Last week I took a wee road trip to Stockbridge, Mass. — the next town over, here in the Berkshires — to see the new guest house at the Red Lion Inn. My goal: to be first in world to showcase the fabulous foyer that features not one, not two, but 14 vintage TV lamps lighting up the two-story entrance way. Above: That’s Stephanie Gravalese, the marketing manager who gave me a tour — she was as delightful as the TV lamps. Except, there were 14 TV lamps as sconces, so that was some competition.
This is such a fantastic idea. Vintage TV lamps as sconces. The folks at the Red Lion Inn have them on bracketed shelves, with plugs and dimmers hidden behind each TV lamp. But I could also envision finding a matching pair of vintage TV lamps… rewiring them for hard-wiring right into the wall… then putting them on floating (invisible) acrylic shelves. Place and wire them into the wall just like you’d wire in a matching pair of mid mod sconce lights. I must find a pair of matching TV lamps and try this, I must! 23 more photos of the lights, and Maple Glen –>
For ease of discussion, I say “Red Lion Inn” — but this wall of lights is actually at the Red Lion’s Inn new guest house, the new/old “Maple Glen” development right behind the Red Lion. The Red Lion Inn is a super famous New England Inn. It’s the anchor of the Berkshires streetscape that Norman Rockwell made famous — Stockbridge, Massachusetts, America idealized. Rockwell lived and worked right around the corner. And the Norman Rockwell Museum is just a hop and a skip away.
The Maple Glen — shown above — started with the 2,700 s.f., 1850 Greek Revivial house (at rear of photo). The Red Lion Inn — which consistently sells out all its room space — bought the house when it came up for sale last year. They then expanded the property by another 3,500 s.f. to house, in all, 17 guest rooms.
Red Lion Inn owner Nancy Fitzpatrick loves the retro, vintage, eclectic aesthetic, so the rooms mix it all up with contemporary elements and for sure, contemporary comfort. In essence:
This is not your granny’s Red Lion Inn.
The rooms at the Maple Glen are elegant, colorful, quirky, comfortable, luxurious, cozy, fun. The idea for the wall of TV lamps was Nancy’s. Stephanie told me the lamps were purchased from ebay and the like.
Artsy fartsy follows. What I lack in terms of wide-angle lens, I make up for in… volume:
TV lamps! Now we all need a pair of matching TV lamps! I think this could be tough, but it is a noble quest. Reco: Search ebay and etsy at the same time. Here are some good looking candidates spotted for sale right now on ebay:
Thank you, Stephanie, for being such a gracious house. Good luck, Nancy and team, with the new digs. 🙂
Nancy Fitzpatrick says
I was hoping you’d spot the cat black velvet paint-by-number. Truthfully, it took a fair amount of guts to hang that on a Red Lion Inn-related wall! I appreciate the affirmation! Thanks.
pam kueber says
🙂
nina462 says
I have a rare Rin Tin Tin tv lamp. I swear I saw one on antique roadshow type of show, but I’ve never seen once since. Does anyone else know about this lamp?
Nina462 says
I have tried the websites listed and they do not have the Rin Tin Tin lamp and I’ve tried Google as well, with no luck. It’s chalkware & unfortunatly there’s no identifying marks. I’ve submitted a picture or two before…he’s standing on a rock, and has a green globe for a light.
Eartha Kitsch says
What a great idea! That lamp wall is one of the coolest thing that I’ve ever seen! That place looks really fun.
lynda says
Very different and lovely. That was a lot of electrical work! This has such a fresh retro look!
Charlotte says
I love the Red Lion Inn! I love Stockbridge! I love those lamps! I love exclamation points!
Michael says
Okay, this is seriously the coolest decor idea you’ve featured in a long time. Love it!
NatalieW says
That looks so cool.
Susan C. says
My grandmother had a TV lamp on top of her black and white TV. Pam, have you seen the TV Lamp Museum? http://www.tvlamps.net/christensen-collection.html
lynda says
Very fun site!
Blondie7 says
Adorable! Great collection! I love, love the matador tv lamps, the lady holding a pink fan and the pink swan. So very special. Thanks for sharing Pam!
dianna says
I’ve been acquiring tv lamps as of the last couple months, you can usually find some pretty decent deals if you’re constantly scoping out ebay and etsy. My idea to display them was to find a vintage shelving unit and have them arranged by category (my favorite being animals).
I did find a really great resource for these, http://www.tvlamps.net
It gives a really good idea of rarity/ value and also the history of several prominent tv lamp manufacturers.
Nina462 says
I’ve actually stumbled upon this store when I lived in Mn. It’s also near a classic car museum…so a nice day trip for anyone in MN.