The Trend: Return to Elegance

Once a mere backdrop to a well-appointed room, lighting is finally enjoying its time in the design limelight. “If you go back 10 years, there was one switch and one fixture in a room,” says Jeffrey R. Dross, senior product manager for Kichler Lighting in Cleveland. “Now you have picture lights, wall sconces, and even recessed down-lighting, all controlled by different switches and dimmers.”

But while the placement and controls of lighting may be new, today’s styles show a return to classic elegance. This twist, according to Joe Rey-Barreau, director of education for the American Lighting Association, comes in the form of  colored crystals.

“Colored crystals fall under the ‘innovative traditional’ category,” he says. “It’s a new way of looking at things, but it’s also eccentric.”

The Products: Chandeliers and Pendants

Instead of a grand 48-inch three-tiered chandelier, try mini chandeliers that come in 18-inch, 12-inch, and even 10-inch sizes. For a slightly different look, Dross recommends a hanging pendant. “An oversized pendant can fill the room with just as much light,” he says. And colored crystal will make a statement in any room. Designed with Strass crystal by Swarovski, Schonbek’s Geometrix line includes pendants, sconces, and chandeliers.

Images left to right: Joseph Henry pendant, Kichler Lighting, $2,985, kichler.com; the Castilla Chandelette, Kichler Lighting, $345, kichler.com; Helix hanging pendant, Schonbek, $850, schonbek.com