Choose Your Own (Design) Adventure: Help Solve the Case of the British Bedroom Lighting Conundrum

What do you get when you combine a lighting mishap, a designer with multiple personalities and some budget/logistical concerns? An Apartment Therapy choose-your-own-adventure! If you’re into lighting and reaallly basic Photoshop, join me after the jump.

About a month ago I arrived home one afternoon to find my beloved Vita Copenhagen Eos shade hanging at a perilous angle and, when I went to adjust it, it practically fell apart in my hands. (Turns out the bulb inside was stronger than it should have been, which had made the glue holding the shade together brittle — oops.)

I don’t have any before photos of the room, but I loved this light— the cloud-like form was both interesting and peaceful, and it always garnered compliments from house guests. Naturally, my first instinct was to replace it, but my desire for change won out.

Given that I’m hoping to be out of my current flat and into a new place (owned by me! fingers crossed!) in the next 12 months, I didn’t feel like splashing out too much, and I wanted to avoid choosing anything too one-note, that might not work in my next home. So I set myself a loose (but fairly low) budget, scoured the ‘net for some options, and took (badly) to Photoshop.

Here are some of the lights I considered:

First stop was back to Vita, who do great lighting at affordable prices. I loved how the black-and-gold Silvia pendant picked up on some of my art, though I wasn’t convinced I wanted such a bold/dark look in the room where I sleep.

The Silvia also comes in a copper version, which I thought could be nice with the mid-century desk lamp I use for bedside reading (lead photo). Maybe not the right tone with all the yellow wood, however? (I feel like I want to add: my place is a rental and all the furniture was included!)

I’ve always had a thing for rattan and wicker, so I toyed with the Habitat Malmo shade for its Scandi-country vibe.

I’ve long been intrigued by the IKEA Krusning’s cloud-like form, having seen it in loads of Scandinavian interiors shots. This seemed the closest in aesthetics to what I had previously, but I worried about it looking cheap, and also achieving the look I wanted, given that it has an element of DIY.

And finally, the Mist pendant from MADE.com. I loved how both the color and the vertical lines, formed by the internal cage, echoed those of my antique handira. However it was a tiny bit smaller than I wanted for the space.

Which pendant would you choose?