Article by Vittoria Rivera
Before I tell you how to create that perfect romantic dining room, I want to ask you a question. What separates a romantic dinner from a normal family dinner? Is it the food? The people? The time of the year, month, week or day? Well, all these factors are important but it is the ambience that makes the difference when it comes to romantic dinners. Consider a couple eating oysters placed on a broken washing machine in a dirty room that has only one light bulb. Now take the same food and place it on a nice round table with a velvet table-cloth in a cozy, dimly lit and scented room. Which dinner would be more romantic? Yup, it would be the latter. Why? Because of the ambience.
Even in the case of ambience certain factors are more important than others and one of the most important of these factors is the lighting. The lighting has to be dim and soft. It should add tranquility and soften the mood of the room. It should not hurt the eyes but should be enough so that the couple can easily enjoy their meal. One way to achieve all this is by using an oil lamp with a state of the art oil lamp shade.
Why not just use candles like everyone else? Well, first of all, it would be like everyone else, if you want to stand out and impress your lover then go for an oil lamp. Due to the invention of modern electricity the majority of the population has never seen an oil lamp and when they see one they are mesmerized by its beauty. Second, oil lamps are safer than candles because the flame is covered with a lamp shade. Third, oil lamps can be easily moved around. Fourth, these lamps allow you to easily adjust the light. Compare this to candles where the only way to increase or decrease the light is to add or remove candles. Fifth, with an appropriate lamp shade, namely a hurricane lamp shade you can place the lamp outside in moderately windy conditions.
There are a number of lamps and shades available in the market. If you want to give your room a Victorian touch then go for a vintage or antique shade. If you want to have an open-air dinner then use a hurricane shade. Also, you don't have to go overboard and buy really expensive shades, decent shades can be purchased for less than 20 dollars. You can go a little further by using scented oils to improve the ambience.
If you haven't purchased an oil lamp or shade before then there are few thing that you need to keep in mind.
Lamps and shades can be purchased separately but they need to be compatible. Hence, while buying a lamp make sure that compatible lamp shades are also available in the market.Most of the shades being made these days are for modern electric lamps. So, buy a shade that is for oil lamps.Outdoor or indoor? If you want an outdoor lamp then buy the ones made with metals such as brass, aluminum or copper. Indoor shades are smaller and made from fragile materials.The lamp and the shade should match with your interiors. Don't buy a Victorian lamp for a contemporary looking room