Beautiful Lighting

Lighting is all about balance and creating a 'feel good' factor for your setting.  It's about creating pools of light to highlight certain pieces, whether it be your dining table, a piece of art or a certain space.  Making an area 'pop' but also blend within the same space is something of trail and error, by using different styles from uplighting, hidden lights in shelving or stairs, to chandeliers and lamps, you can make a wonderfully warm and welcoming environment. 

Stairway lighting looks fabulous!

Get rid of reading lights and have your bedside lighting hung elegantly (and dramatically) from the ceiling.  A favourite style at Butterfly Lane.

By using chandeliers and lamps, they not only throw out the desired light but also create a design statement too.  Here are some of my favourite statement lights...

Chandeliers look fabulous in pairs over a dining table for a jaw-dropping effect.

A decadent bathroom lighting effect...

Clean and simple...

Lighting Majestic is the online destination for all aspects of lighting, and their prices are unbelievable too!  Whether you want practical spotlight (lets face everyone does) or fabulous statement pieces, head here for some stylish and affordable lighting options.  In fact I just received this fabulous lamp and shade from them....

 Visit their online store here:  http://www.lightingmajestic.co.uk/ 

This post was sponsored by Lighting Majestic.

Last of the Summer Soiree

So August bank holiday weekend is fast approaching, a weekend that symbolises, dare I say it...the end of summer!  So with this in mind I think we should embrace this extended weekend and enjoy some summertime living, even if the weather isn't up to scratch.  I'm thinking Pimms, sundresses and sombreros...erm, maybe we should leave the sombrero!  

Anyway with this in mind here are some gorgeous outdoor spaces to inspire you to create a summertime oasis of your very own.  

I just love fairy lights outside, they are festive, subtle and above all oh so elegant.  I have invested in some solar powered fairy lights this year that I have simply wrapped amongst the wall climbing plants and trees, so come nightfall they sparkle.  

The Butterfly Lane al fresco collection is just so chic (even if we say it ourselves!).  It looks like your most treasured crystal but in fact it's acrylic!  This collection can also be used for inside soirees throughout the rest of the year.  I like to get cost per use out of my purchases, so I know I'll be using the stunning salad bowl time and time again.  

View the full al fresco collection here

No party would be complete without the cocktail du jour, so here is a favourite at Butterfly Lane HQ, which was first discovered at The Booking Office at the St Pancras Renaissance.  I hope you enjoy it!  

The Champagne Cobbler:

1 slice of orange

1 lemon wedge

1 fresh, skinless, pineapple wedge

3/4 oz Maraschino liqueur

4 oz Champagne 

Muddle the fruit an Maraschino at the bottom of a bar glass.  Add ice and Champagne, stir gently and strain in to a Champagne flute.  Garnish with orange peel and serve.  Et voila!  

  

Anyway, here's hoping for a beautiful September so we can extend our summertime fun a bit longer.  

Remember to look at our new online boutique!  We hope you like it.  

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Love Light - Part One, The Ceiling Light

I can't stress the importance of a good lighting scheme enough.  It can create the right ambience in a room, and so many different looks.  Cosy, romantic, party, cheerful to name just a few.  Now I'm going to start my mini series of lighting blogs with my utmost favourite, the ceiling light...with lamps coming in a close second.  

I have made no secret in the past about my love affair with a chandelier - in any room from the bathroom, kitchen or cloakroom!  They give an elegance and glamour that is necessary in any room design in my opinion.  As long as you keep the rest of the room simple, otherwise you can create a very fussy look that is not typically Butterfly Lane.  

The interior is simple in the rooms below and the fabulous light features really create a stand out room with an amazing focal point.

Plain and simple dressing room with a fabulous light feature

As I have already said, I think chandeliers can work well in any room and below, I have found a collection of images where a chandelier looks just fabulous in a kitchen!

Myself and the boyfriend are currently designing our kitchen and we are carefully deigning our lighting concept with the electrician.  From lighting inside the cabinets, within shelves and surrounding the Aga, we want to create a multi functional scheme that will give our kitchen different 'vibes' on different occasions.  We have decided on a triple threat over the dining table, three beautiful lights hanging independently.  My inspirational images are below...

 

Stay tuned for more lighting blogs in the coming weeks...