Neon Lights at Home

Are neon lights kitschy or cool or both? Commonly used in advertising and as a fine art medium — but not often seen in a residence.

What do you think? I've rounded up some images of neon in homes — both bright and subtle. The last images is a collection of 4 different words, designed by Tapp Franke and each available for purchase from Vivre.com — the catalog to go to for all things fabulous and expensive.

(Images: 1 Roger d'Souza via Desire to Inspire,2 1100Architect via Desire to Inspire, 3 John Dummer via Desire to Inspire, 4 via Desire to Inspire)

Comments (15)

Oh man, ever since I saw that video for "Southside" by Gwen Stefani and Moby, I have wanted my name in neon lights. Where would I put it? No clue. Maybe the garage. It would have to be my last name.

I know it will never happen so it's ok for me to say that I actually want it.

Really though, I do love neon art and I really like it in the first and fourth pictures, with decorating that is rustic/traditional. I like the contrast.

Neon is actually quite, quite noisy, so even though it looks awesome, it's not for home use.

In other news, I MUST NEEDS HAVE THAT PURPLE WING CHAIR. IT MUST BE MINE.

Perfect for that sleazy motel ambiance. That second room is horrid.

We have a 4 ft. neon letter S on industrial casters that serves as our coffee table. We light it up when we have parties. It's pretty awesome.

My boyfriend makes neon art and it can be made to be less obnoxious and not noisy at all. The noise is caused by the transformer being the wrong size for the neon tubing. The color of the light can depends on the type of gas used, and other techniques. It is easy to avoid the "sleazy motel ambiance" with the right type of gas/tube combination. I wish i could show you how beautiful neon can be when it is something other then letter and script.

I like neon in these homes, but I don't think I could do it in my own. I would think of a)retro neon clock that I designed my teenage bedroom around or b)neon pornographic 'art' I detested that was hung in the front gallery of the Houston MFA some years back.

Love old, vintage neon, especially that green once used (where the coating itself is green, I think as industrial art, it's fabulous and in many ways evokes a bygone era.

I like how neon can be recharged when necessary, unlike fluorescent tubing that you simply toss out once it's expended itself.

I think in the right setting it can be a fabulous addition to a room.

That first room is Rated Rrrrrrrr

Sorry, couldn't help myself!

I covet the bed in the first picture.

I think the bed is a Chinese Opium Bed - I almost bought one.

I want a giant neon S coffee table.......

WWBruceNaumanWriteinNeonaboutthis?

nice wing chair tho isnt it very low? theyre normally high seat styles?

@ ChryssF if you want one give these guys a call www.wing-chairs.com

I think the neon letter distracts from some of the nicer pieces in the 1st room. Also not loving the bed linens.

I love this idea! The colorful glow completely changes the mood of the space. LED technology has the edge on neon though. You can have color and be energy efficient. Pure Lighting Aurora RGBs do that. You can see them in action here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uu7p9vcBFMc
or check out the trimless recessed lighting at Lightology, here http://www.lightology.com/pure-lighting.cfm