Nursery lighting is one of the most important elements of the space, because after all, you need to be able to see! It is especially important to have flexible lighting options for your nursery design that can fit your individual needs. I love to suggest to my clients that they have a small table lamp in the nursery for when they need to sneak in there in the middle of the night without waking the baby. That way, you can just turn on the little lamp instead of all the overhead lights.
It’s also really helpful to have a small lamp by the glider for reading, rocking or feeding. Nursery lamps usually go on the side table by the glider or on the dresser (which has to be shared with the changing pad). For this reason, I usually suggest lamps on the smaller side. A piece under 20″ is ideal for those little spots. Here are some of my favorite small scale lamps, perfect any spot in your nursery!
The Ideal Nursery Lamp Size
When looking at a lamp online, it can be hard to know what the dimensions will look like in real life. It’s common for people to purchase a table lamp that’s too large for a changing table or nursery side table because a standard height table lamp might be too large for the nursery space. When in doubt, find a lamp already in your home and measure the width and height. You can even bring it into the nursery to see how it feels and adjust what you’re looking for from there.
The Best Nursery Lamp Height
For nursery lamps, I like to stay under about 22″ high, with 20″ high being the goal. Table lamps can go up to 28″ high, so check carefully when you are shopping online. That said, if you have an extra-wide dresser and a large mirror, you can definitely go up to a larger lamp size. See an example of that in this Gray and Lavender Nursery.
The Best Nursery Lamp Width
Lamp width can be just as important as the height, especially for the changing table. You can see in the roundup image that some of the lamps have smaller shades than others. If you have a small changing table, you might want to go for a lamp with a smaller shade, closer to 8-10″ wide. If you have more space, then you can go larger.
Safety Considerations for Nursery Lamps
Anything you put in the nursery can be at risk of being knocked over or pulled down. Table lamps are often made of delicate materials like ceramic or glass, so it’s important to keep an eye on your child. You won’t have to deal with these issues until your child is old enough to crawl, but it’s nice to know ahead of time what to look out for. Keep all cords hidden or secured, and if you notice that your child starts to grab toward the lamp, it might be time to remove it from the nursery.
Our Favorite Small and Mini Nursery Lamps
1. White Modern Dome Table Lamp
2. Pink Scalloped Table Lamp
3. White and Brass Scalloped Table Lamp
4. Dark Green Glass Table Lamp
5. Bird Pattern Globe Table Lamp
6. Grass Green Wide Table Lamp
7. Textured Neutral Table Lamp
8. Slate Blue Scalloped Table Lamp
9. Pink Fluted Table Lamp
10. Taupe Rattan Scalloped Table Lamp
There is a lot that goes into nursery lighting, from small lamps for the dresser or side table, to figuring out which window treatments to use to control the natural light in the room. If you need help with that, check out our post on nursery blackout curtains.
Happy shopping!
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