GIGANTIC NICK CANNON "DRUMLINE" DRUMROLL PLEASE ... So I finally got my own place.

It's not the most fabulous place ever. My landlord put in half-inch shag carpeting right before I moved in (just thankful it is neutral despite his very real colorblindness.) Also - textured plaster walls (one of them painted Michigan State green), dated overhead lighting or NO overhead lighting, a galley kitchen that's so narrow you can't walk around the open dishwasher drawer. But of course ... it's mine. So it has that going for it.

Oh yeah - one other thing I forgot. The apartment faces east. And the apartment is in Seattle. Thus despite the seven foot long window, I only get a few good hours of light a week. So it's important to me to have good lighting.

This is a rental, so I'm not going to fuss with installing new ceiling fixtures, unless I get cozy with an electrician sometime soon. So I'm limited to floor lamps, table lamps, string lights, and plug-in swag lights. Of those, I prefer the amount of floorspace coverage I get from a higher lamp. I really want to get this right, and I don't mind spending a hundred or a couple hundred for the main fixture in my living room if it's absolutely amazering.

Here are some of the lights I've been looking at:

1. Operetta Paper Clip Chandelier by ReDesign Technologies on Etsy - This is my "stretch" choice. Also my mother would never understand.
2. Socket Chandelier by hsup on Etsy - I frigging love Edison style bulbs and sputnik-looking fixtures, and this is a nice compromise. Also he said he would make it in a plug-in swag style for me!
3. Le Petit Chandelier by phdconceptions on Etsy - I can't realistically install this in my rental. But oh my gee. And it's a good $50 cheaper than the Edison Chandelier at Pottery Barn.
   
4. Cage Hanging Pendant Lantern by mostazaseed on Etsy - Here we go, finally a reasonably priced option. Love cage lanterns. Love goldtone metal. I agree with the description: "would look divine in a grouping hung at different heights over a corner reading nook"
5. Alternatively I could just shop around for an Edisonian table lamp for this wonderful Squirrel Cage bulb from Rejuvenation.com. Maybe an industrial table lamp like the Winthrop II Industrial Table Lamp from LampGoods on Etsy.

At this point in writing this entry I realize I have featured almost 100% industrial or metal lighting. Wow! The things you learn about yourself while making lists. That is why it remains my favorite thing to do EVER.