Family of Barn Light Fixtures Brings Coherence to Shop Remodel
On the tip of the Tiburon Peninsula which reaches south into San Francisco Bay, the town of Tiburon is home to picturesque parks, world-class wine, and boutique shopping opportunities. The recently remodeled Knit House on Main, perched in the heart of downtown, offers a shopping mecca for those in love with yarn.
“This was a lightly remodeled space,” explains Joan Tovey Korngut of Proper Wit Design who led the renovation efforts. “Because the shop is in a historic district, there were understandable limitations about what could be done. We gave a nod to traditional elements of a late 1800s general store with the clean, bright sensibility of 21st century design.”
The team added a knit-pattern wallpaper in the library and a hand-painted graphic in the classroom plus added new paint, custom cabinetry, and new lighting to enhance all of the design choices.
The shop’s entryway is flanked by two Avalon Gooseneck Lights. These handcrafted wall lights are customized with 12″ shades, a Black finish, G34 gooseneck arms, and dusk-to-dawn photocells.
“These fixtures are fantastic,” Joan says. “Not only are they a great match for the shop aesthetically, they meet the requirements of a historical retail district. The photocell technology borders on magical!”
In the front window, Joan selected the Wilcox Deep Bowl Pendant Light to highlight the display area. She customized these American-made pendants with 10″ shades, a White porcelain enamel finish, and black-and-white cloth cords.
“We wanted illumination at the display windows but we didn’t want to install a fixture that blocked the view into the store or from the store out to the street,” she notes. “The scale and color of these fixtures work perfectly, and the cloth cords provide continuity with the rest of the Barn Light fixtures in the store.”
Another Wilcox Pendant is a focal point in the store’s library, a cozy space with floor-to-ceiling shelves and a large chair. This pendant sports a generous 20″ shade and a Cherry Red porcelain finish.
“The big Cherry Red Wilcox draws attention to this little nook and casts great light should someone want to sit in the comfy chair and look at knitting patterns,” Joan says.
At the back of the store, the classroom table is illuminated by two Sinclair Draftsman Pendants which are customized with 16″ shades, a White porcelain enamel finish, and the same black-and-white cloth cords as the other pendants.
“This area needed task lighting to cover the table plus the lighting needed to be subtle enough to not detract from the hand-painted store logo on the back wall,” Joan explains. “The minimal height of these fixtures, the pools of light they provide, and the White gloss finish all work together to do the trick.”
A longtime customer of Barn Light Electric, Joan knew she could create the variety of lighting she needed for Knit House on Main thanks to the endless customizing options available.
“The shapes of the fixtures complement one another. And we could customize the sizes and colors yet have the different fixtures read as part of the same family,” Joan says. “Using the black-and-white cloth cord was another way to unify the lighting design. Barn Light provides wonderful customer service and using American-made fixtures always feels great!”
Photos courtesy of Proper Wit Design
