Weather Insurance

Weather Resistant Portable Lighting from Kenroy Home

With the recent onslaught of punishingly cold weather, it’s difficult to even think of outdoor living accessories that aren't fire pits or high output space heaters. Outside dining experiences featuring freshly grilled cuisine aren't planned nearly as often when you subject your guests to single digit temperatures. However, your outdoor living accessories – in this case, outdoor lighting are subject to a wide array of extreme temperature changes; which begs the question…what exactly does “weatherproof” mean?

Kenroy Home’s corporate headquarters are located in Northeastern Florida – our weather patterns have been known to shift wildly, making a wardrobe featuring a heavy jacket and sandals perfectly acceptable. In short – we have an ideal testing ground for various types of weather conditions. Our design methodology is surrounded by the idea of “weather insurance” – nearly any lamp can operate under sunny, 72 degree chamber of commerce days…Kenroy Home’s “weather insurance” is the guarantee that your outdoor lighting products will operate after unpleasant weather systems have passed through your area.

Beginning with the most common of inclement weather…rain; as mentioned in this issue of Casual Living, Kenroy Home actually subjects their lamps to a “rain box” during shows. We do this to not only illustrate the effectiveness of our bulb shields, but to also demonstrate the high quality water resistant materials used for our shades. A quick stop by our Dallas Showroom this Lighting Market to view the display will prove how water just rolls off the shade – leaving no room for the material to become “weathered” over time. Using solution dyed acrylic as the material for the shade also protect your lamp against sun damage caused by intense summer heat.  

Each lamp body is also protected against the elements as well – featuring materials such as high quality resin, concrete, and slate…these outdoor accents earn the title “weather resistant”. During our most recent cold snap (that was mild compared to the rest of the country) each lamp in our testing area performed beautifully the “day after”.

While there certainly is an ideal time to enjoy your outdoor lighting accessories – make sure you select a lighting product that can safely make it through those less than ideal weather conditions. Kenroy Home carries a full line of outdoor lighting products – all of which can be viewed on Pinterest – and purchased at your local lighting retailer, or these home improvement websites.

 

Creative Office Solutions

Folding Laundry...Writing Blogs:
By: Justin Draughn

Before my wife and I decided to have children, our home office was truly a sight to behold. A techie’s dream…sleek tables, weirdly shaped ergonomic chairs, and a host of science fiction movie posters adorning the walls. Then…we had kids – while I don’t ever say that begrudgingly, my sleek-silver office turned into a pink nightmare…a baby girl’s room.

A quick search of the house left me with little options – moving my desk into the master bedroom was out of the question, the glow of the monitor would keep my wife awake during late night gaming sessions. I needed a door, and a reasonably quiet place to work and generally waste time playing video games. Then I realized a desk-sized cutaway in our laundry room…at first the idea sounded crazy, but after a few measurements…I realized it could indeed work.

My workstation was scaled down to a small glass table that supported my monitor, keyboard, and mouse. While we have overhead lighting in the form of fluorescent tubes – these tend to give me a headache, as such I opted for a sleek desk lamp from Kenroy Home called “Amherst”. The pivoting head and three-way touch controls worked perfectly in the arrangement – I have a nice warm glow when typing, or executing commands on my favorite online multi-player game. Additionally, the rich oil rubbed bronze finish compliments my black PC accessories.  

With very limited space, I soon realized that I would need to "build up" in order to accommodate necessities like disc cases, files, headsets, controllers, and general office supplies. A simple wire shelf was installed to hold most of the larger items – however, this solution was not handy for items that I’d be accessing frequently such as my headset and gaming controller. After a quick online search, I located the perfect solution – an iron holder with two supporting arms – this feature solved three storage solutions…a place for my iron, headset, and gaming controller.

I've had my “laundry data center” for five years now – and once you get used to the scaled down area, it’s really quite nice. An unexpected bonus is the warmth from our dryer during the cold winter months. Leave a comment below if you've ever had an unusual home office arrangement…and what were your solutions?

The "Amherst" desk lamp can be purchased at your local lighting showroom- or online at these fine retailers. 

  

Raw and Rustic Design

I'm a world traveler...or am I???
By: Justin Draughn

Sometimes interior design can be a little rough…and that might be the exact look you’re after. In this post we explore a simple side table design theme that can change the look of your room from “daily commuter” to “rough and tumble world traveler”.

