DUAL PURPOSE: Fixtures don't have to be just eye candy

You don't have to give up functionality to have appealing design. For example, the right fixture can provide the light you need, as well as shape the design of your room. Completing your design is the way you mix the various shapes and forms of all your furnishings. Additionally, the light cast from each light fixture creates its own shape and form.
This makes choosing the right light fixtures even more critical to your design, because the fixture itself, as well as the light cast from it, combine to create your interior design. While there are many shapes and forms of fixtures from which to choose, one of the most popular is the chandelier.

Some chandeliers are designed with downlights to provide task lighting for homework, table games or to accent table settings. Others are available with fabric or glass shades, which reduce glare and provide an artistic element. Adding a dimmer is like adding another design element that you can change to suit the mood or activity in the room.

Visit our on-line showroom to see the wide variety of chandeliers available - start a shopping cart with your favorites! We would be happy to help you in person or over the phone with any questions you might have.

COMFORT ZONE: Enhance Your Room and Your Mood with a Dimmer 
(Information from the American Lighting Association)
 

When it comes to bedroom and bathroom lighting, comfort and ambiance take priority.

Bathroom lighting should be both hardworking and mood-enhancing. Lights placed at a bathroom vanity and aimed out toward the face can help brighten grooming tasks. Be sure to include dimmers and look for places to add secondary, ambient light. For example, inexpensive, easy-to-install cove or toe lighting can greatly enhance this small, but important space. The key to good bathroom lighting is the use of dimmers.

Enhance your bedroom lighting by increasing the amount of light next to the bed. Often bedside lamps are either too small or are not adjustable, which does not provide light where you need it. Go for a larger size with increased lumen capacity. Or, perhaps a wall sconce with a swing arm that can be brought closer for reading will provide the best light for you. A primary objective for bedroom lighting should be flexibility.

For more tips about lighting your kitchen, bathroom and bedroom, read the full article.

Layer Light for Enjoyment, Beauty and Functionality 
 

Good lighting is not something most people think much about until they don’t have it. Living in a well-lit room is much more pleasurable than trying to do anything – except perhaps watch a movie – in a dark, shadowy space. One room where good lighting is critical is the kitchen. Improve your kitchen’s functionality by adding to your task lighting.

Many kitchens have plenty of overhead light, but are often lacking when it comes to task lighting. Eliminate shadows by including two sources of light, such as overhead and undercabinet lighting, or pendants and recessed lighting. For added flexibility, you may want to install track lighting to direct light onto specific areas. The key here is light layering.
(information provided by the American Lighting Association)

CFL? LED? Explain it please!!

Did you get another high electric bill this month and wonder what you could do to help make it go down? The answer to a lower bill is switching your home over to energy efficient lighting. At Lighting Concepts in Lewiston, Maine we would be glad to help you make the change and answer any questions you have about energy efficient lighting! Making the switch is an important move towards a healthier happier planet, lower energy costs for you, and in the next few years the light bulbs you are used to are going to change.

Starting in 2007 George W. Bush passed the Energy Independence Security Act. This means that light bulbs are going to have run at a lower wattage to increase the nations energy efficiency. Instead of Watts the most important measurement in buying a light bulb will be the lumens. Lumens will measure the amount of light the bulb gives off. This means a bulb with a lower wattage could actually have a higher lumens and vice versa. Light bulbs will now be marked similar to a nutrition label. It will list how energy efficient the bulb is, the wattage, energy star rating, as well as the lumens. When you buy a new light bulb consider the lumens and not just the wattage. With new and improved CFL and LED lighting solutions energy efficient lighting is easier than ever!

CFL stands for compact fluorescent light and is the most well known in the energy efficient lighting movement. CFLs come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. It used to be that they were a starker white than incandescent lights with the warm yellow glow you are used to. Now, however, you can get a similar glow from a CFL and some can even be used with dimmers. Do not be alarmed that the CLF bulbs are more expensive than incancesdents because they actually will live up to 10X longer! The one thing to be aware of with CFLs that they do contain very small amounts of mercury. If broken it can be slightly hazardous so just follow the cleanup instructions on the box.

LEDs are another great choice to light your home efficiently. LED stands for light emitting diode. They are very tiny lights but when they are clustered they can light a whole room! LEDs are great for recess lighting, track lighting, decorative lighting, lighting a painting or photograph, outdoor lighting etc. Basically any place or room you want to make more energy efficient LEDs can help you do that. They, like CFLs, have a much longer life than incandescent bulbs. Another positive in switching to energy efficient LEDs is that they contain no mercury and are safer to have around children. They are also able to suffer more bumping about than other types of light bulbs. LEDs are certainly the future of energy efficient lighting.

There are so many benefits to making your changing to an energy efficient lighting plan in your home including:

-  Reduced Energy bills

-  Longer lasting bulbs

-  most newer versions can be used with energy efficient dimmers you already have

-  prevent air and water pollution caused by power plants -- For example switching one incandescent bulb over to energy efficient lights can keep half a ton of CO2 out of the atmosphere.

