Enlightening

More Red Tags to Share

2012-01-18T13:38:00.004-05:00

Back in November I featured a few of our Red Tag Specials from the Chantilly showroom. We've sold quite a few of those, but several still remain, so check out that post from Nov. 2,2011 here:
http://dominionelectric.blogspot.com/2011/11/red-tag-specials.html.
And then I wanted to share some more of our special deals, so here are a few more:

Currey & Company 6325

Original price $ 394.80 --> Special sale price $276.36

Corbett 36-22

Original price $423.00 --> Special sale price $296.10

Emerson TB309BBR

Original price $398.400 --> Special sale price $299.00

Holtkotter 5122/2 PB/BB

Original price $538.20 --> Special sale price $319.60

Uttermost 21160

Original price $707.70 --> Special sale price $357.00

Mariana 950645

Original price $1005.90 --> Special sale price $382.50

Mariana 940815

Original price $627.90 --> Special sale price $439.53

Feiss F2528/5 ASTB

Original price $764.10 --> Special sale price $534.87

Hudson Valley 902AGB

Original price $1142.40 --> Special sale price $542.50

Nulco 2106-63

Original price $891.00 --> Special sale price $549.00

Maxim 23006 WISN

Original price $718.20 --> Special sale price $586.53

Kichler 65101

Original price $898.20 --> Special sale price $628.74

Retail's BIG Blog | New light bulb laws go under the spotlight

2012-01-09T16:28:00.001-05:00

This is one of the best articles I've read regarding the phase-out of the incandescent 100-watt bulb. Thank you very much to ALA and Joe Ray-Barreau for speaking so clearly about it!

Retail's BIG Blog New light bulb laws go under the spotlight

New Displays in Arlington

2012-01-08T16:32:00.007-05:00

Happy New Year!
I was in our Arlington store on Friday, so I took the opportunity to get a tour of all the new fixtures they have hanging in their showroom. (Thanks, Toni, for such a great tour!) There's not enough room on my blog to picture them all, so we pared them down to show some of our favorites. Here they are!

Robert Abbey D2164

Savoy House 1-2030-4-250

Savoy House 1-2012-8-05

Quoizel LSC5012NR

Kalco 5108 VI

Kalco 5098 SN

Kalco 2602 AC

Hubbardton Forge 139312-03-S19

Designers Fountain 83886FBZ

Hubbardton Forge 134325-07-G91

Hubbardton Forge 136605-07-Z0284

Currey & Co. 9163

Currey & Co. 9124

New LED items in stock

2011-12-05T10:22:00.005-05:00

We have 2 exciting new LED product lines in stock at Dominion Electric Supply this month. First, we have StepLightLED from Creative Systems Lighting (CSL). We're stocking 4 different styles in 2 different finishes (White & Bronze), and they can also be ordered in 5 other shapes as well as in a Stainless Steel finish. Here are the four styles we have in stock:

SS3005 ~ 4.5"w x 2.5"h x .54"p ~ uses 3 watts for 120 lumens

ss3006 ~ 2.5"w x 4.75"h x .54"p ~ uses 2.5 watts for 120 lumens

SS3007 ~ 2.5"w x 4.75"h x .59"p ~ uses 3 watts for 120 lumens

SS3008 ~ 2.5"w x 4.5"h x .125"p ~ uses 3 watts for 120 lumens

These fit over a standard single switch box. They have solite glass lenses and are UL/C-UL listed for Wet Location, for step and wall mount applications. They feature Cree XP-E LEDs with 80 CRI. We have them on display if you'd like to see them live and in action!

The web site is http://csllighting.com/contents/csl3.asp

Next, we have Lightolier's LED XCeed recessed lights: http://www.lightolier.com/products/index.jsp?CATREL_ID=36703&BLK=N&CAT_ID=35418

Here are the product features:
•3.5” Shallow Housing IC
•AirSeal Listed 650 and 950 Lumen Packages
•2700k and 3500k
•Square and Round Trim Offering
•Wall Wash / Slope Trims
•Standard Wet Location Listed
•Energy Star / CEC Title 24 (950 Lumen with Downlight trims)

We are stocking some round and some square, some 600 lumens and some 900 lumens (all dimmable), some white baffles and some clear diffuse. These price out very nicely in the middle of price ranges, so we're very excited to have them in our bag of tricks!

Bright Ideas from Architectural Digest

2011-11-09T12:50:00.005-05:00

Great, short article in November's Architectural Digest about some of the new LED replacement bulbs:

http://www.architecturaldigest.com/resources/features/2011/11/best-led-kitchen-bulbs-article

Clockwise from top: Comparable to a 60-watt incandescent, this dimmable Sylvania Ultra A-Line 12W LED bulb casts focused light in one direction—perfect for recessed fixtures; this Philips Ambient LED A19 bulb uses 80 percent less energy than the 60-watt incandescent it was designed to replace and casts soft white light in all directions; this G.E. Energy Smart LED pronged bulb, the equivalent of a 40-watt incandescent, is among the few omnidirectional LED options. Photography by Cathy Crawford.

They say:

"Come January newly enacted federal regulations for the sale of incandescent lighting will have homeowners across the country phasing out existing bulbs and weighing the numerous halogen, compact-fluorescent, and LED options on the shelves. The latter (shorthand for light-emitting diodes) are practically tailor-made for the kitchen, where food preparation and cooking require multiple sources of direct, concentrated light—precisely what this innovative technology provides. While basic LEDs cast their soft and (more often than not) cool-color glow in a single direction, making them ideal for undercabinet and recessed lighting, recent developments have yielded omnidirectional bulbs suited for chandeliers, sconces, and table lamps. They do come at a higher price than more conventional options, costing between $15 and $50 a pop. Still, with a lifetime of some 25,000 hours—roughly four times that of comparable compact fluorescents—and consuming just a fraction of the energy used by incandescents, they make for a sound investment. "

Dominion Electric Supply stocks a lot of LED replacement lamps from Philips, as well as Bulbrite and Maxlite and others. We'd love to give you a dog & pony show to teach you all about them, so come on in and learn from our experts!

Red Tag Specials

2011-11-02T16:26:00.003-04:00

Today I wanted to share some super deals we have on some chandeliers in our Chantilly showroom. We typically start our red tag markdowns at 30% off our retail prices (which are already 40% off of list prices). Some even end up getting marked down beyond the 30%, so these are truly amazing prices. Check them out!

Corbett 64-06

Original price $1128 ~ marked down to $670

Framburg 1258

Original price $1245 ~ marked down to $715

Thomas AA1801IPT

Original price $1141 ~ marked down to $798

Nulco 2506-83

Ours is an aged brass, not the polished brass in this picture.

Original price $1359 ~ marked down to $824

Murray Feiss F2463/16 OBZ/BRB

Original price $1727 ~ marked down to $1208

Quoizel RCE5006CS

Original price $1890 ~ marked down to $1323

Elegant Crystal 2528G28C

Original price $3480 ~ marked down to $2436

Schonbek 5090-23

Original price $4230 ~ marked down to $2960

New Murray Feiss on display

2011-10-27T11:25:00.003-04:00

It's been a Murray Feiss week here at Dominion Electric Supply ~ we've been hanging so many new things! Here are some of the highlights:

F2689/5 RBZ
Roman Bronze finish with Amber Swirl Glass
and a White Opal Etched Inner Candle

F2517/6 AF
Antique Forged Iron finish with Antique Excavation Glass Candles

F2537/4 SLP
Silver Leaf Patina finish with Ivory Linen Shade

F2680/5 MAW
Medium Aged Wood finish with Cream Beige Shantung Shades

F2274/4+4 AF
Antique Forged Iron finish with Antique Excavation Glass Candles

F1885/3 ORB
Oil Rubbed Bronze finish with White Opal Etched Glass

F2275/6 AF
Antique Forged Iron finish with Antique Excavation Glass Candles

F2676/8 CI
Colonial Iron finish with White Linen Shades

F1648/3 BS
Brushed Steel finish with White Alabaster Glass

F2583/3 HTBZ
Heritage Bronze finish with White Opal Etched Glass

WB1560 AFBS
Antique Forged Iron & Brushed Steel finish
with Clear Glass and Brushed Steel Candle

LUMEN Coalition Showcases Energy-Efficient Light Bulb Options

2011-10-17T12:05:00.005-04:00

We're very happy to be a part of this real-world lighting makeover, sponsored by the LUMEN Coalition. Here's a link with all the details: http://tinyurl.com/3cs864z

SAVE THE DATE * :

Wednesday, October 19, 2011
10:30 am

LUMEN Coalition Showcases Energy-Efficient Light Bulb Options At Area Home, Unveils New Consumer Website

WHAT: LUMEN - a coalition of more than 40 manufacturers, nonprofits and consumer groups - is informing consumers about the variety and benefits of energy-efficient lighting products and will unveil a new consumer-friendly website and a real-world lighting makeover at the home of DC-area interior designer Rose DiNapoli.

The event comes as the nation transitions to more efficient lighting beginning January 2012.

LUMEN is led by the Alliance to Save Energy, the American Lighting Association (ALA) and the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA).

WHO: LUMEN participants, including representatives from theAlliance, ALA, NEMA and coalition adviser U.S. Department of Energy, will join Ms. DiNapoli to explain the new lighting options, how to choose the best bulbs for one's lighting needs and where to get more information about today's lighting options.

WHERE: 4650 N. 35th Street, Arlington, Va.

WHEN: Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2011, 10:30 am

And in greater detail:

This Wednesday, Oct. 19, the American Lighting Association (ALA), the National Electrical Manufacturers Association, (NEMA), the Alliance to Save Energy, (ASE), and the Dept. of Energy will hold a press conference in the home of an interior designer in Arlington, Va., to showcase the many energy-efficient lighting options available to consumers.

Joe Rey-Barreau, AIA, IES, ALA's consulting director of education, will provide the media with a walk-through of a home, highlighting multiple lamp applications using LEDs, CFLs and halogen incandescents. Dominion Electric Supply's Linda Morley provided the lighting design for the home.

The press conference is an initiative of the LUMEN Coalition, a group of more than 40 manufacturers, nonprofits and consumer groups whose goal is to inform consumers about the variety and benefits of energy-efficient lighting products. Several governmental agencies serve as advisors, including the Department of Energy, Federal Trade Commission and Environmental Protection Agency. ALA is one of the three founding partners of this coalition, along with NEMA and ASE. Click here to read more about the LUMEN Coalition.

Additionally, the LUMEN Coalition has launched a website designed to educate consumers about the lighting options available to meet their needs and save them money while saving energy.

Here are all the links to these organizations:

http://lumennow.org/

http://www.ase.org/

http://www.americanlightingassoc.com/

http://www.nema.org/

* Please note that this event is not open to the public.

CSL Lighting LED Roadshow

2011-10-13T09:36:00.002-04:00

Have you ever wanted to learn more about LED lighting but were afraid to ask? Well now's your chance to get educated! Please join us at Dominion Electric Supply in Chantilly, VA on Wednesday October 19th at 10:00 a.m. We'll have Mark D'Antonio, CSL's National Sales Manager, here to do a show & tell with their LED step lights, LED tape, eco-downlights, 1.75" pinhole, and much more.

Please RSVP to me, Catherine Schlawin, at 703-631-8300 or cschla@dominionelectric.com. We'll be serving some food treats, so we'd love to have a head count to be sure we have enough!

And if you'd like to learn more about CSL Lighting in the mean time, here is their web site:
http://www.csllighting.com/contents/csl2.asp

We hope to see you next week!

Oktoberfest with Great Falls Contractors

2011-10-06T12:23:00.004-04:00

We just had a nice visit with Yascara Garcia from Great Falls Contractors. She's borrowing a few light fixtures for their booth at Reston's Oktoberfest this weekend. Our Eileen Naughton is her salesperson, so Yascara & Eileen picked out these pieces for the booth:

This gorgeous semi-flush is from Eurofase, #20295-011.

You know we love these lighted art sculptures from Bella Luce! #20405 Vesuvian Orange.

Murray Feiss sconce WB1497BUS

If you'd like more information about the Oktoberfest, here is their web site:

http://www.oktoberfestreston.com/index.html

And if you'd like to learn more about this fabulous contractor, visit them at Oktoberfest, or on the web here:

http://www.greatfallscontractorsinc.com/home.html

Bella Luce lighted art sculptures

2011-09-22T16:08:00.003-04:00

We just brought in a new line of lighted art sculptures from a company called Bella Luce. We have 7 different glass designs on display in Chantilly. You truly *have* to come see them!

Here's our main grouping with 5 of them. They include a dimmable fluorescent lamp, with a dimmer on the cord. So not only are they beautiful, but they're energy efficient, too!

This one is my favorite ~ it's a bit amethyst ~ so of course I had to put it in my office!

And while I was out there taking pictures, I wanted to show you my new favorite chandelier, from Corbett (known as @LargerThanLight on Twitter) #107-77. It is *stunning* in person!

