The ambiance of a room can be determined by many things, but it is most profoundly influenced by the basics: color and lighting. Color can hold so many moods and a room can be embedded with palpable energy based on a selected color pallet, or base color. Lighting gets its own special category in the realm of room ambience, it even has its own term: ambient lighting.

In the olden days, light intensity used to be measured in the unit, foot candles,” which essentially is the brightness of a single candle from a foot away. Film and television built a science around molding light and ambiance using measurements such as these, and some of these techniques have proven useful in many other areas. Interior design relies on many aspects of any given space, but lighting is often an overlooked, but crucial ingredient for the desired final result.

Natural light can play an enormous role in energizing a space, and the life within it. Lamps, candles, and other fixtures that can be installed, placed, and turned on play just as important of a roll. There is far more customization when it comes to lights that are personally placed throughout a room as opposed to windows which cannot be moved. When it comes to customization, details are what best articulate the character of an environment. Candles can provide this detail and more through the motivated placement and characterized aesthetic chosen for each candle.

Candle Classics – Lanterns

Eye-grabbing aesthetics can be extracted from something as simple as a candlelight with ease. Light is so easy to mold and candlelight is naturally dynamic, it moves and flickers, bringing a real sense of life to any room, especially one that is dimly lit for a calm, evening mood. One way to mold candlelight is to encase it in a lantern or a sort of cup. A lantern can create light patters, such as this Metal Lantern Candle Holder which comes in floral and geometric lighting pattern. For a more classical look that harkens back to a historical lantern design, the Decorative Table Lantern and the Wooden Glass Lantern can serve as a beautiful housing for candles of different sizes. When combined with plants, this lantern can mold light in such a way that evokes profound warmth and natural beauty. There is no shortage of ways lanterns can be placed.

For an even more intricate lantern placement, look to the White Wire Bird and Candle Lantern. This highly decorative piece serves as both a table ornament and a sculpture. Items like these change the way we think of candle placement and the dynamic lighting of any scene. This is a piece that would work perfectly on the surface of a bookshelf or a desk.

A Vase of Light

Along the same lines as lanterns, vases can beautifully diffuse light and illuminate a setting. Often seen at restaurants and cozy public settings, candles in glass highlight warmth and intimacy between people in a space. With multiple candles in the Glass Candle Holder Vase, you can illuminate a whole room with this light. This vase comes with a handle and can even serve as a lantern.

Opening the Flame

For an open flame, a candelabra or a candlestick will do the trick, but there is a missed opportunity when it comes to simply putting a candle on a candlestick without any motivation. Putting a candle behind glass allows for the candlelight to be refracted and diffused which makes the light spread farther, look softer, and shine more beautifully. With the Tower Hand Blown Glass Candlestick, you can get the open flame of a candlestick and also introduce a beautiful colored glass to the light. Like a stained glass window, this candlestick will play with the light coming from the candle. This item is perfect for any tabletop, especially a dining room table, with a warm aesthetic. Candleholders like this one come in several different sizes and can be set next to each other to create a more luminous and diverse setting of light.