Sometimes we see one of our location’s projects and know that we have to share it with everyone. This is one of those times. Sylvie and Michel Mesnier custom designed and installed a unique lighting system on this Victorian Italianate 1880 home.
Sylvie and Michel, who provide outdoor lighting in Northern New Jersey, take each project as an opportunity to highlight the architecture of the home (and thus their lighting design skills). This home had a few challenges while creating the design that were overcome to provide the owners with this beautiful final design.
One of the main challenges of lighting this home was to illuminate each story without creating shadows and keeping the unique identity of the house. When porches create shadows on second floors, it is not uncommon for Outdoor Lighting Perspectives to mount light fixtures to the gutters to illuminate all parts of the home. That wasn’t an option with this installation. Because the home was built in 1880, there were no gutters. Instead there was a flat roof made of wood covered with tin foil and a weatherproof paint. It would be unwise to drill into that! Instead, Sylvie and Michel’s team ran wires through copper tubing and that tubing and the fixtures were connected to the roof with silicone.
Color was also a design challenge that Outdoor Lighting Perspectives of Northern New Jersey overcame. The main floor walls have a light yellow color, but the top is pink. It was important to the Mesniers and the homeowners that the color could be appreciated to keep the integrity of the home. Getting the right amount of illumination was difficult because the pink looked much brighter than the yellow. A special bulb was created in a lower wattage that was then frosted for the perfect effect.
The ground floor and all its columns were illuminated with traditional very wide-angle well lights.
The homeowners chose to work with Outdoor Lighting Perspectives of Northern New Jersey because of their design expertise as well as their commitment to their clients. Sylvie and Michel sat down with the owners and clearly explained the plan and showed them the quality of fixtures, making them comfortable with each step of the installation.
Great job Sylvie and Michel!