywhere else in the house.
Related and worth a read: I wrote more on warm light bulbs for old houses here.
I can’t wait to see what drama your lighting story uncovers.
You deserve to have a gorgeously warm path to your morning coffee, and art that’s perfectly illuminated for your enjoyment. Be sure to tag 1924rosemont on instagram as you light your Old House.
