Vintage Swag Lamps
Vintage Swag Lamps
What is a Swag Lamp?
A swag lamp is a type of lighting that features a pendant lamp which is hung from the ceiling, usually by a chain. You may have also heard of them being called hanging lamps, ceiling globe lights, or chain lamps. These types of lamps were very popular during the mid century era and especially during the 1970s, because they provided an economically efficient light source while only occupying a minimal amount of space. Those reasons are why choosing a vintage swag lamp for your own home is still a smart and stylish choice.
Where Can You Find A Vintage Swag Lamp?
Modern Swag Lamps are still being produced and sold as pendant lighting, but you can't walk into your local home improvement store and go straight to the vintage swag lamps aisle to bring some mid century charm to your own house. So where do you find a great vintage swag lamp? A quick search on Etsy or eBay, as well as many other online retailers, reveals a variety of gorgeous vintage MCM swag lamps. But be prepared to pay a nice price to purchase one and have it shipped directly to you.
Luckily there are other ways of adding some MCM swag to your living room such as local yard sales, flea markets, or even asking an older relative if they have one stored in their basement, attic, or maybe the garage. Also you should never underestimate the potential of finding a priceless treasure as a great curbside special. It's just like the old saying says, "One man's trash is another man's treasure." Finding a vintage mid century modern swag lamp through one of these sources will be much more affordable, not to mention, the good feelings you'll get every time you walk past the living room on your way to the kitchen and, out of the corner of your eye you see the gorgeous swag lamp you got from your neighborhood yard sale for $25!
Even finding one of these lamps in non-working condition is exciting because old lamps can easily be rewired and given new life! And replacement glass shades or globes from non-working lamps are also sold all the time, both as original vintage pieces and as reproductions.
Popular Mid Century Styles
The most common type of vintage swag lights were those featuring a single glass globe. But swag lamp options could also include two or more smaller globes, meant to hang as a unit. Many slightly differing styles were available, including a round globe or a bubbled shaped. The swag lamps were sold in several color choices as well, however the overall look of the globe style remains mostly the same no matter which one you chose. Here are a few examples of what that looks like.
1970s Swag Lamps
You may be familiar with these types of vintage swag lamps. The left picture is of a vintage Lucite grapes hanging swag lamp in a rare blue color. The middle is a vintage Venus Goddess Oil Rain Lamp. The glowing lamp on the right is another example of the popular Lucite grapes swag lamp in a different color.
Crushed Velvet Shade Swag Lamps
The 1970s called and they said they want their lamps back.... These lamps are an option, but they wouldn't be my first choice in vintage swag lamps. Chartreuse green crushed velvet is just not a look that every, or any, home can really pull off with that effortlessly cool vibe that swag lamps are known for.
Other Swag Lamps
A few examples of the different styles of vintage swag lamps...
There' s even an outdoor use swag lamp for your patio!
These adorable swag lamps are called "Lawnware" and they were all the rage in outdoor swag of the 1970s. There is literally a different swag lamp for each room of your house if you're really into this fun, vintage light source!
I hope you enjoyed this week's post on vintage swag lamps. Come back next weekend for another vintage must-read post! Be sure to check out this week's Think Ya Know? Thursday post to test your knowledge of mid century glassware. Subscribe to the blog and never miss a new blog post or Think Ya Know? Thursday post from TheVintageVixenShop ever again!
Also be sure to take advantage of our March 30% off everything green in honor of St. Patrick's Day all month long at TheVintageVixenShop. "If it's green, it's on sale!" There are no exclusions and no minimum purchase amounts. And as always, FREE guaranteed SAFE shipping is included with every order.
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