Come into our show room and see for yourself how energy efficient lights really are the lights of the future. Any of our ALA trained sales representatives will be glad to help you design the energy efficient lighting plan you want and need. Or if you just have a couple questions shoot us an email at mailto:customerservice@lightingconcepts.com or call us at 888-753-8620.

'Tis the season for....home shows! We start relatively early by attending the Maine Home and Garden Show in Portland in February, and we always find it a great way to kick off the home improvement season.

This weekend we spent our time at the Maine Home Show in Lewiston - our home town - and had the chance to visit with lots of people from right here in our backyard. Mitch and Ron report that the best thing about this show is reconnecting with the other exhibitors - people like Floor Systems, Hammond Lumber, International Door, and all the great local banks, especially Androscoggin Savings.

Thanks to our great team, our booth always has some design changes, and this weekend we showcased some of our great new lamps. We are working with some new vendors, and we received lots of compliments on bringing in the styles you see in all the home-fashion magazines.

Also new to our booth is our exciting wireless power window shades by Lutron. Lutron has been a great lighting provider in our showroom for years, so we were thrilled to take on this new line of window dressings. The honeycomb-style shades are available in several fabrics and lots of fashionable colors - but the really unique feature is the ability to raise or lower them from the comfort of your favorite chair (or couch, or bed, or dining room chair...). The entire system is wireless, so no unsightly cords to get tangled, and it's virtually silent in operation. Many of our existing customers who came by our booth this weekend have asked us to come by their homes to discuss incorporating Lutron window shades.

Our next show is next weekend - we will be at Pine Knoll Landscape all day on Saturday, May 4. We will offer free advice on landscape lighting to anyone who stops by. Hope we see you there!

Customer Service Tops Our Priorities

I like to shop. The older I get, however, the more I appreciate customer service. Just recently I checked several stores for a particular biking shirt for my husband. I finally found it - but after struggling to reach it while two "salespeople" chatted 20 feet away, I decided to leave. When I was on my way out the door, one of the salespeople called after me, "have a nice day." Really? I was, until I went into your store and experienced blatant disregard for customer service.

I'm proud to share our example of excellent customer service, which I heard from customers Chip and Marcia Amergian:

We visited your company on March 26th to look at lights for our kitchen/dining room area. We had been to other lighting stores (sorry), but nothing seemed to jump right out at us and the customer service was lacking almost at every place we went. When we walked into your company we looked around at some lights and then Mary Menard came over to see if we needed some help, which we did. Mary showed us some of the lights that you had on display and nothing seemed to fit. We explained to Mary what we were looking for and she said that she would go get a catalog and be right back. Well she brought up 3 or 4 catalogs for us to look at. She pointed out some lights to us but again nothing jumped out at us. She did not give up on us. She said she would be right back with another catalog. Mary brought up this catalog and already had it opened to a page and said "how about this light" and explained the features of this light. My wife and I said "that is the one" almost at the same time -- that is a good sign!

...the service that Mary gave us was exceptional. She did not give up on us like a couple of other places did by just walking away and saying if you find something let me know. You have a very good employee at your store and an asset to your company. We will recommend your store to all of our friends.

Kudos to Mary - she certainly made an impression on these customers! We have all been in Chip and Marcia's situation, going store to store and getting more and more frustrated. I'm glad Mary reminded you what fun shopping can be.

All About Light Bulbs

Incandescent, CFL, LED - with so many types of light bulbs to choose from, how do you know you’re choosing the best type of light bulb to brighten your home? What are the benefits of using one light bulb over another? Lighting Concepts can provide you with those answers and many more! Here are some types of popular light bulbs, where they’re typically used, and their pros and cons.

Light Emitting Diodes, LED for short, are durable light bulbs with long life spans and low energy consumption. These bulbs are never to hot to touch, and they aren’t made with mercury. You can usually find LED bulbs in styles like diffused bulbs, track lighting, recessed lighting, spot lights, and outdoor flood lights.

Compact Florescent Lights, often referred to as CFL, are similar to LED lights because they don’t produce as much heat as other light bulbs. These popular light bulbs are the best choice if you’re looking for efficiency and life span. They use anywhere from 50% to 80% less energy than the incandescent light bulbs. They are also environmentally friendly, reducing pollution in the air and water! These eco-friendly lights can be used in mostly any type of light fixture, and the bulbs are available in a variety of shapes. One of the disadvantages of CFL’s is that they are made with mercury.

Most people are familiar with incandescent light bulbs. These bulbs light up using electricity to heat a tungsten filament, which glows inside of the bulb. These bulbs are becoming more unpopular, since compared to LED’s and CFL’s they hold more disadvantages than advantages. For example, the bulb becomes hot after being lit for awhile and it can be hot to touch. They also have short life spans. Some advantages of using incandescent bulbs are that they cost less than CFL’s and LED’s, and they also fit almost any type of light fixture.

These are only three of the many light bulbs to choose from. Visit LightingConcepts.com to learn about the other light bulb options we have available for customers.