Glass Wall Sconces

Glass wall sconces read differently depending on the surface of the glass. Clear leaves the bulb visible and casts a sharp shadow, frosted evens the source out to a steady glow, and ribbed or fluted glass breaks the light into vertical lines on the wall behind. Every fixture here lists glass in its material specification.

How to choose glass wall sconces

The room decides the diffusion. In a bedroom or a passage people move close to the fixture at eye level, so frosted or opal is the easier choice; nobody wants to look into an exposed filament from three feet away. On a dining wall or behind a bar the lamp is part of the design, and clear glass belongs there.

Then check what the glass is attached to. Many bodies pair a glass shade with a metal backplate, a stone base or a wood arm, and the metal is what you match to the door levers and the cabinet pulls. The material field on each product page lists every component, which is worth reading when a photograph makes a mixed fixture look like one thing.

Shade orientation on glass wall sconces

Which way the shade points changes a room more than the finish does. Facing up, it washes the ceiling, makes a low room feel taller and hides the lamp completely from anyone standing. Facing down, it drops a bright scallop on the wall and lights whatever sits underneath. A cylinder open at both ends does both and leaves a band of dark across the middle. Set the center of the backplate around 66 inches from the floor unless the fixture is lighting one specific object.

Is fluted glass harder to keep clean?

A little. Dust settles in the grooves and a flat cloth skips over them, so use a soft brush or a cloth wrapped over one finger. The trade is worth it in a passage, where the ridges give the wall a pattern a smooth shade cannot.

Can a glass sconce go in a bathroom?

Check the rating listed on the product page before you commit, since a wall near a shower counts as a damp position and not every fixture is intended for one. Frosted glass is the usual pick at a mirror because it lights a face evenly rather than from one bright point.

Keep browsing with Brass Wall Sconces, Alabaster Wall Sconces, Wood Wall Sconces and Glass Pendant Lights. Browse the wider category at Wall Lamps.