I worried when I started this final phase of our 2nd-floor gut-remodel that my lighting plan was going to look corny or fail structurally. Now that it’s installed, I like the way it turned out.

When I designed the remodel, I figured that we would want recessed, dimmable lighting of some kind that comes on when you hit a switch at the bedroom entrance, so I installed LED strip lighting along the spine of the room, with plan to cover it with shapes to diffuse it and help it bounce.

Our move to the Pacific Northwest in 2021 sent us on dreamy hikes with the dog through the lush, green parks of Seattle, which then inspired the design.

The ferns are each about 18″ long, laser-cut, clear-coated, and hung with zinc wire from steel rails that I suspended from the rafters on straps of plumber’s tape. I painted the metal white to help it disappear and blend in.

My first try using a laser cutter. These came out pretty much as-advertised, from templates I bought on Etsy.

I’m taking these as a training round – and inspiration for working on my own designs.

This was scratch-built from 3mm birch plywood, transparent red acrylic rod, patterned sheet plastic, and an assortment of hardware including metal strap and hog rings. I leaned hard on influences from the art deco age, where something warm and futuristic was always in the corner, lighting the room.