Earn 1 ASID CEU or AIA Learning Unit Credit

2011-09-20T08:55:00.004-04:00

You Are Invited!
to a Lutron Residential Lighting Controls Seminar

Dominion Electric Supply will be hosting a Lutron Residential Lighting Controls Seminar September 27 and September 28. If you are interested please fill out the attached invitation and fax it to 703-536-4069 or email it to gtiede@dominionelectric.com.

Through the review of several light control system strategies, the participant will be able to identify the best light control system solution for the particular residential application to enhance home efficiency and occupant comfort.
Learn about controlling natural and artificial light, how dimmers work and contribute to sustainable design with energy savings, and ensure space aesthetics, efficiency, and occupant comfort.

If you can't get to the attached invitation, please let me know, and I can email or fax it to you.
We hope to see you here!

Catherine Schlawin, ALA CLC
Dominion Electric Supply Co.
cschla@dominionelectric.com
phone: 703-814-7460 or 703-631-8300

Follow us on Facebook (Dominion Electric Supply Co) ~ Twitter (@DomElecSup) ~ Blogger (http://dominionelectric.blogspot.com/)

Willowsford | Virginia / Washington D.C. New Homes For Sale | Beazer Homes

2011-09-19T08:47:00.002-04:00

Willowsford Virginia / Washington D.C. New Homes For Sale Beazer Homes

Part I:

I'm on my way out the door to go walk this model home. It's Beazer Homes at Willowsford. We're very proud to provide the lighting for Beazer Homes with Thomas Lighting. Can't wait to see this job site and model home ~ I've heard the development is going to be spectacular!

Part II:

I'm back, so here are a couple of pictures I took:

This is obviously a shot from the front ~ a different styling from Beazer Homes ~ quite nice!

I love the mix of light, painted cabinets with the dark island in the kitchen.

New Bulbrite lamps in stock

2011-09-02T15:36:00.008-04:00

I'm sure by now most of you have heard that standard incandescent lamps will soon be phased out. Starting with the 100-watt "A-lamp" (as we know it in the industry), the government is phasing out these old inefficient lamps. I've begun to hear stories of people stocking up and hoarding these old dinosours, and I want to say "STOP!" There is NO need to keep those old things around! I highly suggest you try these new lamps we have in stock from Bulbrite. They call them EcoFriendly Halogen A19, and you can see all their details here:
http://www.bulbrite.com/products_en_7_64_453_0_6-115152.php

The bottom line is this: You can keep your fully dimmable, old-fashioned shape, with frosted glass.... these are just halogen, so they're brighter than incandescent, watt for watt, and therefore more efficient. So you can replace that old 100-watt bulb with a new 72-watt version, you'll be compliant, and you'll help save valuable resources! And did I mention, we have them in stock at Dominion Electric Supply? We do! We are stocking all four wattages, all in frosted.
~ 72 watts replaces 100
~ 53 watts replaces 75
~ 43 watts replaces 60
~ 29 watts replaces 40

Next up, we also brought in Bulbrite's LED chandelier lite. We've seen a LOT of samples of LED chandelier bulbs, and quite frankly, a lot of them are just down right ugly! Some are too blue, some are too futuristic looking... but this one is quite nice!The details on it are here: http://www.bulbrite.com/products_en_12_154_499_0_1-770401.php

The bottom line: using only 2 watts of power, you get the brightness of about a 15- or 25-watt chandelier bulb. And these lamps will last 35,000 hours! So if you have a hard-to-reach place where bulbs are constantly burning out, these would really be worth a try. I'm giving some to my parents to try in their exterior post light ~ that light is on a photocell, so it's on all night, so I can just imagine how much energy they'll save by switching to LED, and they should not have to change them for years and years!

Lastly, we are now stocking their 75-watt G9 loop-base lamp, frosted. We were having a hard time finding replacements for this bulb in this wattage, but Bulbrite came to our rescue!

The details on this one can be found here: http://www.bulbrite.com/products_en_7_59_175_0_5-654076.php

We're seeing this little loop-based halogen lamp being used in bath lighting especially these days. I think the manufacturers are loving it because it's so tiny, so they can use much smaller glass. So now we're ready to replace them once they start burning out!

If you want to learn more about the The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007
click here: http://www.bulbrite.com/eisa.php

@Bulbrite is at the forefront of educating all of us about the changes ahead, so they are a fabulous resource. I highly recommend you spend some time on their web site.

Happy Labor Day to everyone. Dominion Electric Supply will be closed for the holiday weekend and will reopen on Tuesday 9/6 at our normal business hours. Be safe!

Facebook contest

2011-08-30T10:14:00.003-04:00

We are now only 20 "Likes" away from our first Facebook giveaway! When we hit 300 "Likes", we will raffle off our $100 Dominion Electric Supply gift certificate! So if you don't already "Like" Dominion Electric Supply, please do! Just go to our page http://www.facebook.com/dominionelectric (Dominion-Electric-Supply-Company)
and click on the "Like" button.

If you already DO Like us, you can help speed up the process by asking your friends to Like us. Just go to our page, and over on the right, you should see "Invite Friends". Click that, and suggest away, and we'll get to 300 before we know it!

Please help us spread the word. The sooner we give away the first prize, the sooner we get to start a new contest! Thanks!

Maxim on the Go

2011-08-29T15:59:00.003-04:00

I just opened the latest edition of Residential Lighting magazine and saw the neatest thing: Maxim on the Go.

I've never heard of anything like this in our lighting world! Anyone in or out of our business can get information about their products, including availability! How cool is that? You can send a text message with a product number once you're registered, and you'll get a text back with the description, measurements, lamping needs, and the availability. I can't wait to try it!

Here are the details from their web site (http://www.maximlighting.com/onthego.aspx ):

1. On your mobile phone, send a new text message to 41411. In the message body, include "Maxim" followed by the Item Number you are inquiring about.
2. Click Send.

Maxim On-The Go will send a text message back to you with the following information:
Item Number
Description
Measurements
Lamping
Stock Availability in West Coast and East Coast

You can also check a specific stock quantity for both the West Coast and East Coast of the item you just inquired about.
California (West Coast) Inventory
In the message body type "CA" followed by the desired quantities.
Click Send
East Coast Inventory
In the message body type "EC" followed by the desired quantities.
Click Send

If the requested stock quantity is available, you will receive a message that says "Quantity Requested Available"

If the requested stock quantity is not available, you will receive a message that says "Need to Contact Customer Service"

There is no extra subscriptions cost to receive information from the On-The Go Service, but standard message rates and data charges from your carrier may apply to sending and/or receiving text messages. Check with your carrier if you have questions about your plan and costs. For more information on the On-The Go Service, please email onthego@maximlighting.com

You can follow Maxim Lighting on Twitter, too: @MaximLighting

Thanks, Residential Lighting, for giving us this scoop! I love it!http://www.residentiallighting.com/
@ResLightingMag on Twitter

LED Roadshow

2011-08-22T11:29:00.004-04:00

You Are Invited... to an LED Roadshow!

If you can't blow that up and see it, here's what it says:

Learn about Sylvania's new LED products, tour the Lutron Experience Center in Washington, DC and mingle with Sylvania, Lutron, and Dominion Electric Supply staff.

Guiding us through the products on the roadshow is Bill O'Connell, Sylvania's Specifications Engineer for the Mid-Atlantic Region. He conuslts with specifiers, architects, and contractors from New York to South Carolina. Bill has nearly 20 years of experience in the lighting industry, and has held numerous positions at Sylvania, including Product Manager and applications Engineer. He is LEED and Lighting Certified, and is an expert on emerging trends in the lighting industry.

Following the presentation and tour, enjoy hors d'oeuvres and drinks on the building terrace overlooking the city.

Date: Wedesday August 31

Time: 4:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

Location: Lutron Experience Center, 455 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Suite 770, Washington, DC 20001 (street and garage parking available)

RSVP: Greg Tiedemann

Phone: 703-536-4400 x3321

email: gtiede@dominionelectric.com

Facsimile: 703-536-4069

If you'd like to learn more about Sylvania, their web site is http://www.sylvania.com/ and if you'd like a preview of the Lutron Experience Center, you may visit them on the web at http://www.lutron.com/Experience-Light-Control/Inspiration/Pages/ExperienceCenter.aspx.

My husband, Bob Schlawin, and I plan to attend this event, so we hope to see a lot of you there!

new Artcraft on display

2011-08-19T12:35:00.001-04:00

Goodness, why does it always take so long to get caught up after being on vacation?! I haven't been able to tend to our blog or Facebook or Twitter at all this week ~ terrible! So here's a short & sweet post to tide us over until I truly get my head back above water! We hung new displays from Artcraft Lighting while I was away ~ they are really fun pieces!

AC806

AC1906

SC645

AC975

AC364

Quoizel, Eurofase, and Currey on display

2011-08-01T13:26:00.002-04:00

August already?! Hard to believe! Well we have fabulous new displays in Chantilly to celebrate the beginning of August. Check out this sampling:

Currey & Co. 9371 ~ love the leaves

Currey 9379 ~ this is the most gorgeous chunky chandelier I think we've ever had!

I am loving our new displays from Eurofase ~ #19376-011

Another fun one from Eurofase ~ #16546-011

These last ones are all from Quoizel ~ JF5005HD

This one is so light & airy! LLA5006RA

This chandelier is also quite light & lovely ~ LSC5006PZ

The embellishments on this #RSV5006AF chandelier look like necklaces.

Love this adorable piece ~ JLE2812IS

#RCE5006CS also looks like jewelry. It's like a necklace for your dining room or foyer!

Ceiling Fans: Keep Your Cool While Saving Money and Energy

2011-07-21T16:17:00.008-04:00

From our monthly email newsletter, an article about fans:

When the mercury rises, it is hard to remain comfortable inside your home without running up a huge bill. Fortunately, the solution is much more affordable than investing in a new air conditioner or central air system. According to the American Lighting Association (ALA), installing a ceiling fan in each living space will help family members feel cooler while saving energy. And if you have not upgraded your ceiling fans in the past eight years or so, you are missing out on saving even more money as many of today’s models are more efficient than ever.

“A ceiling fan can save homeowners as much as 40 percent on their air conditioning bills by creating a breeze that makes the ambient temperature feel seven or eight degrees cooler than it actually is,” explains John Moody of ceiling fan manufacturer Fanimation. “You can set your thermostat at 80 degrees and it will feel like it is set at 72 degrees.”

How exactly does that work? “A ceiling fan cools the room by creating a ‘wind chill effect.’ It does not lower the room temperature,” Moody states. “This wind chill effect makes you feel cooler by accelerating the evaporation of perspiration on your skin. It’s the same feeling you get when you open the window in a moving car. If you have a ceiling fan in a room with a temperature of 80 degrees, running the fan can make it feel as if it is 72 degrees inside. When used in conjunction with an air conditioner, a ceiling fan can lower energy costs because you can now set the thermostat of your air conditioner at a higher temperature.”

Joe Rey-Barreau, education consultant for the ALA and an associate professor at the University of Kentucky’s School of Interior Design, agrees. “Ceiling fans have become popular in almost every room where people sit or stand for extended periods of time,” he notes.

For large homes, installing ceiling fans in laundry rooms and closets is becoming more common, according to Bethany Pirtle of Emerson Ceiling Fans. “While those may seem like unusual locations, having air circulation in those environments helps prevent staleness,” she says. “Master bathrooms are also a perfect place for smaller ceiling fans, because hair dryers and steam showers can make a bathroom hot and sticky. A small-span fan can quickly and efficiently add comfort.”

Another factor in determining where to install a ceiling fan is the fan’s UL listing. There are three basic UL-listed ratings for indoor, damp and wet locations. Fans that are rated only for indoors should not be used outside – even if the area is mostly covered.

“Moisture and humidity can affect both the performance of the motor and the stability of the blades,” Rey-Barreau explains, adding, “Fans that are rated for damp locations can be used either indoors or outside in a setting where they are in a protected environment such as a porch.” Wet-rated fans can be installed outdoors in situations where they will be in direct contact with water, such as in gazebos or mounted above a patio on the underside of a deck.

“The popularity of outdoor living environments has meant bringing along all of the amenities that make the inside so comfortable,” Pirtle says. She suggests selecting a wet location-rated ceiling fan with a light kit to provide nice mood lighting when enjoying the outdoor area after dusk.

Besides greater efficiency, the second most improved aspect of modern day ceiling fans is the wide variety. “Fan design has come a long way since the 1970s,” explains Tom Frampton of Fanimation. “You can now select a contemporary model with clean understated lines meant to blend into your décor for a ‘less is more’ approach or step out and select a model that serves as a focal point.”

Rey-Barreau concurs, adding, “The range of ceiling fan styles available today is without boundaries. They have become as much a decorative element in a space as a decorative lighting fixture,” he says. “The broad range allows ceiling fans to be selected so that they support and enhance the design style of the furniture.”

