The Danglepoise

Motivation In the dying years of the 20th century, the “rise and fall” light fitting became briefly popular. You know the type: a counterweight (or spring) balances out the weight of the lantern so that the lamp can be moved up and down. I’ve always thought that these were rather neat. You can leave them up near the ceiling for general room illumination, lower them a bit to create a more intimate atmosphere, or pull them right down for focused task work. Couple a rise and fall pendant with that other 1970s lighting must-have, the dimmer switch, and you have a really flexible lighting system. I recently found myself in need of some lighting, and wanted to replicate this neatness. It became rather complicated. Why not just buy a rise and fall pendant lamp and a dimmer switch, and have done with it? Three reasons. Firstly, modern decorative lighting seems to operate in a very price-sensitive market, which has driven manufacturers to engineer out costs everywhere that they can. This gen ... Read full article.