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Urban Light Company
Wall lightsBedside wall lights →Hallway wall lights →
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43 combinations · from £95.00 each

Bedside Wall Lights

A swan neck either side of the bed puts the light on the page, not the ceiling, and frees the bedside table. Handmade on solid oak, beech or walnut, in the metal that suits the room.

Wall lights for a bedroom, and why a swan neck

A bedside lamp takes up the one surface you have next to the bed and lights the ceiling as much as the book. A wall light fixed beside the bed does the opposite: the table is clear, the light comes from above and slightly in front of you, and there is no flex to knock off in the night. It is the reason hotels do it, and the reason most of the swan necks we make end up in bedrooms.

The swan neck shape is what makes it work as a reading light rather than a decoration. The arm curves out from the wall and back down, so the bulb holder points at the pillow and the light lands where you are looking. A flat sconce washes the wall; this one reaches 28 cm out and gives you something to read by.

Each one is a 14 cm back plate turned from solid oak, beech or walnut, a swan neck arm in brass, black, copper, chrome or white, and a bulb holder you choose separately — so the pair either side of the bed can match the metalwork already in the room, or the wood of the bed itself. It arrives ready to wire and takes an ordinary E27 bulb.

The questions people ask before fitting bedside lights

How high should bedside wall lights be?
Fit the back plate roughly at shoulder height when you're sitting up in bed — for most beds and most people that is 1.2–1.4 m from the floor. The arm then angles the bulb down onto the page rather than into your eyes. The arm reaches out 28 cm from the wall, 30–34 cm with a bulb in, so keep the plate about 15–20 cm outside the edge of the mattress and the light lands where you read.
One bedside light or two?
Two if two people sleep there, one each side and each on its own switch, so one of you can read while the other sleeps. A single bed, or a bed pushed against a wall, wants one on the open side. Because every light is made to order, a pair arrives matched — same wood, same metal — and the grain will differ slightly between them, which is the honest tell that they were turned rather than pressed.
Which bulb for a bedside wall light?
The light is supplied without a bulb and takes any standard E27 screw-fit. For reading beside a bed, a warm white filament (2200–2700 K) at 4–6 W LED is plenty — bright enough for a page, dim enough not to wake anyone. A large clear globe is what's photographed and what suits the exposed holder best. Pick a dimmable bulb if the circuit has a dimmer.
Where does the switch go?
Decide that before the wall is plastered. The comfortable version is a switch at each bedside, low enough to reach without sitting up, with each light on its own. If the bedroom is already finished, a two-way switch by the door and one by the bed is the usual compromise. It's a mains fitting, supplied ready to wire, so unless you're competent to do it yourself, installation should be carried out by a qualified electrician.
Which finish for a bedroom?
Brass on oak is the warm, quiet one and the pair most people picture. Black on beech is the sharpest silhouette and suits a room with dark frames or handles. Walnut makes any metal look like a decision. All the combinations cost the same, so the only question is the room.
How long does a pair take?
Each light is built when you order it — 5–7 working days, then tracked delivery by Royal Mail or a tracked courier. Order two together and you pay one delivery charge.

The long answer on height, with a diagram is in the journal.

Not sure about the height or the finish? Tell me about the bed and the wall and I’ll tell you what I’d do.

Choose the finish

Bedside wall lights by finish.

Every combination, £95.00 each

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