Pirtle says that the sky (or better yet the ceiling) is the limit when it comes to aesthetics. “Every style you can imagine is available in a ceiling fan,” she explains. “Over the last 20 years, there has really been a shift from viewing the ceiling fan as an appliance to more of a home décor item. People care about how their furniture and lighting define their space and now – more than ever – there are decorative and viable solutions in ceiling fans as well.”

There is one caveat. As fans have become more stylish, the decision of which model to buy is often based on its looks alone. “This could result in selecting a fan that may not be properly suited to serve the functional needs of a space,” Rey-Barreau cautions. “There are a number of other issues that should be considered when selecting a fan that is aesthetically pleasing plus functional and practical.”

Decorating with Mirrors

2011-07-15T16:39:00.005-04:00

I thoroughly enjoyed this article from the Washington Post's Home & Garden Tips, called "Decorating with Mirrors", By Megan Buerger:

Everyone knows that mirrors are a great way to make a small room appear larger. But mirrors have several benefits when it comes to interior decorating. Here, we've compiled a few reasons to incorporate mirrors large and small into your home.

Make an artistic statement: A mirror can make a bold statement in any room, much like a painting or sculpture. If you're aiming for simplicity, place one large mirror on the wall of a living room. If you're looking to spice up a dull space, hang clusters of mirrors on the same wall. Remember that the scale of the mirrors should be proportional to each other and to the space. If you're working with a larger space, five medium sized mirrors will look more appropriate than 10 small ones.

Dramatize your entryway: When it comes to decorating, entries are an important space because they are the first room guests see upon entering your home. Create a dramatic ambience in your foyer by hanging an oversized mirror above a large bouquet of flowers and opposite the windows. What's more, a mirrored entryway means everyone can give themselves a final check before leaving the house.

Bring in the light: Typically, dining rooms are the least lit space in a house. People compensate for the lack of natural light by using overhead lighting, sconces or floor lamps. But remember that mirrors make an even greater impact on rooms in need of light. Their reflective qualities can make one floor lamp light twice the amount of space, or a wall of sconces suddenly double! If you're the entertaining type, remember that they also make the crowd seem twice as large -- a technique regularly employed by bars, hotels and restaurants.

Here is the link to the article:

http://contact.washpost.com/go.asp?/bCAW013/mVX55RXM1/uSNHDFUM1/xPSPXRXM1/

And did you know that Dominion Electric Supply does sell and display some mirrors? Yes, we are a lighting store, but a lot of our manufacturers offer mirrors, so we like to dabble in them, too. Here's a sampling of the ones we have on display in Chantilly:

Uttermost 8340

Uttermost 14028

This one is SO much bigger than it looks here! It is 46" wide by 76" tall ~ definitely what Megan Buerger would call "oversized"! Uttermost 14203

Uttermost 1901 ~ love the thickness of this one.

Sometimes plain & simple is just the thing ~ Uttermost 19590

And sometimes ornate is better! Uttermost 12691

Murray Feiss MR1077WAL

Then we have Asian ~ Cyan 03033

And Mission ~ Kichler 41046TZ

And even Chain Link! ~ Kichler 78126

This one is my favorite, like an old Venetian style ~ Kichler 78119

New chandeliers on display

2011-07-07T08:19:00.007-04:00

We have hung SO many beautiful things in Chantilly in the past couple of weeks! Here is a preview, but you really must come visit us!

Bradburn Gallery is a new vendor for us. I have always adored carved wood chandeliers, and this one is SO well done! # CH6861A

This is another chandelier from Bradburn. I don't recall ever seeing flowers and crystals mixed together so nicely. # CH6434

Savoy House 1-1050-6-122 ~ love the crystals dangling from each shade!

We haven't had Eurofase on display in a long time in Chantilly.

This is # 19368-016.

Another one from Eurofase, #12140-015, with beautiful gold leaf accents.

We have this one as a semi-flush too, and both are stunning!

Eurofase 20297-015

This might be my new favorite in our whole showroom....

Corbett 134-46

But then again, this one could also be my favorite! The shapes on this piece are really unique ~ kind of contemporary cuts, yet in a traditional frame & draping shape.
Corbett 133-06

Pictures from Dallas

2011-06-29T11:06:00.017-04:00

Debbie Carr & Debbie Fortney & I attended the Dallas International Lighting Market last week, and I took so many pictures, I had to make a Picasa Google album! The link to the album is:
http://tinyurl.com/6kyu9gf/

If you don't have time to look through all of those pictures, here are my favorites. However, these pictures turned out really small, so the Picasa album is definitely better!

Debbie & Debbie with Alecia Wesner in the middle.

She designs a lot of the fixtures for George Kovacs, and she's also a jewelry designer. Her bracelet was first, and that inspired the drum over their heads!

Weiss & Biheller

WAC Lighting

Troy

Sterling Industries

Savoy House

Fredrick Ramond

Progress Lighting

Meyda Tiffany

Kichler (LED desk lamps)

Kichler (oval chandelier)

Hinkley

Loved this exterior series,

and was tickled to find it on display when I came back to Chantilly!

Our buyers (Amanda & Erin) do such a great job!

Murray Feiss ~ one of my favorite chandeliers of the whole market.

Crystorama ~ loved this pink vignette!

Cyan

Currey ~ gorgeous aqua!

Corbett

This sconce says "PEACE LOVE ROCK N ROLL"

Authenticity Lighting

Create an Outdoor Resort in Your Backyard

2011-06-14T13:18:00.007-04:00

Today's blog post, along with a 10% off coupon, can also be found on our web site, here:
www.dominionelectric.com

This summer many families may be spending more vacation time at home instead of traveling to a distant location. According to the American Lighting Association (ALA), with a few updates to your outside lighting, you can enjoy a mini vacation at home. Believe it or not, it’s easier – and less expensive – than you might imagine to transform your existing patio, deck, or pool area into a retreat that you will love (and that will make the neighbors jealous).

Rather than buying a costly designer patio set or lounge chairs that will lose their luster by next season, invest in a new lighting scheme that will enhance your existing outdoor furniture and amenities.

“The best strategy is to clearly define your objectives,” says Joe Rey-Barreau, education consultant for the ALA and an associate professor at the University of Kentucky’s School of Interior Design. “It’s not necessary to illuminate everything in your yard, so decide which areas are the highest priorities,” he advises. “It is generally better to begin closest to the house, since that is where most activities take place.”

Beauty on a Budget
“Creating a beautiful landscape doesn’t have to be expensive,” says Rick Wiedemer of Hinkley Lighting. “A few well-placed, low-voltage path or accent lights can have a huge impact on a well-manicured landscape.” No lawn is too small. “Even modest homes or those with limited yards or gardens can benefit,” he states. “Low-voltage landscape lighting is inexpensive, safe and relatively easy to install. A handy homeowner can put in a low-voltage lighting system over a weekend.”

All that is needed are some basic tools, a transformer (which reduces standard 120-volt household current to the safe 12-volt level), outdoor low-voltage copper cable, and low-voltage lighting fixtures – all of which you can find at your local ALA-member lighting showroom.

“It’s an easy project that adds beauty, value and security, and doesn’t take a lot of time,” Wiedemer says.

Lew Waltz of Hadco agrees. “The best thing about using low-voltage lighting outdoors is you don’t have to do everything at once,” he explains. “I recommend purchasing a transformer that is larger than you immediately need. Let’s say you want to illuminate the deck area and provide task lighting for cooking at the grill. After selecting the fixtures, you add up the wattage and figure it will use 200 watts of light. However, next year, you might like to add lighting to the patio, highlight some potted plants, and install a water feature in the backyard,” says Waltz. “Instead of purchasing a transformer that is just large enough for the deck, buy one that will operate two to three times that amount of wattage. You only pay for the energy consumed by the fixtures. In other words, a 600-watt transformer that only has 200 watts of fixtures on it, uses 200 watts of energy, not 600,” he says.

How do you start? “Select two or three items that are important to you during the daylight hours, such as an ornamental tree, a water feature, a sculpture, etc.,” Waltz explains. “A fixture or two trained on each of these features will make your backyard come to life after dark. You can go back and fill in with some additional lighting later, if the budget is tight this year. By adding three or four fixtures to that larger transformer you purchased for the deck, you still haven’t used all the available power.”

Another important tip is to buy the best quality and well-constructed fixtures you can afford. “They will last for decades,” Waltz says, adding, “There are a tremendous number of homeowners who purchase the least expensive fixtures they can find, only to discover that they need to replace them within a year or two. That actually ends up costing more over a 10-year period than if they had purchased better-quality products in the beginning,” he says.

When laying out your project, remember a little light goes a long way outdoors. Consulting with a lighting professional at your local ALA-member lighting showroom can help you avoid making the common mistake of too many fixtures in one area.

“I see this happen a lot with path lighting,” Waltz notes. “Folks will place fixtures six to eight feet apart when lighting a sidewalk, and they end up using 10 fixtures for a 50- to 60-foot path. That path can easily be illuminated with three to four fixtures if you select a fixture that is designed by a reputable manufacturer that builds performance into their products,” he advises. “By selecting a fixture from a performance-oriented manufacturer, you will save considerable amount of money on the project by not having to purchase and install extra fixtures to accomplish the desired effect.”

These days there are many more decorative landscape lighting fixtures than the basic black path lights. Wiedemer suggests taking inspiration from your home’s interior or exterior architectural elements. “The combination of form plus function is very important,” he says.

“The idea of enhancing your outdoor environment to reflect your personal style is very popular, especially as we look for more ways to extend the amount of time we spend outside. There are many attractive designs available and you can add color and interest with different glass choices, unique castings, nature-inspired shapes, and architectural elements,” Wiedemer says.

A new and extremely efficient light source – and what Wiedemer refers to as “a true ‘green’ solution” – is LED. This developing lighting technology provides equivalent light output to that of halogen or incandescent, but at considerable energy savings of up to 75 percent less. Wiedemer estimates the average lifespan of a well-made LED light source to exceed 40,000 hours or more than 12 years of average nightly use. If you install timers with the transformers to turn the system off during late night hours, you will not only cut down even further on energy costs, but will also increase the lifespan of the bulbs.

Please visit your local Dominion Electric showroom to see a multitude of styles that will create focal points for your garden or yard while making a decorative statement.

Decor by Denise Grand Opening!

2011-06-09T11:33:00.005-04:00

A couple of weeks ago, I attended a fabulous Grand Opening at the new showroom in Vienna for Decor by Denise. She just shared her blog post with me, so now I wanted to share it with our readers!
Please click here to read Denise's blog, and to see all of the pictures she posted:
http://dreamdesignlive.com/2011/06/09/our-grand-opening-celebration-finally/#comment-389/

I wanted to share my favorite pictures here directly. This first shot is of their new showroom:

I LOVE before and after pictures ~ check out how they transformed their blah commercial entrance into a gorgeous designer showcase:

This is the before....

Can you believe this is even the same area?! How gorgeous!

This is me (Catherine) with their brand new intern, Marie Claire.

Alex, Sarah, and Denise ~ my new friends of Decor by Denise!

Thank You To All Who Attended Our Grand Opening!

New Quoizel on display

2011-06-03T12:30:00.004-04:00

I'm so excited to show you some of the new Quoizel Lighting we just hung on display!

I have loved this fixture since they first came out with it a few years ago. It's part of Laurie Smith's Illuminations collection ~ #LSE5005GY. I keep hearing that brass is coming back ~ if it's this tone of "gallery gold", I welcome it!

Here's another updated twist on a "brass" lantern, from the same collection. This finish is "natural brass". Both are solid brass construction. LSS1814NR

This chandelier features a sand bisque and earth black combination finish. It makes for an interesting contrast. We have 2 others in this family ~ let me know if you'd like to see their pictures as well. ELM5005SEC

It's nice to see a true black finish. We get lots of requests for black, but it's harder to find than you might imagine! They call theirs "mystic black", and this lantern has clear beveled panel glass. GY5208K

Now for a few outdoor pieces. Isn't this lantern unique? They call it "Welland", and it's done in a burnished copper finish. This one is "medium" and it also comes "small". WLD8508BD

I don't ever recall seeing such a nice hanging "onion" lantern. It's bigger in person than it appears here in the picture, so you'll have to come for a visit! This family is also done in their mystic black finish, and it's clear seedy glass. COR1914K

This is the matching wall lantern. There are a total of 3 sizes for the wall, two post tops, and the hanger. This one is # COR8410K.

I'll close with my favorite new ceiling light. It may be hard to see in the picture, but the outer glass is clear, and then there's an inner, opal etched drum glass. Very nice! Paladian Bronze is the finish, and this is the larger size, #WLS1615PN. It takes three 75-watt bulbs, too, so nice & bright in addition to being so handsome!

Kichler LED Landscape Training

2011-05-23T13:24:00.003-04:00

Last call for our Kichler LED Landscape Lighting training! It's this Wednesday (Chantilly) & Thursday (Arlington). Please email or call Greg Tiedemann if you plan to attend: 703-536-4400 or gtiede@dominionelectric.com. Lunch will be served in Chantilly on Wednesday, and breakfast will be served on Thursday in Arlington, so you can munch & learn! Here are the details:

Are you an electrician or landscape contractor? If so, then we have some training for you!

