{"id":3586,"date":"2026-06-01T18:00:50","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T18:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586"},"modified":"2026-06-01T18:00:50","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T18:00:50","slug":"designer-debrief-natalie-owens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586","title":{"rendered":"Designer Debrief: Natalie Owens"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Investing in upholstery and case goods but skimping on lighting is like buying a great suit then wearing bad shoes, says Natalie Owens of Stil James residential design studio. Style Editor Julie A. Palm discovers the lighting trends Owens loves and shares her favorite recessed light alternative.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Julie A. Palm<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Natalie Owens and her team at Stil James<\/a> residential design studio, lighting is at the forefront of what they do. That means making lighting decisions early in the design process \u2014 and making the lighting a budget priority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had clients say to me, \u2018We know we can\u2019t choose cheap lighting with you guys.\u2019 It\u2019s not a place to save in our minds and we never try to. We\u2019re very direct with our clients: There are places to save, and lighting isn\u2019t one of them,\u201d says Owens, co-founder and creative director of Stil James, based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The firm specializes in residential renovations and new construction, with projects concentrated in Canada\u2019s four Atlantic provinces: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Natalie Owens, co-founder and creative director of Stil James,is a fan of reeded and recycled glass on lighting fixtures, which she says have timeless appeal. Photo credit (on right image): Janet Kimber<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Owens acknowledges that her distaste for \u201ccheap\u201d lamps and fixtures is \u201ca subjective opinion,\u201d but she believes strongly that people should invest in lighting. It sets moods, illuminates tasks and adds sculptural interest to rooms. Few other home furnishings categories do so much work \u2013 and serve so many varied purposes \u2013 in a home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Investing in high-quality upholstery and case goods but skimping on lighting is like buying a great suit and then wearing bad shoes, she notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But no one\u2019s design budget \u2013 for lighting or anything else \u2013 is unlimited.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere are ways to save money on lighting, but you\u2019ve got to dig in a little bit and not sacrifice,\u201d Owens says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One example: \u201cIn a powder room, a small space, I\u2019ll just do one great wall sconce,\u201d she says. \u201cBut I\u2019ll ensure it throws a lot of good light. So, I\u2019ll buy fewer fixtures so I can get the really good fixture.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If it comes down to buying lighting versus purchasing artwork, Owens has a ready answer for clients. \u201cWe really view lighting as artwork in our minds,\u201d she says. \u201cSo, if anything, I\u2019m going to be able to get a little bit of artwork through<\/em> lighting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
As the fixtures in this living room and dining room show, Owens believes you can introduce \u201cartwork through lighting\u201d into a space. Photo credit: Carolina Andrade<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Owens is always on the hunt for quality lighting sources and is a fan of some smaller producers, such as Huey Lightshop<\/a> and Luminaire Authentik<\/a> \u2014 both of which design and manufacture their products in Canada.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In terms of finishes, Owens says her firm\u2019s designers tend toward \u201cbrass and polished nickel almost exclusively for our plumbing fixtures, our hardware and our lighting fixtures.\u201d An exception: Owens appreciates the color choices from Luminaire Authentik.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey\u2019re a really contemporary lighting group and have something like 50 different colors that you can choose from,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd they\u2019re the right colors \u2014 really saturated, like cherry red. We’ll use those in certain spaces that lend themselves to kind of that aesthetic.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Owens isn\u2019t a fan of recessed lights, whether in a kitchen or a basement. \u201cI really challenge my clients on choosing fixtures only throughout a house,\u201d Owens says. \u201cSome people think I’m crazy for that. But I think the pot light throws everything off in a room. I need there to be a possibility of ambient lighting in every single room.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She\u2019s found an alternative she\u2019s liked using lately: mini flush-mounts from Belgium.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey are beautiful little ceramic 5-inch diameter flush-mounts, so I\u2019ll run a grid of those instead of pot lights,\u201d Owens says. \u201cIt\u2019s not a huge cost for the client, and the light they throw with an opaque sort of ball is completely different from a pot light. It changes the room completely.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Instead of recessed lights, Owens likes to use mini flush-mounts. Photo credit: Carolina Andrade<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Trends and timeless options<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In terms of lighting trends, Owens appreciates ceramic and pottery-inspired light fixtures, including sconces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd the custom fabric shades on table and floor lamps are a really fun way to layer fabric into a room,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then there\u2019s the tried and true. \u201cI like anything with recycled glass or kind of reeded glass,\u201d she says. \u201cIt has just stood the test of the time and throws a nice light. We use a lot of that in our homes.\u201d

