Authenticity Lighting made it’s debut at the January Dallas market.   This new company was founded on a simple premise: produce beautiful, high quality lighting with an honest and straight forward approach.  To accomplish this they took a fresh look at every aspect of the process, from initial sketches and design to material and finish selection, all the way through to final production and delivery.

Seen above are two peices from the Monarch Collection.  It  features four styles in two finishes: Antique Gold Leaf or Rustic Iron.  It’s shape and seeded glass panels echo the floating freedom of a butterfly in flight.  Monarch is offered in two chandelier sizes, plus a mini chandelier and a two light wall sconce.

Come to the Creative Lighting showroom to see a gallery of fixtures from Authenticity Lighting!

At Creative Lighting we continually work to offer you the best- a great selection of products available when you need them, at the lowest possible price by experienced lighting consultants.

 We know that at times, you have a tight deadline – your electrician calls to tells you he’ll be there this afternoon, or you want to finish that nagging project this weekend.  An advantage to shopping with Creative Lighting is that now you don’t have to drive all over town to find that fixture that you need today, you can see what’s in stock online at www.creative-lighting.com before you leave your home.  We offer the advantage of online shopping with all of the the convenience of a local showroom.

 Browse our wide selection of lighting on our website  – the items that are available for same-day pick-up are clearly marked with our  icon:  

Then stop by the showroom to “kick the tires,” and take the items you love home with you the same day, OR give us a call to place your order.  We can have it ready for pick up ASAP!

In our showroom, you’ll find a large selection of unique lighting, ceiling fans, and mirrors, as well as, our ”In Stock Today” items on display.  While you’re here, visit our bargain room area to save even more on clearance items or select special order items not offered on our website.  Our experienced staff will help answer your questions and provide ideas and inspiration to ensure you get the most from your lighitng project. 

 Shop now for:

In Stock Today trestle lights  or In Stock Today mini-pendants  that you might use over your kitchen island. 

In Stock Today vanity lights to complete your bathroom remodeling project.  

In Stock Today table lamps to add a new punch to your décor.

Or, check it all out at www.creative-lighitng.com.

At least once a week, a customer will ask me if they should be stocking up on incandescent light bulbs due to the impending ‘ban’ starting in 2012.

While the government has taken great strides to conserve energy through the future wattage limitations of light bulbs, there obviously seems to be very little effort in educating the public about the actual details of the new laws.  To make matters worse, many manufacturers of ‘green’ products will twist and/or misquote the wording of the bulb legislation to put their own products in a better light (pardon the pun).

 What then, does the new law state, and what are the best options for light bulbs when the law takes effect?

 The law in question is The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007.  The act builds on the progress made by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct) in setting out a comprehensive energy strategy for the 21st century.  Lighting energy efficiency is covered in Title III, Subtitle B of the Act, specifically Section 321:

AFFECTED LAMPS

• General Service Incandescent Lamps (standard incandescent or halogen-type lamp)
• Medium screw base
• 310 to 2,600 lumens (40-100W in current wattages)
• 110 to 130 volts 

All affected lamps listed above must meet the following criteria as noted below:

• Modified spectrum (See Better, Feel Better®) lamp lumen ranges are 25% lower.
• Minimum of 80 CRI except for modified spectrum, which have a minimum of 75 CRI.
• Candelabra base incandescent lamps shall not exceed 60 watts.
• Intermediate base incandescent lamps shall not exceed 40 watts.

EXEMPTIONS

Specialty Lamps including:

Appliance lamp, black light lamp, bug lamp, colored lamp, infrared lamp, left-hand thread lamp, marine lamp, marine signal service lamp, mine service lamp, plant light lamp, reflector lamp, rough service lamp, shatter-resistant lamp, sign service lamp, silver bowl lamp, showcase lamp, 3-way incandescent lamp, traffic signal lamp, vibration service lamp, G-shape lamp with a diameter of 5 inches or more, T-shape lamp of 40 watts or less and a length of more than 10 inches, and B, BA, CA, F, G16-1/2, G25, G30, S or M14 lamp of 40 watts or less. (exerpt from the EISA 2007)

The letter of the law is to phase out some existing incandescent bulbs and replace them with lower-wattage alternatives.

