Beards, James
Lighten up
Issue #33
These lamps turn any time into cocktail hour
By Emilie Zanger
Published: September 1st, 2007 | 12:00am
As a little girl, I’d always ask for those cute cocktail umbrellas in my Shirley Temple because they made me feel all grown up. While most of us grew out of such simple fascination, some of us never forgot the excitement that a brightly colored piece of paper could bring.
For her 5-year-old lamp company, bright lights little city, 28-year-old Heather Wells turns those colorful, nostalgic umbrellas into cheerful lights that bring childlike whimsy and wonder to grown-up rooms.
Wells experimented with cocktail umbrellas while studying textiles at the Rhode Island School of Design. “I liked their happy connotations.” She says. “They remind everyone of birthday parties and celebrations.”
Wells also creates lamps from woven strips of quilling paper, and a woven-ribbon line is set to launch in fall 2008. Her creations are all fire-safe and sturdier than their delicate appearances suggest, but the real surprise comes when you flip the switch and they’re set aglow with gorgeous stained glass–like patterns.
The designer’s ingenuity also got the attention of Martha Stewart’s producers, who invited her to appear on Stewart’s talk show in fall 2006. How was it going head to head with the Queen of Craft? “They offered me a cocktail before I went on,” Wells says. “I decided that if ever there was a time to have a drink, it was then!”
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