Why interior designers love candle sconces
As winter draws ever nearer and daylight seems to end at 3.30pm, our thoughts turn ever more to how to bring light to our evenings. We're all for lamps, love a scented candle and cosying up by the fire but there's one decorating trick that interior designers have long employed that may be all too overlooked: the candle sconce. Available in many designs and materials, think of candle sconces as the original lighting, before electricity. These wall-mounted, often metal candle holders are the best way of adding soft light to a room, and a touch of warmth too.
Once you notice them, you'll see them in rooms across the House & Garden archive, from bathrooms to bedrooms, living rooms to hallways. For a while, antique brass Swedish sconces were all the rage – and they still are – for their decorative impact when not in use as well as the reflective quality that casts a golden glow around the room. Wooden designs, such as a new Rowen & Wren rustic sconce, are back and Lucy Williams has just collaborated with Feldspar on a delicate porcelain sconce that would frame a dining table wonderfully.
That's the best way to use sconces: to frame something. You'll often see them above a mantlepiece, either side of a painting. Another lovely placement for them is above a console table, framing a mirror in a hallway; just imagine coming home or arriving at a party to an inky hallway illuminated by flickering candlelight – it's so cosy. As for why interior designers like them, “unique lighting, such as sourced sconces bring life into a space,” opines Jake Arnold, while for Duncan Campbell, “including pieces within hanging schemes that have a bit more physicality can bring a wall to life – pairs of candle sconces, decorative giltwood brackets or mounted Imari plates are all a good bet”. And as Martin Brudnizki neatly puts it, “think of lighting a room in four zones: low-level floor lighting, mid-level wall lights and sconces and statement overhead lighting, like chandeliers. Finally, add in your cosy lighting options like table lamps and candle light. It’s all about creating the right mood.”
Mood is precisely what a candle sconce adds to an interior and below are some of our favourites to shop now, plus the best examples of how interior designers have used them in houses.
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Matthew Kissiday1/12For this Connecticut country house, Elizabeth Hay sourced the vintage brass Swedish sconces at auction. The gold works so well against the grasscloth wall covering and the red candlesticks pick up on the curtains.
Jonathan Bond2/12Elizabeth is such a fan of an antique sconce that they feature in her own Devon cottage too. Here, the antique brass sconces flank a landscape painting by William George Gillies from Jenna Burlingham in the same way that they frame a painting in her American project.
Michael Sinclair3/12The hallway of interior designer Pandora Taylor's house is painted in Farrow & Ball's ‘De Nimes’, with woodwork in Off Black. This moody scheme works so well with the brass sconces, which Pandora sourced from TAT London (an excellent place to look for Swedish designs). Imagine walking in to a party at night and being greeted by twinkling candles and a golden glow against those brilliant blue walls – it's so welcoming.
Christopher Horwood4/12The shell wall sconce in the bathroom of this Studio Squire project is from Jane Knapp. At nighttime, with the candle lit, it sends a soft, flattering glow around the room, while the metal chimes with the finishes of the bath hardware.
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Emma Lewis5/12Candle sconces don't always have to be metal to reflect back a glow into a room. Here, in this spacious London townhouse designed by Amanda Baring, the large-scale porcelain Wall installation by renowned contemporary ceramicist Edmund de Waal adds texture and mesmerising detail, as well as a sense of depth. The all-white scheme – from the walls and woodwork to the upholstery and candle sconces – was inspired by de Waal's distinctive artwork.
Mark Fox6/12In Luke Edward Hall and Duncan Campbell's country cottage, there are sconces galore (as you'd expect, given Duncan's aforementioned advice). Two swagged gold sconces frame the dining room mantlepiece, decorated for Christmas.
Mark Anthony Fox7/12The living room also features antique candle sconces in the same formation.
Paul Massey8/12Another style of candle sconce, seen here in Marie-Louise Sjogren's Swedish house, features a mirror. They work well in so many scenarios and create a wonderful atmosphere at night as the flame reflects around the room. Marie's is in her bedroom, but would work just as well in a hallway as a multi functional piece.
Christopher Horwood9/12More TAT London-sourced vintage candle sconces sit opposite the bed in Patrick O'Donnell's house. A bedroom is an unlikely place to find them, but they work so well with the colours in here and create a peaceful quality in the room.
Paul MASSEY10/12The sconces that sit either side of the chimneybreast in artist Phoebe Dickinson's London house are antique, featuring a starburst pattern.
Simon Brown11/12This eclectic hallway can be found in Hannah Cecil Gurney's flat, where two pineapple-shaped brass candle sconces – a wedding present – flank the window above a console table. It's a riot of different pieces and the pineapples fit right in.
Mike Karlsson Lundgren12/12The candle wall sconce in this Swedish country house is quite different from the norm. It comes from the South of France and is handmade in clay. Maja, who lives there, chose a different shade of green candlestick to work with the green glaze.
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