Kichler's Ron Carter is coming for these trainings:

Wed. May 25th from 11-2 in the Chantilly showroom (lunch will be served).

Thu. May 26th from 8:30-11:30 in the Arlington showroom (breakfast will be served).

Here's a little more info about Ron from his bio:
Ron’s continuing passion for landscape lighting fuels his desire to help contractors and distributors alike how to best understand these types of products and how to utilize them to their full potential with safety as the number one concern.

Having personally designed and installed hundreds of lighting systems over the 19 years he’s been at Kichler, Ron understands the business and knows what contractors go through from the quote, installation and even maintaining the system. He is also well aware of the pitfalls a contractor can go through when they inherit a system they did not install.

And here is what he plans to teach us:
~ A Brief History of LED
~ Why do we need LED?
~ How Kichler LED virtually eliminates voltage drop
~ How Kichler LED wattages compare to halogen wattages
~ Why does LED end up costing the contractor less money?
~ How do you sell a maintenance contract if you’re not changing the lamps?
~ Comparing an LED Installation to a Halogen Installation (The labor and the financial realities)
~ Should you use LED MR16 retrofits in halogen fixtures?
~ New Product Training

Please let me know if you would like any further information. If you are able to join us, please RSVP to me (cschla@dominionelectric.com) or Greg Tiedemann (gtiede@dominionelectric.com). We look forward to spending time with you!

(If you'd like more information about Kichler Lighting, their web site is http://www.kichler.com/.)

LED Landscape Training

2011-05-17T13:20:00.001-04:00

Are you an electrician or landscape contractor? If so, then we have some training for you!

tED Magazine Recognition

2011-05-16T11:19:00.004-04:00

Thank you to tED Magazine for recognizing our blog again in their May 2011 issue! The article is titled "Journaling on the Job". They say "the first step to a successful blog is determining exactly what the organization hopes to accomplish with it." Ours is "the cornerstone for the company's social media campaign; the name ties in with its ongoing retail ad campaign and reinforces its brand." It's true! If you haven't seen the other parts of our social media campaign, here are the links to find them:

our Facebook page is Dominion Electric Supply Co

our Twitter is @DomElecSup

our website is www.dominionelectric.com

our blog is www.dominionelectric.blogspot.com

If you'd like to read the whole article, their website is www.TedMag.com.
Thank you, tED ~ it's always nice to know someone out there IS reading what we post! :)

Kichler LED Landscape Training

2011-05-11T11:55:00.002-04:00

Are you an electrician or landscape contractor? If so, then we have some training for you!

Kichler's Ron Carter is coming for these trainings:

Wed. May 25th from 11-2 in the Chantilly showroom (lunch will be served).

Thu. May 26th from 8:30-11:30 in the Arlington showroom (breakfast will be served).

Here's a little more info about Ron from his bio:

Ron’s continuing passion for landscape lighting fuels his desire to help contractors and distributors alike how to best understand these types of products and how to utilize them to their full potential with safety as the number one concern.

Having personally designed and installed hundreds of lighting systems over the 19 years he’s been at Kichler, Ron understands the business and knows what contractors go through from the quote, installation and even maintaining the system. He is also well aware of the pitfalls a contractor can go through when they inherit a system they did not install.

And here is what he plans to teach us:
~ A Brief History of LED
~ Why do we need LED?
~ How Kichler LED virtually eliminates voltage drop
~ How Kichler LED wattages compare to halogen wattages
~ Why does LED end up costing the contractor less money?
~ How do you sell a maintenance contract if you’re not changing the lamps?
~ Comparing an LED Installation to a Halogen Installation (The labor and the financial realities)
~ Should you use LED MR16 retrofits in halogen fixtures?
~ New Product Training

Please let me know if you would like any further information. If you are able to join us, please RSVP to me (cschla@dominionelectric.com) or Greg Tiedemann (gtiede@dominionelectric.com). We look forward to spending time with you!

(If you'd like more information about Kichler Lighting, their web site is http://www.kichler.com/.)

Lutron's Lightshow Publication

2011-05-09T11:00:00.004-04:00

Lutron has revamped their Lightshow Publication, geared more towards designers now. There are some great tidbits in the new Spring 2011 issue. First of all, they offer a nice explanation of the difference between Color Temperature and Color Rendering. When I first started in the lighting business, I had the hardest time grasping these concepts. I wish I'd had their 2-page explanation back then!

So the way they explain it is like this:

"Color rendering measures how well light renders colors in objects. The Color Rendering Index (CRI) compares color rendering for bulbs of the same temperature."

And then we have Color Temperature, which "is a visual reference that describes the appearance of white light. The lower the number, the warmer the light", (using a Kelvin scale). They go on to say, "Color temperature is important because the temperature of a particular light source can change the way your eye perceives colors. For example, the same fabric that appears red in one light may look closer to orange in another."

On page 5, they show a color temperature chart (source: http://www.lighting-facts.com/):

This chart provides a nice visual for what tone you will get with the different Kelvin ratings of the bulbs you are considering.

And then I got this from the lighting-facts.com website:

Color Rendering Index (CRI)
Measures color accuracy.
Color rendition is the effect of the lamp's light spectrum on the color appearance of objects.

Correlated Color Temperature (CCT)
Measures light color.
"Cool" colors have higher Kelvin temperatures (3600–5500 K).
"Warm" colors have lower color temperatures (2700–3500 K).

Next, Lutron talks about dimming, their specialty!

They have a new dimmer, which we stock & display here at Dominion Electric Supply, that can dim both dimmable CFL lamps AND dimmable LED lamps:

This picture shows the "Diva C-L Dimmer" in their white color called "snow".

And last is my favorite little chart that shows how much electricity you save and how much longer your bulbs will last, depending on how much you dim them. If you dim just 10% (which is not perceptable to the human eye), you save 10% electricity and double the life of your light bulbs. Fabulous!

If you'd like to learn more, you can read the whole issue at www.lutron.com/lightshow.

Capital Lighting Fixture Company on display

2011-05-03T13:55:00.005-04:00

We have a brand new vendor on display in Chantilly that I'm very excited about: http://www.capitallightingfixture.com/. Check out their gorgeous styles:

This is a stunning oval (elongated) shape, great for over an island or a long table.

You really need to come see this one, because they don't show the bottom in this picture, and the bottom is spectacular! It has a cut metal design. I could email you a picture of the bottom if you'd like to see it, so just let me know.

Beautiful classic design here ~ I've always been fond of those empire arms.

This is a great brushed nickel piece ~ not too fussy!

I have always loved the styling on this lantern.

And this lantern is truly unique. Love it!

The 5Ls of Lighting

2011-04-25T14:03:00.006-04:00

Ah, Monday, Monday...
Trying to get caught up on my Sylvania email newsletters. You can read last month's if you click here:
http://tinyurl.com/3czqg2t/

They featured this great cheat sheet from NEMA (National Electrical Manufacturers Association) that I have been meaning to feature here, so that was a nice reminder. You can also go to http://www.lightbulboptions.org/ to see the chart, if clicking on it here doesn't work. It is called the 5 Ls of Lighting, The Consumer's Guide to Choosing Energy-Efficient Lighting. It has great tips on what to look for in a light bulb and how to understand all the new terminology.

There is also a coupon for $1.00 off any Sylvania CFL or Halogen Supersaver product!

Next, here's a link to the newest Sylvania newsletter:
http://tinyurl.com/3mtxfkh/

This one has some great "Energy Saving Tips":

It's time -- to save energy and money! Here are a few easy tips to help to show you how:

Start with Lighting:
Lighting accounts for more than 15% of the electricity used in a home, so you’ll see an immediate difference in your energy bill by changing incandescent bulbs to the more energy-efficient compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) or light emitting diodes (LEDs).

The standard incandescent bulbs you currently have in your home have changed very little from Thomas Edison's first light bulb in 1879. Only 10 percent of the energy used by these standard bulbs contribute to light; the other 90 percent is wasted as heat.

ENERGY STAR® -qualified CFLs use 75% less energy than an incandescent lighbulb, so they save you money. ENERGY STAR-qualified LED bulbs use 80% less energy than an incandescent lightbulb and last 25 times longer.

If you’ve never tried a CFL or LED bulb before, you might start by replacing lights that you don’t use directly every day, such as in a fixture you might leave on at night in your house, or in hard-to-reach areas to avoid excess replacements. Not climbing a ladder to replace a lightbulb is a great incentive to try a new technology!

Use Dimmers:
Dimmers can reduce the energy used by halogen and incandescent lamps. Consider using dimmers to control light levels in your home, and save money as well.

Try Automatic Timers:
Putting light fixtures on timers eliminates the possibility of leaving lights on when you don't need them.

Turn Off Monitors:
Most computers today are ENERGY STAR qualified, and will enter a low-power sleep mode when not in use. But 80% of the energy consumed in a system is from the monitor, and that extra energy used in sleep mode can still add up. So even if you don’t plan to turn off the computer, consider turning off the monitor for a little extra savings.

Look for the ENERGY STAR® Label:
ENERGY STAR is a government-backed program that helps consumers identify products that will save energy and money. There are dozens of SYLVANIA CFL and LED products that carry the ENERGY STAR label.

And then they have "Fast Facts About Energy-Saving Bulbs":

Incandescent bulbs as we know them today will begin to phase out beginning in the year 2012. Enjoy some fun facts about efficient lighting options:

LED Bulbs:
LED bulbs can make your life brighter and more energy efficient. Using just 12w, a replacement for your 60-watt incandescent can last 25 times longer and provide 80% energy savings.

LED bulbs are instant-on, dimmable and mercury-free and are ideal for lighting your entire home, from wall sconces to table lamps to ceiling fixtures.

An LED bulb is designed to replace any incandescent light bulb and meets government requirements so consumers can feel good about their lighting choices.

Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs):
All CFLs are not created equal. To earn the government's ENERGY STAR mark, a CFL must meet strict energy efficiency standards set by the US Environmental Protection Agency.

SYLVANIA CFLs use 75% less energy and generate less heat than ordinary bulbs .

The SYLVANIA ENERGY STAR qualified micro-mini Twist CFL lasts 12,000 hours or 50% longer than standard CFLs.

SYLVANIA CFLs can prevent more than 400 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions each over their lifetime, the equivalent to burning 200 pounds of coal.

Halogen SuperSaver®:
SYLVANIA Halogen SuperSaver bulbs produce a bright light that is the same warm color as incandescent light.

Halogen bulbs turn on instantly, without a warm up time. Plus, they are completely dimmable in any type of lamp.

Thank you to Sylvania & NEMA for such great, easy-to-understand tips & guides!

Spring Tiffanies Have Sprung!

2011-04-20T15:52:00.006-04:00

In yesterday's post, I showed you some of our mission-style tiffanies. Today I wanted to show you some more flowery (and one fruity!) styles we have from Dale Tiffany. Actually, I should say some are buggy ~ two have dragonflies, and one has a butterfly!

Dale Tiffany TH10097 ~ I love the embellishment at the top of the tiffany shade... And who can resist the classic dragonfly pattern?

TH100599 ~ Such a unique shape for a tiffany shade (and can you spot the butterfly?).

7362/1LTA ~ How about some fruit?

TH50114 ~ A different style, with the tiffany shades on the chandelier arms.

TH10501 ~ Here's another dragonfly, on this semi-flush fixture.

8780/3LTF ~ I've always been a big fan of the mosaic style.

TH10493 ~ A more mission-styled semi-flush.

TT50103 ~ We have tiffanies as table lamps, too!

8642/3LTJ ~ And another not-so-flowery stained glass piece.

Mission Style Tiffanies

2011-04-20T14:16:00.005-04:00

As I was making a lap around our Chantilly showroom this week, I noticed we have some wonderful new pieces that I would call "Mission Style" tiffanies:

Progress P4102-46

Meyda 67849

Landmark 70047-3

Kichler 66121

Kichler 65328

Kichler 65163

Kichler 65174

Kichler 65294

We also have a lot of new, more flowery tiffanies by Dale Tiffany ~ I'll post pictures of those real soon (once I get some log-in info to access their web site!).

Washington Post Magazine

2011-04-13T12:54:00.004-04:00

We had a 10% off coupon in the Washington Post magazine dated April 3rd, 2011, so I thought I'd try to extend its shelf life and share it on our blog, Facebook, and Twitter!

We are featuring Hinkley Lighting's "Hampton" family. This first picture shows the #3204 in Antique Nickel finish. We have exactly this size and finish on display in our Chantilly, VA showroom, if you'd like to see it in person. I love their little bit of extra hardware that jazzes up the drum shade. Here is the 10% off coupon. Go ahead and print it off and bring it in!

It's good through August 31, 2011.