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related articles<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Designer Debrief: Elana Tenenbaum Cline<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Designer Debrief: Nina Lichtenstein<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Investing in upholstery and case goods but skimping on lighting is like buying a great suit then wearing bad shoes, says Natalie Owens of Stil James residential design studio. Style Editor Julie A. Palm discovers the lighting trends Owens loves and shares her favorite recessed light alternative. By Julie A. Palm For Natalie Owens and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3587,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":2,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,391,10],"tags":[245,1098,1099,1096,1097],"class_list":["post-3586","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","category-featured","category-people","tag-canada","tag-huey-lightshop","tag-luminaire-authentik","tag-natalie-owens","tag-stil-james"],"yoast_head":"\nDesigner Debrief: Natalie Owens - Lighting News Now<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Natalie Owens of Stil James design studio in Canada is a believer in good lighting and shares her favorite alternative to recessed fixtures.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Designer Debrief: Natalie Owens - Lighting News Now\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Natalie Owens of Stil James design studio in Canada is a believer in good lighting and shares her favorite alternative to recessed fixtures.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Lighting News Now\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-01T18:00:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Julie-Owens-Article_1580.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1580\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Linda Longo\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Julie A. Palm\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Linda Longo\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7b91a4fcdfd101c1a8cd62bed02204e5\"},\"headline\":\"Designer Debrief: Natalie Owens\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-01T18:00:50+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586\"},\"wordCount\":807,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/Julie-Owens-Article_1580.png\",\"keywords\":[\"Canada\",\"Huey Lightshop\",\"Luminaire Authentik\",\"Natalie Owens\",\"Stil James\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Business\",\"Featured\",\"People\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586\",\"name\":\"Designer Debrief: Natalie Owens - Lighting News Now\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/Julie-Owens-Article_1580.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-01T18:00:50+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7b91a4fcdfd101c1a8cd62bed02204e5\"},\"description\":\"Natalie Owens of Stil James design studio in Canada is a believer in good lighting and shares her favorite alternative to recessed fixtures.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/Julie-Owens-Article_1580.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/Julie-Owens-Article_1580.png\",\"width\":1580,\"height\":900},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?p=3586#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Designer Debrief: Natalie Owens\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Lighting News Now\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/lightingnewsnow.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7b91a4fcdfd101c1a8cd62bed02204e5\",\"name\":\"Linda Longo\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/91c8c2aeaa8bae6bb6148d8c20c5a0383f517cd96be31811a84562c9051282ed?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/91c8c2aeaa8bae6bb6148d8c20c5a0383f517cd96be31811a84562c9051282ed?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/91c8c2aeaa8bae6bb6148d8c20c5a0383f517cd96be31811a84562c9051282ed?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Linda Longo\"},\"url\":\"\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Designer Debrief: Natalie Owens - Lighting News Now","description":"Natalie Owens of Stil James design studio in Canada is a believer in good lighting and shares her favorite alternative to recessed fixtures.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Designer Debrief: Natalie Owens - Lighting News Now","og_description":"Natalie Owens of Stil James design studio in Canada is a believer in good lighting and shares her favorite alternative to recessed fixtures.","og_url":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586","og_site_name":"Lighting News Now","article_published_time":"2026-06-01T18:00:50+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1580,"height":900,"url":"http:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Julie-Owens-Article_1580.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Linda Longo","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Julie A. Palm","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586"},"author":{"name":"Linda Longo","@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/#\/schema\/person\/7b91a4fcdfd101c1a8cd62bed02204e5"},"headline":"Designer Debrief: Natalie Owens","datePublished":"2026-06-01T18:00:50+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586"},"wordCount":807,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Julie-Owens-Article_1580.png","keywords":["Canada","Huey Lightshop","Luminaire Authentik","Natalie Owens","Stil James"],"articleSection":["Business","Featured","People"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586","url":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586","name":"Designer Debrief: Natalie Owens - Lighting News Now","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Julie-Owens-Article_1580.png","datePublished":"2026-06-01T18:00:50+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/#\/schema\/person\/7b91a4fcdfd101c1a8cd62bed02204e5"},"description":"Natalie Owens of Stil James design studio in Canada is a believer in good lighting and shares her favorite alternative to recessed fixtures.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Julie-Owens-Article_1580.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Julie-Owens-Article_1580.png","width":1580,"height":900},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?p=3586#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Designer Debrief: Natalie Owens"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/","name":"Lighting News Now","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/#\/schema\/person\/7b91a4fcdfd101c1a8cd62bed02204e5","name":"Linda Longo","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/91c8c2aeaa8bae6bb6148d8c20c5a0383f517cd96be31811a84562c9051282ed?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/91c8c2aeaa8bae6bb6148d8c20c5a0383f517cd96be31811a84562c9051282ed?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/91c8c2aeaa8bae6bb6148d8c20c5a0383f517cd96be31811a84562c9051282ed?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Linda Longo"},"url":""}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3586","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3586"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3586\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3591,"href":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3586\/revisions\/3591"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3587"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3586"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3586"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lightingnewsnow.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3586"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}