Fall High Point Style Report: Sconces

Ask any lighting manufacturer exhibiting at High Point Market this past week what their product focus has been this year and you’ll hear a common answer, “We’ve paid a lot more attention to offering wall sconces.”

Instead of serving merely as companion pieces to other decorative elements in the room, wall sconces are enjoying the spotlight. Why now? There are several reasons.  For starters, single-family home construction – which typically consists of generously proportioned spaces – has been sluggish due to tariffs on construction materials and high interest rates. As a result, most sales have been among existing homes of 20 or 30 years or more. These homes tend to be smaller in scale, which means lighting fixtures do not need to be as large. Plus, there are space-saving benefits in having lighting on the wall instead of a torchiere or floor lamp taking up much-needed floor space.

While the single-family home construction market has been somewhat stagnant, the increase in multi-family construction has provided many lighting showrooms with a steady revenue stream in many regions of the country. And what do multi-family living spaces have? Smaller rooms.

Then there is the aspect of cost. When compared to chandeliers and other large fixtures, wall sconces are a more affordable option for homeowners because there are simply less materials involved due to their dimensions.

Taking note of sconces’ appeal to homeowners and property managers, manufacturers are designing wall fixtures that serve as space-saving statement pieces that provide all of the aesthetic oomph  of larger fixtures without extending out too far into a room in a way that would make the living space feel smaller.

Below are some of the new sconce designs unveiled at Fall High Point Market.