Yahoo Finance 10 best floor lamps for illuminating your space in style
Multiple light sources can create a homely atmosphere that you just can’t achieve with only overhead lighting. But where a table lamp can be easy to place – sideboard, piano, console table – a standalone floor lamp demands its own space.
The trick is to find the perfect position for your lamp that doesn’t interrupt the flow of traffic but which doesn’t see it cramped into a corner, either. Ideally, you want the whole floor lamp on show, from shade to base, so do measure up before you commit.
A traditional standard lamp offers a single light source and, depending on the shade and type of bulb you plump for, a cosy glow. There are, however, numerous styles that will give you directional – and sometimes adjustable – accent lighting.
Think large, overreach floor lamps, designs with multiple light fittings (otherwise known as tree lamps), or task styles, which are essentially oversized desk lamps that can be positioned to suit your illumination needs.
While our round-up includes a variety of floor lamps diverse in style and price points, each one brought personality, quality of craftsmanship and bang for your buck.
How we tested
We tried out these floor lamps in various rooms and settings around the house, and with different bulbs to see how they transformed the space, looking for the perfect level of illumination and a cosy glow. We also looked at each lamp for quality of materials, design, and craftsmanship.
The best floor lamps for 2022 are:
Best overall – John Lewis & Partners spindle wooden floor lamp, brown/brass: £215, Johnlewis.com
Best for contemporary elegance – Dar Adna grey & wood floor lamp: £158, Amoslighting.co.uk
Best bang for your buck – Dunelm hexa floor lamp: £69, Dunelm.com
Best for sustainability – BHS jute string floor lamp, natural: £140, Bhs.com
Best for original design – Lights and Lamps ridotti light natural raffia and burnished brass floor lamp: £189, Lightsandlamps.com
Best for multifunctionality – B&Q shelved matt black floor lamp: £87, Diy.com
Best for bedroom glamour – Made briz textured glass floor lamp: £130, Made.com
Best jointed floor lamp – Pooky swing articulated standing lamp, bronze: £335, Pooky.com
Best classic design – Original BTC task overreach floor light, olive green: £1,200, Originalbtc.com
Best for vintage lovers – Florence Broadhurst bingle floor lamp: £355, Amara.com
John Lewis & Partners spindle wooden floor lamp, brown/brass
Best: Overall
Rating: 10/10
We loved this Art Deco inspired floor lamp for its subtle form and luxe brass accents. The spindle shaped wooden frame is stained a rich mid-brown, which beautifully brings out the grain of the natural material, while a flash of bright brass, both top and bottom, offers instant glamour. The lamp is topped with a plain white fabric drum shade – this one’s all about the base – while its diminutive tripod bottom takes up minimal floor space. The spindle lamp is beautifully crafted with thoughtful design details. And, choose a warm LED bulb and the drum shade will really glow.
Buy now £215.00, Johnlewis.com
Dar Adna grey & wood floor lamp
Best: For contemporary elegance
Rating: 9/10
Mixing Scandinavian influences with industrial chic is this unassumingly elegant floor lamp from Amos. In light matte grey and natural pale wood, it offers a calming vibe even before it’s illuminated. We loved its slimline tripod legs and its subtle contrast in colour and materials. The shade, with its soft white interior, is adjustable, allowing us to direct the light to where we need it, and as such it makes a great reading light. This one takes a bulb of up to 60W and is dimmable, which further adds to its versatility. And where other tripod floor lamps tend to steal precious floor space, this one is pleasingly non-intrusive.
Buy now £158.00, Amoslighting.co.uk
Dunelm hexa floor lamp
Best: Bang for your buck
Rating: 9/10
You don’t have to go big to make a statement. Dunelm’s hexa floor lamp is a slimline beauty with its sculptural hexagonal design that frames an exposed bulb. Made from steel, the lamp is reliably sturdy and won’t topple over despite its small round base. We loved this one for its simple but effective design, its Art Deco influences (note the brushed gold accents), and its tantalisingly affordable price tag. That said, the lamp doesn’t come with a bulb included so it’s worth taking those pennies you’ve saved on the lamp itself and spending them on a large contemporary bulb you’ll want to show off.