The spirit of the law is to force manufacturers to create and/or market light bulbs that use 30% less energy (or better) to replace today’s higher-wattage versions.

The truth, in short, is the incandescent bulb is not disappearing from the American landscape, but the wattages as we know them are being replaced.  There are far too many uses for incandescent and halogen bulbs that CFL and LED bulbs are simply not able to supplant.

It is my hope that as we approach January 1, 2012 (phase-out of the 100-watt bulb), greater strides will be taken by the government to better inform people of the facts in the law, and replacement choices will be clearly presented by manufacturers and shopping centers.

Chank paints "Creative Lighting" on the front of the building

It has been a few weeks since painting started on our building and it has never looked better.  It has been amazing to watch the daily transformation as artists Chank Diesel and Adam Turman along with a gang of volunteers paint away.  Chank himself has been blogging about it himself over at his “chankblog“:

I’m working on FOUR new big murals for the Creative Lighting building in St. Paul, MN near 94 & Snelling. All four are still in progress, but here are some preview pics of the first mural. This one, measuring 15′ tall by 65′ wide, is a collaborative piece with Twin Cities’ poster artist and bicycle evangelist Adam Turman, one of my local art heros. He made the design and painted the lady. I made the Drunk Cowboy font and am still working on painting drop-shadows on that. We had lots of friends come out to help, too. Painting is fun. Thanks y’all!

 

The big "Hi!" on the building is morphing into "SHINE"

Last Thursday there was a “Painting Open House” of sorts where Chank and volunteers came out and painted even when it was so dark they needed lights to keep on going.  They were working on the mural on the south side of the building.  Chank is working with designer Anne Ulku on this particular mural. It’s an upcoming story for her collaborative Six Word Story Every Day project. The words they were painting were that evening were appropriate, “Darkness” and “Light”.

The word "Darkness" appears out of the darkness

A very dapper Chank Diesel at work on the mural

Last week we announced that our building was going to be getting a makeover. This week the makeover is well underway.  Local font designer Chank Diesel and local artist Adam Turman have been hard at work creating amazing murals on all sides of our building.

Adam Turman added his art to the east side of the building.  It encourages visitors to keep going to the main entrance of the building with the text “Keep Riding” and an illustration of a girl riding a bike.

Full view of the Adam Turman mural

Detail of Adam Turman mural

Chank is hard a work on the facade, west side, and south side of the building.  The south side faces 94 East and greats commuters with upbeat shades of blue and the simple message, “Hi”.

The west side of the building says "Hi!"

Not only is our building starting to look classy but we think Chank looks really classy while he is painting it.  Let’s be honest, most people don’t paint in a tie and fedora.  Chank said of his outfit:

‘i find that wearing a tie not only makes me feel more like a “fine artist” but also changes the way I hold the brush. so cool that I actually have a job where I get to work with a ten-foot pole.’

Mural concepts for the Creative Lighting building by Chank

Most natives of the Twin Cities are familiar with the Creative Lighting building.  It is a bright beacon of a box located off the Snelling exit on 94E in Saint Paul with a painted mural for a facade.  In the past the storefront has sported gophers in a homage to the University of Minnesota, but since 2002 it has proudly displayed a mural by Minneapolis based font designer Chank Diesel.

Current Creative Lighting mural by Chank in 2002

As with all buildings, the Creative Lighting building needs maintenance too, and after eight years it’s time for a fresh coat of paint.  We see this as an opportunity to create a great piece of public art and asked our good friend Chank Diesel to make another mural for us.  He said yes and we couldn’t be more excited about watching him transform our exterior.

Detail of current Creative Lighting mural by Chank in 2002

The pressure washing of the exterior of the building started today and Chank will start painting the building with the new mural sometime this week.  The painting will probably take about three weeks.  We will be documenting the process here on the blog, taking pictures as the new mural comes to life and talking to Chank about his vision for the building.  Please comment to us here on the blog or on our Twitter account at @createlighting.  Chank Diesel can also be found on Twitter @chankfonts and on his “chankblog“.

Chank Diesil's signature on the Creative Lighting building