Try This for Light

Enlarge Image Image Gallery Artistically and geometrically interesting, lanterns can be strung from corner to corner to bathe a room in light. These spread the illumination and make your watts go farther. Use compact fluorescent bulbs to get the most bang for the buck.

Elegantly simple, infinitely practical absolutely doable projects

Scattering Light

ADMIT IT. We all know compact fluorescent lights are better for the environment, but their cold, bluish, overly bright light doesn’t do much for a room’s atmosphere. The solution: Envelop fluorescent bulbs in warm, mellowed parchments, and their glow becomes more like an incandescent. These artfully customized paper lanterns do the trick while helping the light cast an ambient glow across an entire room. New smaller, compact fluorescents give off as much light as a 60-watt bulb, but they use only 13 watts of electricity. This sculptural string of lights provides 360 watts of illumination while expending the energy of just 1 standard bulb.

FIND IT: A great selection of interesting and reasonably priced paper shades is available on the Internet at www.ShojiDecor.com.

Cut-glass chandelier

A Beautiful way to Recycle These days, bottles come in all shapes, sizes, and colors—many too lovely to throw away. So don’t! Use capped mineral water bottles to make this contemporary candelabra. The beaded finials at the bottom give the chandelier a stylish finish while stoppering the bottle ends and anchoring the candlewicks. A short length of copper pipe decorates the bottle necks. See the directions at right for an easy way to “cut” bottles.

Bottled spirits

A VARIATION
Drill a large hole in a 6-inch square plywood scrap. Two strips of 1- by 2-inch trim become feet for the wooden platform. Cut the bottom inch off a clean wine bottle, then stuff a short, 25-bulb string of holiday lights inside. The plug end is sent out the bottom through the hole in the platform. A spare drawer knob tops it all off. Voilà—an enlightened centerpiece.

Make the cut

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