This is the editorial piece that accompanied our ad. It reads:

If you are looking around your home for budget-conscious updates you can make right now, one of the biggest bangs for your buck is the investment you make in your lighting. Casting your space in the right light is incredibly transformative, and Dominion Electric Supply, with showrooms in Laurel, Arlington, and Chantilly, has been one of the region's leading lighting distributors since 1940.

One of the most popular lighting upgrades Dominion Electric Supply customers are making these days are chandeliers with large drum shades like the Hinkley fixture pictured here. The Hinkley is available in five sizes and style variations and a variety of finishes, ranging from one with a 15-inch drum size, priced at $358, to one that features a 40-inch drum shade for $682. The line also includes a coordinating wall sconce.

If you'd like any more information on anything, our web site is www.dominionelectric.com, and Hinkley's is www.hinkleylighting.com.

Gulick Group's Autumn Wood model

2011-04-05T16:50:00.007-04:00

Last week, 3 of us got to attend a fabulous open house for Gulick Group's new model home in Great Falls called Autumn Wood. I tweeted pictures while we were there, but I wanted to get them onto the blog, which will then get them on to facebook! Bear in mind that I took these pictures on my BlackBerry, so they are not at all good, but you can also refer to an older blog post about it ~ see Sep. 27, 2010, with the tag of Gulick ~ and that one had better pictures!

But the following pictures were live action shots, and truly, you need to go see this model home! It is beyond spectacular ~ every detail is to die for!

First of all, we just HAD to take a picture of their cookies! Custom made with their logo ~ aren't these great? Erin got the name of the person who made them, so let me know if you want her info!

So now on to the lights! This is a Framburg 24" drum in the morning room.

Murray Feiss sconces in the Master Bath.

A shot from above of the Troy lantern in the foyer.

This doesn't do anyone any justice here, but it's my buddy at Gulick Group, Cindy Vance, in the dining room with my favorite indigo smoke Cyan chandelier, along with Cyan sconces.

Another terrible picture, but we got lots of complements on this Currey & Company chandelier in the conservatory. You definitely want to see the pictures on the other blog post I mentioned, because this piece really is stunning in person.

And I couldn't resist this one ~ I have a fair amount of Justin Bieber teen girl fanatics in my life, so this collage made by Susan Gulick Interiors in the girls' bedroom brought a smile to my face!

A nice shout-out for our blog

2011-03-28T12:08:00.005-04:00

A big Thank You! to Residential Lighting magazine for a wonderful write-up about our blog:

I know you can't read that, so here's a link to the article:

http://editiondigital.net/publication/?i=63402&p=12/

They interviewed me a few weeks ago, asking me for tips for other people who might be thinking about starting a blog for business. I think the most important tip, no matter what your subject, is to just go for it! The bullet points they note are:

Do your research.

Don't be afraid to make mistakes.

Let your voice shine through.

Use visual cues.

Link to your blog (e.g. our website is www.dominionelectric.com, our Facebook page is Dominion Electric Supply Co., and our Twitter is @DomElecSup).

I had no previous experience as a writer or a social media expert ~ Patty Jordan in our marketing department set up all our framework and just set me loose. That was over 2 years ago! My biggest fear was that I'd run out of subject matter, but I've been amazed at how easy it is (most weeks!) to find things I want to share with our audience. As a matter of fact, I have 3 more things in my tickler file that I want to talk about ~ now my biggest challenge is to find the time to cover them properly. So stay tuned.... lots more to come!

Sun Design Seminar & Open House

2011-03-25T10:46:00.002-04:00

Last night's NVBIA Meet the Builder event was excellent! We saw so many old friends, and made quite a few new ones, too. I promised one old friend, Dave from Sun Design, that I would mention some events they have coming up, so here we go:

So the first one is tomorrow, Sat. March 26th, from 10:00 to 2:00. They are having a FREE Remodeling & Design Seminar. Call 703-425-5588 or email info@SunDesignInc.com to reserve your seats. The address is 5795 B Burke Centre Pkwy, Burke, VA 22015. Their topics are:

Kitchen & bath trends
10 tips for a stress-free remodel
Opening up your floor plan

Next, on April 2nd from 10:00 to 4:00 they are hosting a Remodeled Home Tour in Vienna. They say "Less is more -- Rethinking existing space", and this address is 1436 Montague Dr, Vienna, VA 22182. This house features:

Gourmet kitchen addition featuring large island, eat-in area, custom storage spaces, wet bar, and computer station.
New mud room/service entrance.
Remodeled laundry room.
Remodeled master bath and hall bath.
Wet bar with kegerator and full refrigerator in the basement.

If you want to learn more about them, their web site is www.SunDesignInc.com.

Maryland Builder Mart

2011-03-24T13:30:00.004-04:00

Yesterday I told you we'd be at the Maryland Builder Mart, and we were! I managed to get a couple of pictures onto Twitter, so here they are:

Clark Owens of Ryland Homes with our Debbie Fortney:

Debbie F, Liz I from Zanger, & Marie:

We got so many compliments on our pretty booth ~ Marie McLaughlin & Marcia Hussey of our Laurel store did such a great job with it!

This afternoon Debbie Fortney, Debbie Carr, and I will be attending the NVBIA Meet the Builder event. I'll try to get some photos of that one, too, so stay tuned!

Maryland Builder Mart

2011-03-23T08:13:00.003-04:00

Dominion Electric Supply will be at the Maryland Builder Mart today (http://www.buildermart.org/). Please stop by our booth #404 to say hello!

I'll try to post pictures to our Facebook (Dominion Electric Supply Co) & Twitter (@DomElecSup) pages so you can see what we're seeing. Hope to see you there!

New LED products in stock

2011-03-14T16:59:00.006-04:00

We have some amazing new LED products in stock at Dominion Electric Supply this month, so I wanted to tell you about them. First up, we have CSL's Eco-Downlight LED recessed lights.

This catalog page does them no justice! The web address is http://www.csllighting.com/, and we have them on display in all 3 showrooms (Chantilly, Arlington, and Laurel). The displays are fabulous ~ they show the new LED downlight right next to a traditional 50-watt MR16 low voltage halogen downlight, so you can really compare the two. I think the LED is actually brighter than the MR16, and of course they will last way longer, and they only use 16 watts, so you save 34 watts per recessed fixture. They include 3 different "optics" in the box, so you can choose a narrow (25*), a flood (45*), or a wide flood (65*). They have round trims and square trims, and all sorts of finish and housing options.

Next, we've brought in some LED replacement lamps from Philips. That website is http://www.philips.com/.

We have 12-watt PAR30 lamps, both long neck and short neck, in 2700K and 3000K. These are rated for a 45,000 lamp life, with a CRI of 85, and their lumen output ranges from 660 to 700.

I know this one looks a little Sci Fi, but when it is lit, it is gorgeous! This is their 12-watt, award-winning replacement for a 60-watt "A" lamp (your general household lamp). I have it in a table lamp outside my office, and it is lovely (and bright!). It's rated for 25,000 hours with a CRI of 80, and 800 lumens.

Next we have 17-watt PAR38 lamps in 2700K & 3000K. They have a 45,000 hour life, 85 CRI, and lumens of 880-930.

This is the 7-watt PAR20 replacement, at 45,000 hours, 85CRI, and 250 lumens.

I got to try one of these MR16's in my kitchen, and I am in love! It is brighter than my 50-watt halogens, and it uses only 10 watts. It has a lamp life of 25,000 hours, it's 2700K, 450 lumens, and a CRI of 83. We don't have this one in our stores yet, but it will arrive soon.

All of these products are dimmable, too. I hear Kichler (http://www.kichler.com/) is about to convert their under cabinet all-in-one LED unit to a dimmable unit, so we'll be changing out our stock on those just as soon as they are available. I'll keep you posted!

Raving Fans

2011-02-28T15:29:00.004-05:00

We're ending February with some nice feedback from our customers, so I wanted to share it! Last week I got a wonderful voice mail from a woman who said, "I just wanted to call and let your company know that I’ve been very impressed with Dominion and the way that you’ve been helping me pick out my lights. Kaity Bloxton is an excellent person for the job -- she’s just wonderful as far as being helpful and I’m definitely going to come back and get some more lights."

And then Debbie Carr went to the Home & Garden Show over the weekend and was tickled to see our name on this plaque at Golden Rule Builder's booth:

It says, "Thank You to our valued team of trade partners" and lists Dominion Electric Supply along with 6 other companies. Many years ago I read the book "Raving Fans" by Ken Blanchard and Sheldon Bowles, and I couldn't help but think of that book today when thinking about these nice compliments from our customers. What a nice way to start our week!

Dominion's Lighting at Ciro's Italian Restaurant

2011-02-24T09:59:00.003-05:00

Check out this fabulous installation shot:

Debbie Carr assisted the owners of Ciro's Italian Restaurant in Monroe Township, New Jersey when they visited Dominion Electric Supply to choose new lighting. These lanterns are by Sterling Industries, their # 92-073. I feel like we spend all of our working hours in our showrooms, and we don't get to get out nearly often enough, to see our lighting after it's been installed in its new home. So if anyone else out there wants to share pictures of lighting they've purchased from us, I'd love to showcase more pictures here!

New Hinkley and Fredrick Ramond on display

2011-02-22T12:40:00.007-05:00

Last week I told you it's our season for hanging new fixtures, and the trend continues this week! Right now, our guys in Chantilly are hard at work assembling and hanging new items from Hinkley Lighting and Fredrick Ramond. Here's what they've displayed so far:

This is one of my favorite new pieces of the season... so far! The shade is oval, so it's very interesting from all angles. FR44626BCH

Love the square-ness of this one! FR49454BNI

Ok, so this picture is tiny... You have to come see this one ~ some of the crystals are huge hunks! Really spectacular! FR43456SGD

I think it can be challenging to find elegant, 2-tiered chandeliers. This one is gorgeous! FR42728SLF

The bottom of this chandelier is a circular ring that touches all the arms, so very unique and interesting. 3985PL

The word that comes to mind when I look at this chandelier is "handsome" ~ it's so nicely tailored. 4545RB

And brass never goes out of style here in Virginia. Hinkley has always done a great job with their burnished brasses and brushed bronzes, and this is a wonderful, sleek example. 4664BR

Stay tuned to see what's new later this week and on into the next couple of months ~ our displays change every day in all 3 of our showrooms, so you have to visit often!

New Island Lights from Savoy House

2011-02-16T16:06:00.003-05:00

I love this time of year... Not February exactly, but after-market time (although we're having spring-like weather here this week at Dominion Electric Supply). Our buyers returned from their annual trip to the Dallas lighting market at the end of January, and now the new fixtures are starting to arrive! This week they started with some island lights from Savoy House. (You could use these over a long table or pool table, too ~ we just call them island lights.)

I have always loved the St. Laurence family ~ the finish is called New Tortoise Shell w/Silver Finish, and the glass is Cream Textured. Savoy # 1-2574-3-8

This one is from their Sutton Place family, # 1-1705-3-13. It's an English Bronze finish, with Cream Faux Marble glass.

And # 1-6910-3-13 is the Vanguard family, also in English Bronze, with Cream Opal Etched Glass. I love the curve of the arm on this one.

Free Lighting Layout!

2011-02-15T15:15:00.003-05:00

February is flying by, and I just realized that means we're half-way to the end of our raffle for a free Lighting Layout! So if you haven't already signed up to enter the raffle, time is running out. Don't delay! Here are the details:

We've always offered Lighting Layout Services, but we feel like we've never publicized them well, and we wanted to get our act in gear! So send me your Name, Address, Phone, Fax, email, and I will enter you in the raffle (I can be reached at cschla@dominionelectric.com). You will be entered to win a FREE 3-hour Lighting Layout Consultation. This includes:

A trained lighting specialist to review your plans (you can choose your specialist from any of our 3 area showrooms ~ Arlington, Laurel, or Chantilly).

A lighting layout.

A Quotation.

Winners will be drawn at random at the end of February. One winner per showroom!

This card shows the particulars of the Layout Fee:

So normally we would charge $100 per hour, and then we apply that fee in full to your order, as long as the majority of the original quotation is ordered. So really, it's free to you. Please remember that lighting design takes time, and we suggest making an appointment for consultation with blueprints or plans.

Lighting Tips ~ Care of Crystorama Lighting

2011-02-07T13:27:00.008-05:00

I'm always looking for lighting tips to share with our readers. Last week I had a wonderful chat with Claudia Dal Lago at Crystorama Lighting, and she guided me to great pages in their catalog and web site: http://www.crystorama.com/t-ideas.aspx

I know you can't read this on screen, so if you don't want to click & print my picture, let me give you the highlights:

How wide should a chandelier be? Measure the length & the width of the room and add those figures together (and make them inches). For example, if your room is 12' x 14', 12 + 14 = 26, so your chandelier should be about 26" wide (give or take a couple of inches).

How low should a chandelier hang with a two-story ceiling? The chandelier should hang 10-11' above the floor.

What is the height a chandelier should hang above a table? The bottom of the chandelier should hang 30-32" above the table (which is usually about 5' off the floor).

Please remember that all of this info is also on Crystorama's web site.

