Inside the home, the soft glow from lanterns mounted on the walls or suspended from ceilings imparts a feeling of warmth and elegance, providing an alternative to more conventional forms of lighting. A lantern's light will emphasize the architectural features of your home.

As you walk toward the entrance of the house, wall mounted lanterns can share the task of lighting the area. Two lanterns with low wattage will minimize glare more than a single lantern with large wattage. Since lanterns provide directional light, their careful placement is important. The front door, which is the focal point of your home, is the only area for which we recommend mounting two fixtures on either side of the upper one-third of the door providing there is room.

The tops of wall lanterns should be mounted no higher than the top of the door or no lower than 12" below the top of the door. Wall lanterns should be mounted securely on a smooth wooden plate set into the siding rather than directly on uneven clapboards or shingles. Ambient light is soft and undefined. It is diffused with the use of low wattage bulbs (25-75 watts). Glare is also reduced by placing the fixture higher or lower than eye level.

As a rule of thumb, post lanterns will appear about half their actual size when viewed from 50' away at 7' elevation. When in doubt about the appropriate size, select a larger model. It is important to mount a post lantern at least 7-8' above grade. In northern climates, place the post at least 3' into the ground to assure that frost heaves will not disturb the installation. We believe that a post light is best located at the entrance to a driveway. It becomes a landmark for guest, and its scale will not compete with the features of your house. 100 to 125' intervals between post lights is recommended for long driveways.