I have always loved alternative lighting, anything unusual and unique in some way. When I was a child and we took a road trip, my father preferred leaving the house very early in the morning to avoid as much traffic as possible. Oftentimes, he would wake us at 4:00 am so we could eat a quick breakfast, get dressed, and be on the road as quickly as possible. Much of the driving was done on backroads, but occasionally we would pass through a small town along the way. My father hated the delays of traffic signals and lower speed-limits through those towns, but it was always fun for me because I had the chance to look for neon signs, one of my favorite things. I was always thrilled with the pretty colors, artistic designs, and marveled at how tubes of glowing gas could be formed into such fanciful shapes.

I was delighted when I found my Blue Moon neon lamp sometime in the early 2000s. But, I also love the three Salt Lamps that burn constantly at my house (with 4-watt night-light bulbs, so they don't use much electricity), plus the occaisionally-used Kitty Lamp and Pyramid Lamp.

One lamp I've not shown before is this pretty little lamp with a tulip flower motif. This is a lamp that I kind of 'inherited' from my mother. She was a bit of a shop-a-holic and had quite a large stash of items she had purchased and never opened — maybe she bought them for gift-giving, and then never gave them to anyone...?!?!? We found this lamp in a closet, still in its box and in never-used pristine condition. So, I added it to my collection of alternative lighting pieces.

It looks like it is stained glass, but it isn't. It is a ceramic piece with a wall thick-enough to be somewhat sturdy (as sturdy as ceramic pieces can be) but thin-enough to be translucent and allow light to pass through. The black-painted lines are raised, like ribs, giving the piece the distinct appearance of a stained-glass working.

As is the case with many of my other alternative lamps, this one takes a standard 4-watt "night light" bulb, so it doesn't use much electricity and emits a soft, warm glow. It is such a pretty little accent lamp!

The little night-light bulbs are all the same size but come with different coatings. The ones I have now are frosted white, but clear and pink-frosted varieties are also available. They are also made availalbe nowadays with a standard filament or with an LED inside. The LED is longer-lasting than the filament variety, and doesn't require quite such gentle handling. The LED lights are brighter, though, and don't emit quite the soft, warm glow that filament bulbs produce.

The photograph above shows the lamp without the little bulb lit, and my hand gives an approximation of the size of the piece. It's a nice size for adding a decorative accent to many different places!

Do you have any accent lamps or alternative lighting in your home?