Next they talk about the different types of crystal that they offer:

Swarovski Elements used to be called "Strass" ~ it's the most optically pure and has an invisible coating that makes it easier to clean.

Swarovski Spectra is a wonderful alternative crystal. It is still brilliant with superior light reflections.

Hand-cut Clear Crystal is the choice of traditionalists. It's hand cut and then polished on a wood wheel with marble dust.

Silver Shade & Golden Teak are the newest colored crystals ~ great for the glamour look, or added elegance.

They also have a great Facebook fan page, and they've already run one contest, with more to come, so you should "Like" them if you don't already! Here's a link to their page:
http://tinyurl.com/6h8w97p/

Stay tuned ~ they're planning to also launch a Twitter page very soon!

Don't forget that Dominion Electric Supply is already there ~ Twitter & everywhere! You can follow us in 5 places on the web:
~ Facebook (Dominion Electric Supply Co)
~ Twitter (@DomElecSup)
~ Blogger (http://dominionelectric.blogspot.com/) (residential lighting)
~ Blogger (http://spotopportunities.blogspot.com/) (electrical supplies)
~ the old-fashioned internet (http://www.dominionelectric.com/)

Thanks again to Crystorama Lighting for sharing their great tips!

Lighting Layout Raffle

2011-02-02T16:30:00.003-05:00

Happy Groundhog Day! I heard he predicted a short winter, which I'm sure all the people in the middle of the country will be happy to hear!

February also brings the official beginning to our Lighting Layout raffle.

We've always offered Lighting Layout Services, but we feel like we've never publicized them well, and we wanted to get our act in gear! So send me your Name, Address, Phone, Fax, email, and I will enter you in the raffle (I can be reached at cschla@dominionelectric.com). You will be entered to win a FREE 3-hour Lighting Layout Consultation. This includes:

A trained lighting specialist to review your plans (you can choose your specialist from any of our 3 area showrooms ~ Arlington, Laurel, or Chantilly).

A lighting layout.

A Quotation.

Winners will be drawn at random at the end of February. One winner per showroom!

Check It Out - Light It Up!

2011-01-24T15:32:00.011-05:00

I love Google alerts! I just got an alert that another form of last year's article about "How to Make Small Spaces Seem Larger" is out there in cyberspace: http://tinyurl.com/6amwcwu/

I love the bullet-point version of this article ~ I was interviewed by Linda Longo of Home Lighting & Accessories magazine, along with 2 other experts, and she wrote the articles.

(I blogged about this in November ~ you can go here to see the other article:
http://tinyurl.com/6em9bku/ )

Here's the new article, courtesy of courier-journal.com:

Whether by choice or necessity, many are opting to downsize their homes. According to the American Lighting Association, choosing the right kind of lighting and paying attention to its placement can make small rooms look more spacious.

A few lighting tips from experts:

Proportion is everything. Entryways in small homes will likely not be able to carry a typical foyer chandelier or lantern-style light, so consider semiflush mounts, flush mounts and mini-chandeliers.

Here are some examples of this, from our displays in Chantilly:

Mina 955-126 mini-chandelier

Murray Feiss F2480/4 OBZ mini-chandelier

Power of portables. Place several table lamps and small accent lamps throughout the room. Multiple points of lighting dramatically increase the perception of space.

Visual Comfort CHA8939Q-NP

Keep it low. Lights should have relatively low wattage and dimmer switches. If lamps don't have built-in dimmers, they can be plugged into tabletop dimmers, which work with most lamps and are sold through lighting showrooms.

Long and lean. Use tall, slender torchiers, which direct light dramatically upward and don't take up much space.

Kichler 76139

Mount it. Wall sconces take up no floor or surface space.

Kichler 45137NI

Hudson Valley 1951-SN

Special effects. A technique called “wall washing” makes spaces appear larger. It involves positioning the light (there are fixtures specifically made for this purpose) so that it grazes the wall, drawing attention outward.

Mini versions. Many standard light fixtures — from pendants and chandeliers to table lamps — come in scaled-down sizes.

Murray Feiss P1179 HTBZ/PGD

For more information or to find a local ALA showroom: http://www.AmericanLightingAssoc.com/.

Sources: Rick Seidman, president of Quoizel, a lighting manufacturer based in South Carolina; practicing architect and lighting designer Joe Rey-Barreau, an education consultant for the ALA and an associate professor at the University of Kentucky's School of Interior Design; and Catherine Schlawin, an ALA-certified lighting consultant (CLC) and residential lighting manager at Dominion Electric Supply in Chantilly, Va.

Facebook contest and Consultation Raffle!

2011-01-21T12:18:00.005-05:00

Happy Friday! I wanted to update you on the Facebook contest ~ we are getting extremely close to hitting our 300 fan mark! And when we hit 300 "likes", we will raffle off our $100 Dominion Electric Supply gift certificate! So if you want to help speed up the process, go to our page (Dominion-Electric-Supply-Company), and under the picture of our beautiful Chantilly showroom building at night, you'll see "Suggest to Friends". Click that, and suggest away, and we'll get to 300 before we know it!

And then I wanted to give our followers a very special preview of another raffle, which we'll officially roll out in February. But you can go ahead and enter now!
So we've always offered Lighting Layout Services, but we feel like we've never publicized them well, and we wanted to get our act in gear! So send me your Name, Address, Phone, Fax, email, and I will enter you in the raffle (I can be reached at cschla@dominionelectric.com). You will be entered to win a FREE 3-hour Lighting Layout Consultation. This includes:

A trained lighting specialist to review your plans (you can choose your specialist from any of our 3 area showrooms ~ Arlington, Laurel, or Chantilly).

A lighting layout.

A Quotation.

Winners will be drawn at random at the end of February. One winner per showroom!

Can you help find a cure for cancer?

2011-01-20T08:37:00.002-05:00

I just HAVE to spread the word about this! My friend Margie is running her first full marathon in March in my honor. 10 years ago I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma, life-changing news for sure. I discovered Team in Training 2 years ago, a great way to help fund research and assist current patients & their families, with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Last year, Margie got the bug & joined TNT too, and this year, she's running for me. So if you can help her fund & find a cure for cancer, that would be FABULOUS! Thanks! Catherine

My Fundraising Page

Kitchen and Bath News

2011-01-12T12:00:00.005-05:00

Thanks to Allison Martin at NVS Remodeling and Design for telling me that we were featured in this month's Kitchen and Bath Design magazine!

Here is a link to the article: http://tinyurl.com/4keylgk/ Of course, I think you should read the WHOLE article, but my favorite points are:

Dim every light you can dim!
Lighting placement is crucial, especially for under cabinet lights and recessed.
The power of three: the ideal is to have a central fixture, recessed, and under cabinet lights (or some other combination of 3 types).

Linda Longo of Home Lighting & Accessories Magazine wrote the article for our American Lighting Association ~ she does such a great job! And it's always fun to see Dominion Electric Supply quoted as lighting experts ~ we would sure like to think that we are, and hope you do, too!

New LBL on display

2011-01-05T10:27:00.005-05:00

Happy New Year! We started 2011 by hanging a really cool LED monorail by LBL Lighting. The monorail itself has a blue LED light through it, like this:

But of course we couldn't hang just one color or pendant style off of it! Instead, we have these new pendants to show you:

This one is called "Rachel" and we're displaying her in latte/opal.

We have Mini-Monty in mocha.

This is Jelly in mocha ~ it's not new to us, but it's one of our favorites, so I had to include it!

This picture isn't great ~ but this is Cylia in blue. In person, the blue is a vibrant cobalt. You'll just have to come visit and see it!

This is a new favorite for many of us ~ Banja in aquamarine ~ a gorgeous blend of colors!

And last but not least we have Abbey in amber red ~ another stunning blend of colors.

And here's another shot off their web site (www.lbllighting.com) of the LED rail in red.

Happy New Year!

2010-12-29T10:32:00.003-05:00

Dominion Electric Supply will by closed for the New Year on Friday, December 31st and Saturday, January 1st. We will reopen on Monday, January 3rd for our regular business hours. Have a great holiday, and we'll see you next year!

Desk lamps and task lamps

2010-12-27T15:35:00.004-05:00

We're back from our nice long weekend here at Dominion Electric Supply, and I thought I'd show you some of our new desk lamps and task lamps. These are all on display in our Chantilly showroom, so come on in to see them in person!

This arc lamp is from Elk Lighting's "Dimond" lamp collection ~ #D1428.

This is a fluorescent desk lamp from George Kovacs ~ P1001-617 ~ that is similar to an Ottlite.

Floor lamp also from George Kovacs ~ P603-1-615B.

We recently started carrying a lamp line called "Lauren" from Ralph Lauren. I've heard they recently got bought out by Visual Comfort, so it will be interesting to see how the line evolves now. This Architect Floor Lamp ~ # LRL15978PN ~ is stunning in person!

Isn't this combo of the white glass & the polished nickel body eye-catching? #LRL20116PN.

I love this updated Banker lamp, with white glass and a polished nickel body ~ LRL20146PN.

We have this pair in 2 different finishes on display. The floor lamp ~ LRL16001PN ~ we have in polished nickel. The desk version ~ LRL15934BN ~ is on display in Natural Brass.

And then last, but not least, we have this bankers lamp by Kichler, #70651.

So no matter what style you're looking for, we just might have it! We're open this week Monday through Thursday from 8:00 to 5:00. We'll be closed again this weekend, including Friday, for New Year's Eve.

Holiday closing

2010-12-22T11:22:00.001-05:00

Dominion Electric Supply
will be closed on Friday,
December 24th and Saturday,
December 25th.
We will reopen on
Monday, December 27th
for our regular business hours.
Have a Great Holiday!

Help ASID Spread The Warmth This Winter!

2010-12-20T14:33:00.002-05:00

Please help us make this winter a little warmer for the many homeless people in our area.

Dominion Electric Supply decided to take this cause one step further ~ our Chantilly showroom is now a donation site for ASID’s Spread the Warmth program! So please bring us your new and gently used gloves, scarves, hats, coats, and other winter apparel for the homeless. Our address is 14605 Lee Jackson Hwy., Chantilly, VA 20151.

The program runs through February and the donations are distributed to area homeless shelters and the Veterans Medical Center.

A little goes a long way ~ please help make a difference!

(Please also see my blog post of Dec. 16, 2010 for more information.)

Lutron Light Show publication

2010-12-17T14:48:00.006-05:00

Lutron puts out this publication several times a year, and their Fall 2010 issue was chock full of info I wanted to share with our readers!

We love their "Satin Colors" dimmers, switches, and wall plates. We have take-home color samples here in the showrooms of all the colors available.

We just started stocking these new CFL / LED dimmers ~ they just arrived into our Chantilly warehouse today, as a matter of fact! I'm dying to try one at home ~ I have dimmable CFL's in my bathrooms, and I must admit, they have NO bottom range of dimming! Can't wait to get my hands on one of these!

I heard about this a couple of months ago, but forgot to mention it to you. Isn't this neat, that Lutron is now in the Smithsonian?!

And it's always good to have a reminder about how we can save energy with lighting controls. Remember that if you dim incandescent or halogen bulbs by 25%, you save 20% on electricity, plus you quadruple the life of those light bulbs!

And don't forget about occupancy/vacancy sensors, timers, scheduling programs, and controllable window shades to add to your energy savings.

One last, great tip from this Lutron booklet is to remember to dim your outdoor lights. When the sun goes down and you have a high-wattage bulb in your exterior fixtures, they can be extremely glary, and you'll no longer be able to see the beauty of those fixtures, let alone see what you're trying to light! As they say, the dimmer will allow you to achieve the perfect balance between enough light to safely illuminate the space and not too much light that the fixture itself can't be seen. Great advice!

Help ASID Spread The Warmth This Winter!

2010-12-16T08:15:00.005-05:00

Dominion Electric Supply is a proud partner of ASID, so we wanted to publicize this great community service project they are doing this season:

Help ASID Spread The Warmth This Winter!

Please help us make this winter a little warmer for the many homeless people in our area. Through our "Spread the Warmth" program we have set up collection boxes in the following locations to accept donations of new and gently used gloves, scarves, hats, coats, and other winter apparel for the homeless:

Affinity Lab, 920 U Street NW, Washington DC ( http://www.affinitylab.com/ )

Amicus Green Building Center, 1353 U Street NW, 2nd Floor, Washington DC ( http://www.amicusgreen.com/ )

Amicus Green Building Center, 4080A Howard Avenue, Kensington, MD (in the West Howard Antiques District)

Caribou Coffee, 1400 14th Street NW, Washington DC (Logan Circle)

Rivers Edge Yoga, 300 Montgomery Street, Suite 201, Alexandria, VA

The Studio DC Yoga Center, 1710 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington DC (Dupont Circle)

The Studio DC Yoga Center, 2469 18th Street NW, Washington DC (Adams Morgan)

The Washington Design Center, 300 D Street SW, Washington DC

We encourage you to also set a box up at your office! We can arrange pick up from your office, or items can be dropped off at my apartment (please email me or call about this). The program runs through February and the donations are distributed to area homeless shelters and the Veterans Medical Center. Special thanks to all of the above companies/organizations for allowing us to place a box at their locations. If you’d like to volunteer, join the Community Service Committee, or would like more information on upcoming opportunities, please contact Laura DiSenso
(ASID Community Service Team Leader) at 508 612-6009 or laura.disenso@gmail.com.