We begin with a highly unique light source; the “Sheaf”table lamp from Kenroy Home – this rustic bundle of reeds has a true expedition feel. This stand out accent piece immediately sets a “raw” tone to the room – and would be further complimented in a living space featuring hardwood floors. The fanned reeds filter the shine of the bulb into a nice warm glow.

To further drive home the “world traveler” look you can employ a simple mason jar filled with foreign currency. Ideally these notes would be souvenirs from your “real” world travels – but if you’re content to "stand in the place where you live", you do have a few options. Most banks offer currency exchanges, and some may impose a minimum order...best to check before you stop by your banking establishment, you don't want to end up with a $200 design piece. Your other option...become good friends with someone in the military, more than likely they've picked up several notes during their tours of duty.

Lastly, to round out the look – an aged wood picture frame extends your traveler table display onto your wall space. This balances out the roughness with a series of softer images of family and friends. Extra credit given to at-home designers with proficiency in Photoshop...  

With just a few accent pieces you can modify your living space into an inspiring focal point that will have your guests chatting about your unique taste in design. The "Sheaf" floor lamp can be purchased at your local lighting showroom- or online at these fine retailers. 

  

“Don’t Touch Those White Walls! – No Painting Allowed”

Kenroy Color – "Profile" Lamp of the Month

By: Priya Patel

I just settled into my new place, a nice modern apartment located in a bustling area of the city – great restaurants and shopping are within walking distance, and my neighbor brought over cookies the day I moved in (yum!). Everything seemed perfects until I received my “welcome” letter from the apartment management office. Overall the message was nice; thanks and gratitude for selecting their community, rules and regulations about the pool, etc… - then, located in a bright red font were the words “painting of apartment walls is prohibited”. Bummer…every square inch of wall space was white – like “institutional white”.

With the walls off limits I needed to focus on my home décor accessories – after all nothing in the guidelines prohibited colorful lamps or candles. Starting in my master bedroom I began with a simple inspiration piece – a small orange candle. With my contrasting color in mind, I thumbed through a Kenroy Home catalog (one of the many benefits of working for a home décor company) until I found the perfect set of lamps. The Profile Lamp collection is presented in a tangerine glaze with a poppy floral shade – the perfect compliment to my orange inspiration piece.

Now that my lighting was in place – I added a few floral touches to my night stand to really accentuate the orange pop of color. The white headboard and bedding makes the color stand out in an even more dramatic fashion. The Profile floor model creates a nice contrasting barrier between my wall, and the start of the headboard.

 Just a simple pop-of-color can dramatically change the atmosphere of those “Don’t Touch!” apartment walls. Adding touches of orange are easy to incorporate into your home décor, so be bold and add a pair of tangerine lamps in your living or bedroom. 

The Profile Lamp collection can be found online (follow the links below) or at your local lighting retailer:

Amazon
Bellacor
Home Depot

January: "Kenroy Color"

Ironically this posting about colorful interior design accents is being written under a forecast of dreary, gray rain clouds. The mood outside my window is dull, depressing, and otherwise uninspiring. When the rain clouds finally part I’ll be treated to a wonderful collage of green grass, brightly inspired flowers, and a crisp Florida blue sky…until then, my desk is adorned with brightly colored lamps like Profile, Mackenzie, and our ceramic solar lantern collection (Leaves). I must admit, even with the gloomy overcast weather outside – the bright pops of color that I've surrounded myself with inside are really doing the trick,

We've declared the month of January to be “Kenroy Color” month – ring in the refreshing sense of a new year by rejuvenating your surroundings with bold and rich colors. Beginning January 6^th Kenroy Home will be releasing a series of product profiles, blogs, and interior design tips with a focus on incorporating bright and vibrant colors into your interior and exterior design scheme.

The team is looking forward to Kenroy Coloring your Home.

Designing with Fall Colors

We're rapidly approaching the Fall season...the temperature is cooling, leaves are falling to the ground, and nature begins to erupt in a symphony of warm colors. The change in season also ushers in a shift in home decor and interior design. At Kenroy Home, we selected our favorite elements of the fall season and matched them to lamps, mirrors, lanterns, and even fountains that mirror the color pallet of fall. So...put away those cool summer colors and get cozy with these suggestions;

See our Pinterest Board for more details...
http://www.pinterest.com/kenroyhome/fall-inspirations/

Rialto Outdoor Fountain

We have a beautiful outdoor fountain to present today...a three tiered Venice inspired outdoor fountain. Outstanding water motion and classic serene sound make this fountain an outstanding garden structure.