Hello Ranarp and Hektar!

March 10, 2015

I’m so excited to introduce you to my little friends, Ranarp and Hektar! Those would be lamps. IKEA has a way with the names. Anyway, I have a thing with lighting. It’s my jam. It’s the little detail that I fall in love with when I pour through magazines or blogs. Specifically, little accent lighting.

When the Bub and I took a last minute trip to Cincinnati one Saturday a few weeks ago, these were on my list. Well, actually, another lamp was on my list but IKEA has gone to LED lights only so they didn’t carry the one I wanted anymore. I was hoping to do two of the one I showed you here on the shelves in our kitchen.

Since they no longer sell those I had to find another option. I started to go with the LED version but by the time you get all their connectors, the great IKEA prices aren’t so great anymore. It was going to cost $100 for two little lights!

So we kept looking and I’m glad we did! I’ve seen this guy (that would be Ranarp, hello) here and there on the Internets and have loved the look. He’s a little industrial, but with a classic vibe that goes in a more traditional setting too. He was perfect:

Ranarp clamp lamp

Don’t you love the black and white cord? Details I love. 

This spot has been a black hole in our kitchen and I’ve been wanting to add just a little bit of light to it for months. Ranarp fits just right. It comes with a bracket so you can hang it on the wall too, but I just clamped it on the top shelf of the bookcase. You can tighten it so it stays put.

It looks good and it works great too – this is the one light I turn on every evening without fail:

metal bookshelves with light

I did some finagling to make the cord disappear cause you know how they make me itch. I’ll paint those cord covers gray soon – it just hasn’t been a priority yet:

Ranarp wall light

The rest of the cord, as cute as it is, is in a cord cover that goes down the back of the bookshelf:

lighting on bookshelves

It works like a charm! Now I wish I would have gotten two more of these lamps to put in the Bub’s bedroom – next trip for sure.

I grabbed a couple of the Hektar lamps too, for a spot in loft eventually. But I found an area that was needing some light instead:

Hektar lamp IKEA

We had a bunch of recessed lights added to the family room when we knocked down the wall, but I wish we would have pushed them back just a bit more down on this end of the room. It can get a little dark down there.

It still needed a little bit of task lighting and this lamp is perfect!:

Small task lighting for wall

I hid the cord along the side of the board and batten and you don’t even notice it. And yes, I’m planning on painting the switch white, but again, haven’t gotten to it just yet.

This one pivots and turns and can be adjusted any way that you want:

Hektar wall lamp

I think these little accents are what add some character to your home without breaking the bank. I LOVE you Hektar and Ranarp!:

Spool chair

They are both listed at $20 each online, but one of them (I think the white one) was only $15 in the store.

The only pain about these lamps is the light bulbs…argh!!! If you get them at IKEA don’t forget the light bulbs. I totally spaced it on that and left without them, and I know better by now. Some IKEA lights take very specific bulbs. The problem is, they are supposed to take LED which is crazy expensive. I’m not a big LED light fan -- it’s so white and bright and they cost a ton. I found the bulb for the Ranarp lamp at Lowe’s but it cost more than the lamp! I mean, it will last us something like 20 years, granted. But still…that’s a hard pill to swallow.

I still can’t find the LED bulb for the darker one, the Hektar, so I picked up a 25 watt flood light bulb and it works great. Because the wattage is low it’s fine with this lamp – which didn’t occur to me until I had bought FOUR bulbs in an effort to find one that fit the dang lamp! Curses. Thankfully Lowe’s lets you return them. :)

Anyway, here’s what I used – the LED on the left is for the white Ranarp lamp and the one on the right is the one I used in the black Hektar:

light bulbs for IKEA lamps

Maybe that will help some of you looking – it wasn’t easy to find ones that work!

I’m scoping out other areas of the house that would be a good fit for more small task lighting like these. Like I said, I’ll be adding two of the white lamps to the kiddo’s room soon. I think they’ll look so good in there. Just have to come up with another excuse to drive to Cincinnati. ;)

Have you used these lamps anywhere in your home? I didn’t realize till I looked them up online that there’s a whole series of products in each one – I LOVE the Ranarp pendant light!

Email subscription form header
Your email:*
Please enter all required fields Click to hide
Correct invalid entries Click to hide

Comments

  1. I used the RANARP task lights in our master bedroom in lieu of bedside lamps. I attached them to our headboard with the included brackets. I love the character they added to our room! I also love that they freed up valuable space on our very small nightstands. Now I'm drooling over the pendants for over our dining table.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for another thing to add to our Ikea list.! We have been trying to get to Cincinnati for a month but the snow has kept us away and our list grows and grows ;)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi- loved the post and your 2 new purchases. Have you posted any details before about the items you used to style the kitchen bookcase? Loved the glass canisters and the basket and the galvanized jar holder thing and the....
    I live about 20 mins. from an IKEA, and am always looking for an excuse to go there. I'd be happy to get your light-bulbs and post them to you if you would like. Seriously, no problem.
    Thanks for always posting things I love to read with great photos to match.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are so kind, thank you!! I think I'm good for now since I finally found one that works for each lamp. I posted about that bookcase and some of the items at Christmas but haven't done one since. :) http://thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com/2014/12/christmas-in-kitchen.html

      Delete
  4. MOre than lamps I loved that chair....Do you mind sharing whre its from.
    Thanks,
    Paula

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's from HomeGoods -- but I have seen them found all over the country at the stores so you may have luck!

      Delete
  5. Ahh! Thank you for sharing!! I love the Ranarp spotlight lamp, you just gave me an idea for my bedroom that I will be redoing soon!

    Lauren | LB Designs
    xx

    ReplyDelete
  6. I need to look into something like this for our living room turned library. We have NO overhead lighting in there. Would love to illuminate the bookcases.

    ReplyDelete
  7. The lamps look great in both locations. Would you mind sharing where you bought that shelf unit in the kitchen. It is just what we need for our eat in area. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I got that at Joss and Main and talked about it more here:
      http://thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com/2014/11/family-room-details-and-sources.html
      They don't always carry it but if you search it online it sometimes comes up online elsewhere -- I found it at Overstock once!

      Delete
  8. I love the chair! Where is it from?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Me too! It was from HomeGoods (and there's no name brand on it) -- I know that's frustrating when you want the same piece! But I have seen so manny people find the same chair all over the country at HG's, so it may be worth checking out occasionally. :)

      Delete
  9. Lifesaver! I bought two Hektar lamps this weekend and forgot the bulbs. You saved me a 150 mile round trip to Atlanta!

    ReplyDelete

If you have a specific question I will do my best to answer you back here!

You can find our paint colors and links to items at the "Our Home" tab at the top of my site.

THANKS so much for reading!