A little goes a long way, please help make a difference!

Shop for Ava Daniels

2010-12-13T10:42:00.001-05:00

I got this email from our Progress rep today and thought I should share it:

A very dear friend of mine has a 3 year old with leukemia and is up to their eyebrows in medical bills that the insurance isn’t covering. A friend at their church established this way for anyone to help them, even if you don’t know them, just be shopping on Amazon:
www.shopforava.com

You will be re-directed to Amazon’s home page. Any purchase you make (but make sure you go in by way of the shopforava link) Amazon will donate 4% of the proceeds to their medical care fund.
This doesn’t cost you any additional money. Feel free to pass along to anyone else you know who might shop online. Thanks.
Her name is Ava Daniels if you want to pray for her.
Happy Holidays
Debbie McGowan
Progress Lighting Account Manager

I'm a lymphoma survivor myself, so of course this struck a strong chord with me. Anything our readers and friends and fans can do to help will be much appreciated, I'm sure. ~Catherine

Shop for Ava Daniels

Did you know? Holiday Lights

2010-12-06T10:22:00.005-05:00

I'm a bit slow, but just saw this cute article in Thursday's Washington Post Local Living section about the history of holiday lights. I knew the White House tree had switched to LED technology last year, but I didn't know many of the other fun facts!

1882 Three years after Thomas Edison invented the light bulb, one of his associates, Edward Johnson, employs the first string of 80 red, white and blue bulbs on a Christmas tree.

1903 General Electric introduces the first light set for public sale for $12, then the average weekly wage of a typical American worker.

1923 President Calvin Coolidge walks from the White House to the Ellipse and "lights" the National Christmas Tree, decorated for the first time with 2,500 electric bulbs.

1962 General Electric designs the National Christmas Tree for the first time. The company still designs the tree today.

1973 Because of the national energy crisis, President Nixon decides not to light the National Christmas Tree.

2009 The National Christmas Tree employs 100 percent LED technology.

National Christmas Tree by the numbers:

7,000
The total wattage consumption during the season. There will be 750 strings of white and green lights, 430 multicolored spheres and 84 white snowflakes, all LEDs. Each ornament consumes about 2 watts. The same topper, a 42-inch star, has been used four years in a row.

81,104
Number of lights.

4.3
Total combined mileage of the light strings.

$180
Daily electricity consumption for the holiday season (based on six hours per night over 30 days at about 14 cents per kilowatt hour).

500,000
The number of U.S. homes that could be powered for a year with the energy consumed by one season of holiday lights.

$13.8 million
Remember to stay safe. This is the average amount of yearly property damage from fires caused by holiday lights from 2003 to 2007.

SOURCES: National Park Foundation; Megan Robison, community relations manager for GE Appliances & Lighting; Department of Energy; December 2009 survey by HCD Research; National Fire Protection Agency
by Megan Buerger for the Washington Post

Facebook coupon and contest

2010-12-03T15:10:00.006-05:00

Introducing our new Facebook coupon! You can now get a 15% discount off all in-stock lighting & accessories any time you want to ~ all you have to do is "Like" us on Facebook.

Here's a link to our Facebook page: http://tinyurl.com/29thsux/

If you're not on Facebook but you'd still like that great coupon, you can also join our mail or email list. To do so, just send an email to marketing@dominionelectric.com. Once you sign up, they will send you a 15% off welcome coupon.

And don't forget that we're still waiting for 300 Facebook fans so we can give away our $100 gift certificate. The details are in the picture above. If you're already a fan, you can speed up the process by suggesting our page to all of your friends & family!

Sylvania's handy guide for the new bulb options

2010-12-01T16:23:00.003-05:00

Sylvania has come out with this great guide to help you decide how to replace the incandescent light bulbs that will start getting phased out on 1/1/2012. For example, you can replace a 100-watt A19 bulb with their 72-watt halogen or a 23-watt compact fluorescent. We don't have any 100-watt LED equivalents just yet, but it won't be too much longer, I'm betting. 75-watt A19 lamps won't be phased out till 1/1/2013, and then 60-watts go on 1/1/2014, so we have some adjustment time, too. I personally am a fan of the 72-watt halogens on dimmers. First you save energy by the lower wattage, and then you save even more when you dim them (plus dimming extends the life of the bulbs, so you don't have to buy replacements nearly as often!). The quality of the halogen is very similar to incandescent, so you won't see big color shifts or anything like that. As Sylvania says, "don't wait ~ start saving today!"

Thanksgiving closing

2010-11-23T15:17:00.002-05:00

All of Dominion Electric Supply's stores will be closed Thu. 11/25 through Sun. 11/28 for the Thanksgiving holiday. Have a great weekend, and we'll see you next week. Happy Thanksgiving!

How to Make Small Spaces Seem Larger

2010-11-19T16:58:00.000-05:00

Thanks again to Linda Longo for quoting me as an expert in this article!
How to Make Small Spaces Seem Larger

Washington Post House Calls

2010-11-18T10:19:00.003-05:00

I loved today's Washington Post House Calls, featuring designer Tracy Morris. Here's a link so you can see the article: http://tinyurl.com/39w6xnk/

I live in a small split-level in Herndon, VA, so I love to see designs where a room is set up for multiple purposes. This one is a family room that can also serve as a guest room ~ and I have this same set-up at my house!

She shows a neat tripod floor lamp, and that also caught my eye. We just got one in that is very similar, from Ralph Lauren:

Ours is # LRL 15978PN

If you want to see more of Tracy's designs, her web site is http://www.tracymorrisdesign.com/ ~ it's a gorgeous web site!

New Cyan on display

2010-11-17T07:58:00.008-05:00

If you've followed this blog at all, you might know that I am in love with Cyan Designs. Their catalog is spectacular, and now we have their products hanging on display, which are beyond gorgeous! Here is a sample of what we just put out in Chantilly:'

Cyan 04194 ~ I love the candle cluster in the middle, and the dangly things are like fun, acrylic jewelry!

Cyan 04159 ~ A great updated look for the drum shade, with the chrome accents.

Cyan 6509-6-00 ~ This Murano style glass is my favorite of the bunch!

Cyan 6492-6-33 ~ This is one of those pieces that did not look nearly as exciting in the catalog as it looks in person. The crystals are almost football-shaped, so we've decided it has something for both the wife AND the husband!

Cyan 6491-6-28 ~ A very initeresting rustic, distressed finish on this one.

Cyan 6526-6-00 ~ Another Murano style glass chandelier, and it's another must-see-in-person!

Cyan 03011 ~ It's hard to see in this picture, but the beads on this piece are wooden. Neat!

Here is a link to their web site if you want to see more: http://tinyurl.com/377swd3

There's an App for That

2010-11-02T11:53:00.004-04:00

This caught my eye in the October edition of Residential Lighting magazine:

I haven't tried it... I have a BlackBerry instead of an iPhone, so if anyone tries it, please let me know! It says you can experiment with different lighting styles without ever changing a bulb. The app is from GE Lighting, and it's called "Mood Cam". You can take a picture of an indoor space and change the mood or personality of the room by sliding the Moodometer. Then it shows you what types of fixtures and bulbs can be used to achieve your selected mood. Sounds like fun to me!

Residential Lighting also mentions that more how-to advice is on GE's website called "What's Your Lighting Style?" at www.whatsyourlightingstyle.com. The app is no charge on iTunes or through www.gemoodcam.com.

So if you try it, please let me know what you think of it!

Washington Post's Tip of the Week

2010-10-28T07:54:00.003-04:00

I love it when my Washington Post Tip of the Week mentions lighting! Today they talk about home improvement projects for the winter months. One is updating your kitchen, including sprucing up your lights. Here is the link to the full article:
http://tinyurl.com/2du2xsq

And here's my favorite excerpt:
Vary your lighting: Kitchens are used sporadically throughout the day, so why have only one source of light? Layer the light based on the various times it is used. A soft lamp is perfect for a morning cup of coffee or a midnight snack, a feast for the hockey team requires some overhead power. A hint: accent lights are a great way to light up an island, centerpiece or stove top while simultaneously adding aesthetic value.

And I must add my own tip: Don't forget your dimmers! Unless you have fluorescent lighting, almost all kitchen lighting can be dimmed (be careful with LED's, but even some of them are dimmable). You'll want control and the ability to have different moods and light levels ~ bright for cleaning and prep work, lower for entertaining and eating.

22nd Annual Arts Awards

2010-10-25T14:44:00.003-04:00

Just wanted to say Congratulations to our lighting friends who are finalists for the 22nd Annual Arts Awards:

For Lighting Fixtures, the finalists are Corbett Lighting, Currey & Company, Hubbardton Forge, Kichler Lighting, and Maxim Lighting (all of which, I'm proud to say, we do carry!). Corbett & Hubbardton Forge are also finalists in the new "Green" category. And then for Portable Lamps, the finalists we carry are Arteriors Home, Uttermost, and Visual Comfort & Co.

Thanks to Residential Lighting Magazine for posting the finalists. And one last shout out goes to my Facebook friend, Richard Alan, for winning a slot for Sales Representative in the Midwest/Southwest. Way to go, everyone!

Light Bulb Changes on the Way

2010-10-20T15:45:00.003-04:00

I did a post about this a couple of months back, but we get SO many questions about it, I thought it was worth talking about it again. When I went to the ALA Conference a few weeks ago, they gave us this handout:

We hear a lot of talk that the incandescent bulb is being "banned". That is not completely accurate. The government is just forcing them to be much more efficient. The first one to be affected will be the 100-watt "A-lamp" ~ what you would think of as a "regular" light bulb. As of Jan. 1, 2012, to get the lumen output of the old 100-watt bulb (1490+ lumens), the manufacturers will have to get there using only 72 watts of energy. Thus, the new bulbs will be much more efficient. You could see what this is like RIGHT NOW by using a halogen replacement lamp. For example, Philips makes them under their "Halogena" name, and they have a 70-watt bulb that is 1600 lumens. It is shaped like the old bulb ~ it's just whiter and brighter and more efficient.

The other change that's coming is the new consumer labeling. Here is a close-up of that:

Once the changes start going into effect in 2012, we'll need to stop thinking about watts so much, and think more about lumens, which is the "brightness". Once we have these new labels, we'll be able to more easily compare the old A-lamp to a new halogen, compact fluorescent, or even an LED replacement lamp. Their wattages will vary widely, but the lumen comparison should be quite easy to follow. The other great fact on these labels that we hope to see by mid-2011 is the estimated energy cost per year per lamp. Of course the newer technologies like LED and CFL cost a bit more up front, but with these labels, we'll be able to see how much we can save over the life of the lamp, just by comparing the annual energy costs. Pretty neat!

Help Wanted

2010-10-12T13:11:00.003-04:00

Please share, retweet, pass on!

In case you can't read the picture, we're looking for a part-time sales associate for the Chantilly showroom. He or she must be able to work every (or most!) Saturday from 9 to 3, plus there would be weekday hours. No lighting experience is necessary ~ interior design or retail sales experience would be great, but not required. A great attitude and willingness to learn are our most desired qualities! Please let me know if you'd like any other info or would like to apply (Catherine Schlawin, 703-814-7460 or cschla@dominionelectric.com).

Recesso Lights

2010-10-05T16:16:00.004-04:00

I'd love to know... What do you all think of these "Recesso Lights"? They "transform recessed lights into works of art"! I saw these at the ALA Conference last week, and I thought they were pretty neat!

I'm sure this is hard to see, but they have a bracket that screws to your ceiling, around your recessed light, and then the new fixture twists & locks onto the bracket. (And you screw an adapter into the socket.)

This organza shade was really pretty.

This is a good picture of the bracket.

And this is a screen shot from their web site ~ I didn't realize how many shade choice they had until I went to the site today.

If you want to learn more about them, the web site is http://www.recessolights.com/

And I'd love to hear what you think of them. Should we stock them? If so, which shades would you pick first?

Home & Design Sourcebook

2010-09-30T15:08:00.005-04:00

Dominion Electric Supply is featured so nicely in the new Sourcebook from Home & Design Magazine! First, our expert Giorgina Schnurr is quoted in this article "Ask the Pros ~ Experts shed light on illuminating your home":

Her question is: "Why is a lighting plan important in a custom building or remodeling project?" Her answer is: "I cannot imagine starting a building project without a lighting plan. It would be like starting a project without a building plan. We are the ones who can educate and consult with the customer on the latest technology and design. We know what works and what does not work in a room. There are thousands of lighting possibilities; why not consult someone who has all of the lighting information at their fingertips? Why not take advantage of their expertise?