Buy now £69.00, Dunelm.com
BHS jute string floor lamp, natural
Best: For sustainability
Rating: 9/10
Crafted from sustainable jute, BHS’s offering is both eco friendly and bohemian chic. The free-standing lamp/all-in-one shade gives off a softly diffused light, thanks to its intricate woven design. Gently curved, it creates a stylish statement, not to mention a relaxing zen-like vibe. With this one, it’s worth noting that the bulb sits in the centre of the piece as opposed to the top, giving living spaces a different dynamic – suitably low-down for laid-back boho seating. We loved the jute string floor lamp for its ability to transform a room in an instant. It’s impossible not to relax with this one.
Buy now £140.00, Bhs.com
Lights and Lamps ridotti light natural raffia and burnished brass floor lamp
Best: Original design
Rating: 9/10
Lights and Lamps is another surprisingly affordable lighting destination, with the brand’s pendants and lamps offering something a little different from the usual high street offering. The ridotti floor lamp is a beauty in its chic, tilted, hat-like form. It’s crafted from layers of handwoven raffia with a centred glass globe that gives a soft, diffused up-light.
The disc-shaped shade is supported by a burnished brass stem with tripod feet, making it feel reassuringly sturdy. We loved the ridotti for the glamorous ray of sunshine it brings. It is also, however, available in fashionable black.
Buy now £189.00, Lightsandlamps.com
B&Q shelved matt black floor lamp
Best: For multifunctionality
Rating: 8/10
We do love a piece of furniture with dual functionality, and this deftly designed number marries lighting with nifty shelf storage. Once illuminated, the black fabric drum shade really glows. It’s worth noting that you’ll get a different hue with either a warm or white bulb.
The black steel tripod base supports two sturdy shelves, which we found ideal for housing our current reads and those specs we’re always losing, alongside a trailing house plant to really bring the piece to life. Stylish, contemporary, practical and affordable.
Buy now £87.00, Diy.com
Made briz textured glass floor lamp
Best: For bedroom glamour
Rating: 9/10
Seventies-style ribbed glass is currently enjoying a renaissance and, true to form, Made has embraced the trend. This vintage-inspired floor lamp is a lesson in understated elegance. We loved the dusky pink hue of the textured glass shade, which turns even more pretty once illuminated: not only does it glow, it casts an attractive pattern on the wall.
The briz’s slimline metal stem and base boasts an antique brass finish, further adding to the look. This is a great choice if you’re short on floor space, as it takes up just 26cm of it.
Buy now £130.00, Made.com
Pooky swing articulated standing lamp, bronze
Best: Jointed floor lamp
Rating: 9/10
One for traditionalists, Pooky’s offering is a fuss-free but elegant number in brass that has a simple heavy base, slimline antique brass tubing, and a sweet candlestick feature at the top. The standing lamp can be purchased on its own but the brand offers a wealth of perfectly suited – and relatively affordable – shades to finish the look. See your chosen shade in-situ on the website.
The two joints mean it can be adjusted to light up our favourite reading spot. We love Pooky’s attention to detail: even the olive-coloured braided flex is chic.
Buy now £335.00, Pooky.com
Original BTC task overreach floor light, olive green
Best: Design classic
Rating: 8/10
Our priciest pick is one for dedicated design lovers who’ll know this brand for its homely take on industrial chic. Unlike most overreach styles, this floor lamp features an adjustable boom arm, which allows us to position the light source exactly where it’s needed.
Made from a top-notch aluminium with a powder-coated spun shade in a cool olive green, the quality of its craftsmanship is palpable. A simple and stylish statement piece.
Buy now £1200.00, Originalbtc.com
Florence Broadhurst bingle floor lamp
Best: For vintage lovers
Rating: 9/10
Quirky and retro, Florence Broadhurst’s bingle recalls an oversized table lamp and we loved its playful aesthetic. It comes in a choice of colourways, each one matching its thick glass base with a vibrant, patterned shade.
The shade is handcrafted from buckram paper, while the bottle-like base is made from recycled glass, bringing quality craftsmanship with an eco friendly edge. In “green floral spot", this late Sixties/early-Seventies-inspired number proved a showstopper in our mid-century style lounge.
Buy now £355.00, Amara.com
The verdict: Floor lamps
John Lewis & Partners’s spindle wooden floor lamp perfectly marries classic and contemporary design. We loved its subtle Art Deco influences and the way its plain drum shade ensures our eyes are drawn towards the lamp itself. We also loved Lights and Lamps’s ridotti for its unique design and use of natural materials.
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