lamps
A small history lessen is in order to understand how I made the transition to steam punk style lighting. The workshop I now enjoy was once the home/business location of my wife's grandfather Ben Tyler, who was a sheetmetal and furnace man that mainly did tin roofs and gutter work, but his book and tool collection tells me he did just about any kind of work. My mother-in-law still lives upstairs, but the entire first floor is a sprawling workspace packed with old-school tools and scrap material that has been in disuse since the 1960's. Having an eye bent on finding new uses for forgotten things makes this place a wonderland to me. And once I start off in a specific direction, there is no stopping my brain from seeing all the possibilities that may lie in that direction (i.e. once started, I tend to obsess on it). This is my obsession with lamps.
STEAM PUNK LAMPS
With all the scrap plumbing parts and old torches laying around the shop, it sounded like the logical thing to do.
cIGAR BOX LAMPS
Hundreds of cigar boxes have been collected. What to do, what to do . . .
OTHER THINGS THAT CAN BE MADE TO TURN ON
The ironing board lamp is a whimsical piece that I found humorous. Thinking about a horribly wrinkled shirt recoiling from an iron that was trying to make it 'conform' just tickles me. Its made from an antique ironing board with an antique iron that operates the light (the guts of which are simple yet confusing).
The birdhouse motel started with an antique suitcase find. Birdhouse motel was an obvious choice (to me) but not suited for exterior use, so 2 types of LED lighting were added to simulate incandescent and halogen lighting with copper tubing to focus light direction. The roofs over the doors are cigar box corners and the doorways are made from drapery rings. The stand is red oak with a hollow core for the wiring. Had to learn a lot about LED wiring, but this was an enjoyable challenge.
