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Picking the right lighting is the most important thing you can do to make your house look its best. And Mark Candido, owner of The Accessory Store in Stamford, can steer you through the process.
I visited Mark recently because I needed help figuring out what sort of lampshade would work for a rather odd lamp I'd inherited from my dad. This is a lamp that makes a statement, given that it's a figure of a knight with a shield wielding a mace. I told Mark I wanted something a little different but wasn't sure what that could be.
"I'm glad you brought the lamp with you," he said, "So many people come to buy a shade without the lamp, and then we have to guess a size, which is not the right way to do it." We put my lamp on a table. "First off, you have to decide where it's going in the room. What else is in the room? Are you going to use it as a reading lamp? Is it just going to be a conversation piece?" Good questions. I wasn't sure, but it would probably be a statement piece because it was so unusual.
Mark disappeared among the rows of shelves stacked to the ceiling with lampshades in an amazing range of sizes and colors. "We're going to try out shapes first, then we'll look at the size. The lampshade has to be in proportion to the lamp."
Apparently there is no magic formula for picking the right lampshade -- it's strictly trial and error. We tried a bunch of options and finally picked an orange shade that looked great with the knight and cast a lovely warm light when lit.
"Most of the lampshades in this country are imported, but we custom-make many of our own shades right here in the USA. We can make shades in any fabric a customer wants," said Mark.
In addition to lampshades, The Accessory Store has a full lamp and lighting repair department, including hard-to-find antique reproduction parts. They can also turn any object into a lamp. And did I mention the great selection of room accessories?
You'll find The Accessory Store at 69 Jefferson St., Stamford, just south of I-95. Call (203) 327-7128 or go to Stamfordshades.com.
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