Indeed, why not?!

Next, one of our chandeliers is featured on their "9 to Note" page ~ ours is #1 ~ a Riviera chandelier from Corbett Lighting. We just hung this series in at least 2 of our showrooms, and it is absolutely stunning!

And then of course we have an ad, which you can print from the blog or Facebook and bring on in for 10% off your order of in-stock decorative lighting. We have showrooms in Arlington & Chantilly, VA + Laurel, MD.

And last, I wanted to point out this Q & A with one of my builders, Gulick Group ~ Jamie Gulick is quoted as one of these experts:
His question is "What are some of the "green" building features that homeowners are requesting?" And part of his answer is "Central lighting control systems, which are now fairly affordable but save energy and simplify daily life, are also in demand." So true, Jamie! And he speaks from experience, because we just installed a Lutron RadioRA2 dimming system in Gulick's model at Brambleton!

Gulick Group's new model home preview

2010-09-27T14:05:00.004-04:00

Today I wanted to give you a sneak peak at Gulick Group's newest model home for which I just ordered light fixtures. Susan Gulick & Emily Ryan of Susan Gulick Interiors worked with me on all of the selections, and I'm so excited about them! The model is called Autumn Wood, and it's in Great Falls, VA ~ here is the link to Gulick's site if you'd like more information:
http://gulickgroup.com/wmspage.cfm?parm1=35/

This one is going to be a show-stopper! It's from Cyan Designs, in a Murano-style glass called Indigo Smoke, for the Dining Room.

This one is from Currey and Company and will go in the Conservatory.

Troy's lantern will hang in the foyer.

Love this drum from Framburg for the breakfast room.

And these sconces from Murray Feiss will light the Master Bath.

I can't wait to see all these gorgeous pieces hanging in their model! Gulick Group builds a fantastic house, so it's sure to be a spectacular home!

A Recipe for Great Kitchen Lighting

2010-09-16T16:32:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Linda Longo for quoting me so nicely in this article for the ALA (American Lighting Association)!

A Recipe for Great Kitchen Lighting

Interesting Articles to Share

2010-09-16T09:47:00.009-04:00

Today I wanted to share several articles that I found interesting, in my various newspaper & web reading this week! The first one is from today's front page of the Washington Post, talking about one LED lighting company based out of Florida:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/15/AR2010091507173.html?hpid=topnews/

I especially liked the photo gallery, with behind-the-scenes shots of the makings of these LED lamps. There really ARE little computer boards inside these things, and they have a couple of great pictures illustrating that fact.

Next, I saw a link on Twitter to this Better Homes & Gardens post about kitchen lighting, so I thought I should share the link here:

http://tinyurl.com/35w5bzk/

Anyone who talks about the importance of dimming is an expert in my book!

Here are some of their kitchen application shots:

Monorail continues to be so popluar ~ who doesn't love the flexibility of a rail system paired with cheerful glass?!

This is one of our favorite styles ~ multiple small chandeliers over an island.

And it's hard to beat the simplicity of clean pendants over an island.

Next, some tips for bedroom lighting from a fellow blogger:

http://blog.builddirect.com/lighting-style-guide-2-bedroom//
Another nice suggestion for dimmers here!

That's it for today. Next week I'll be away at the ALA Conference in Vegas, so I hope to post some pictures from there onto our Facebook and Twitter pages. Stay tuned!

Lutron Experience Center DC

2010-09-13T16:34:00.004-04:00

Just got back from a great vist to the new Lutron Experience Center in Washington, DC. We are trying to figure out how we can use this fabulous facility! We're sure we'd like to take customers down there and maybe host a designer ASID CEU seminar. So if you are interested in any of those things, please let us know! It's also inspired us to train more of our electrician customers to be Radio RA2 installers, but we think we'll do those trainings here in Chantilly in Dominion's conference room, and also at our rep's offices in Columbia, MD.

This is their conference room. That's not a checkerboard! It's how they show us all their shade options and the differences between light & dark shades, with different degrees of how much you can see through them.

Another shot in the conference room. There are more shades on the right, and then some of their products on the credenza in the center.

Shaun Taylor of Lutron was showing Marcia Hussey from our Laurel store their new pleated, motorized shades

The entire experience center is lit only with fluorescent and LED sources ~ even their refrigerator! Very impressive!

This is a shot of what their software can tell you about how much energy you are using and saving. The technology is unbelievable!

Then we got to go up on the roof! Can you see the Washinton Monument out there?

Can't you picture a nice wine & cheese party up there?

And there's the Capitol ~ a gorgeous view!

They tell us we can bring clients to see the center any time we care to ~ we just need to make an appointment. So please let us know if you'd like us to take you there to see it all for yourself!

ALA Bright Ideas

2010-09-10T08:11:00.004-04:00

Here is a link to the September Issue of ALA's Bright Ideas: http://www.americanlightingassoc.com/newsletter/brightideas-september2010.html/
This month's features include:
~ Pendant Lighting Must-dos
~ EXPERT ADVICE: Get Answers to Your Questions
~ BRIGHT TIPS: Enter to Win the $5,000 Home Lighting Sweepstakes

ALA is the American Lighting Association, of which we are proud members. Eleven of our full-time staff members in our 3 showrooms are ALA Certified Lighting Specialists or Consultants. We attend ALA's monthly webinars to be sure we are current on all of the latest trends, technologies, and ideas. And 3 of us (Marcia Hussey from Laurel, Giorgina Schnurr from Arlington, and myself from Chantilly) are heading to Las Vegas next week for the annual ALA Conference. We'll be so motivated and energized with great new ideas when we return!

Washington Post Sep. 8, 2010

2010-09-08T13:11:00.004-04:00

Did you see the front page of the Washington Post today? The demise of a local incandescent lamp factory, thanks to the Energy Act of 2007 which is forcing manufacturers to create more efficient sources of light. Here's the link: http://tinyurl.com/2ahx3om/

I can't help but wonder if this is why: "Jobs at the plant have been prized locally for years: They pay about $30 an hour." I would think it's pretty hard to be competitive compared to Chinese wages with that kind of average.

They have a wonderful chart that shows the legislated changes:
http://tinyurl.com/2c4h2ho/

I know I don't know a whole lot about the business side of things, but it sure would be great to see the U.S. companies try to make some of the great new LED products here in the U.S. I personally believe that LED holds the most promise for a nice, acceptable energy-efficient light source. Every month or so we see a new brand or an updated product from an existing brand that blows away the previous generation of LED light bulbs. I don't think it's going to be too much longer until those bulbs get affordable enough and bright enough for the general population to begin accepting them and switching out to them. Or at least, I sure hope so!

Kichler Design Pro LED Under Cabinet Lighting

2010-09-01T10:39:00.000-04:00

This is a great blog post about Kichler's LED under cabinet system, with a nice shout-out to Jeff Dross, our July guest speaker!

Kichler Design Pro LED Under Cabinet Lighting

10% Off Coupon

2010-08-31T11:09:00.004-04:00

Here is our coupon featured in this month's Chesapeake Home magazine. I thought I should share it with our Social Network friends! You are welcome to print it off and bring it in to any of our 3 showrooms.

I love these simple drums from Progress Lighting. You know we love our drums here, and some of them can get quite fancy, so these are a nice, plainer option.

Emerson St. Croix

2010-08-30T16:03:00.003-04:00

We've just displayed the Big Daddy of all ceiling fans here in Chantilly! It is a show-stopper, for sure. We've noticed that almost every customer that sees it feels the need to touch it ~ almost like they're petting it! I guess it's just so spectacular, they just have to rub it or something!

The one on display is # CF3300ORH, which is Oil-Rubbed Bronze (but this pewter picture was much bigger and clearer on their web site!). You can see it here:

http://www.emersonfans.com/Pages/Fan.aspx?Fan=St. Croix&Item=CF3300ORH/

And this is a cool shot from Emerson's home page, which also features the St. Croix:

The blades we have on display are B80HCW ~ 22" Hand-Carved Walnut.

Stunning!

The Light Stuff: Pendant Lights, Table Lamps and Other Ways to Glow at Home | Styles | Express Night Out

2010-08-27T10:20:00.000-04:00

A nice article in "express" today. Many thanks to Erin Schwartz and Mike Stombock for their time and expertise!

The Light Stuff: Pendant Lights, Table Lamps and Other Ways to Glow at Home Styles Express Night Out

ALA Annual Conference

2010-08-26T14:05:00.004-04:00

I'm honored & excited... Eric Jacobson just asked me to be a seminar coordinator at the ALA Conference next month. How fun! I get to introduce Joe Rey-Barreau for his "Ultimate Kitchen and Bath Lighting" seminar on Wednesday 9/22. I'm curious, how many of my industry friends are planning to attend the conference?

Joe is a great speaker, with an amazing amount of knowledge about lighting and design. If you've never heard him speak, live or on an ALA seminar, you are really missing out. So come to the convention and catch your chance to learn from the best in our industry!

Home and Garden Tip - Picking the Right Contractor

2010-08-26T12:53:00.005-04:00

I thought this was great advice from the Washington Post for choosing a contractor.
http://tinyurl.com/3yf9dwt/

Laurel's 20th Anniversary party

2010-08-26T08:48:00.004-04:00

Yesterday we celebrated 20 years since our Laurel location opened back in 1990. We had a great turnout and it was fabulous to see so many customers and vendors!

Here are the pictures I was able to take with my BlackBerry and post to Facebook & Twitter:

This is Stan & Bill from Representations Inc.

Liz from Zanger with Marie from the Laurel showroom.

Debbie from Progress.

And this is a link to the one I put on Twitter:
Patty Jordan w the door prizes at our Laurel 20th anniversary... on Twitpic

And then we had a really fun photo booth, so these are the picture I got taken there!

From left to right: me with my sister Karen (who worked part-time in the Laurel showroom in the early 90's) ~ Marcia (Laurel showroom manager) & Marie (Laurel showroom sales) & me ~ same 3-some, just moved around! ~ Linda Morley (Arlington showroom manager) & me

Good times, good times!

New chandeliers on display

2010-08-23T13:20:00.007-04:00

We hung SO many beautiful things last week! I just HAD to share my favorites:

I'm putting my favorite one first today. This is Kichler 42062CMZ. Do you love it as much as I do?

Kichler 42385MIZ. I posted a picture of this one before, but that was when I'd just seen it in their catalog. It's even more beautiful in person. Come visit us & see for yourself!

Kichler 42233CTZ ~ beautiful simplicity

Kichler 42104CMZ ~ kind of funky, but really nicely done

Acess 23632AMB ~ stunning amber glass

Access 23082BS ~ This has a gorgeous Piastra glass, and we have the matching ceiling mount, too.

Visual Comfort CHC1420R ~ another one that is simply elegant

Artcraft SC656CH ~ It's nice to see some interesting new foyer pieces like this one....

... and this one! Hinkley 4576ICZ

Crystorama 9607-AB ~ We have this displayed with the chain, and I believe our Arlington showroom displays it as a ceiling mount. Such nice versatility!

TedMag.com - 2010 Winners

2010-08-20T09:08:00.000-04:00

Here's another link to our Enlightening blog award!

TedMag.com - 2010 Winners

tED Magazine Names 2010 “Best Of The Best” Marketing Awards

2010-08-20T09:00:00.001-04:00

I am absolutely thrilled to find out our Enlightening blog just won an award this week:

tED Magazine Names 2010 “Best Of The Best” Marketing Awards

Our award was for Digital Campaign:
•Distributor $25-$200M – Dominion Electric Supply, "Enlightening Residential Lighting Blog"

Thank you, NAED & TED magazine!!!

WAC LED pucks

2010-08-17T11:08:00.002-04:00

We've just placed our stock order for the new LED puck lights from WAC Lighting. We've had one on display for a while, but now think the time is right for us to have them on hand! I think their color quality and brightness are gorgeous! You'll have to come visit us, check them out, and tell us what YOU think! We'll have them in Brushed Nickel, Copper Bronze, and White, with dimmable drivers.

A nice close-up shot from their web site ~
http://www.waclighting.com/USA//

A single shot of the bronze puck.

This is just the driver, which I know isn't pretty, but people often wonder what the "driver" looks like! We're going to start by stocking a 4-light dimmable and a 1-light non-dimmable. You'll have to let us know if you think we should stock other versions!

This is a retrofit unit that we aren't stocking yet, but I thought I should note that it exists! This will change out an existing WAC halogen or xenon puck over to a new LED puck.

Tech Railtones

2010-08-04T15:16:00.002-04:00

I'm on the eve of vacation and will be out till the 16th, so I wanted to squeeze in one more blog post before I head to the beach! We just installed these awesome new speakers from Tech last week ~ they call them Railtones:

We have them mounted to two "Freejack" canopies in the showroom (they can also mount to monorail track), and then my ipod is hooked into them. We're so excited to have music playing throughout the showroom finally! They can also be tied into a computer, so you could listen to Pandora radio or itunes or even CD's in your CD drive. Pretty neat!