Revel Home’s Wyer Modern Industrial EcoFriendly Mini Pendant Lamp

I’ve needed to update a few of the fixtures in my home, and it’s hard shopping at big-box stores because they only want to carry contractor-grade cheap and make you special order anything nice. Shopping online for lamps and fixtures can be a dizzying, harrowing experience, what with the over-abundance of selection and and sometimes-questionable descriptions and pictures, you can end up with something you hate and live with or have to pay to return. Revel home comes to the rescue with products that not only look as good as the pictures online, I dare say the products exceed expectations and even look better!

This is my second go-round with products from Revel Home, and while the last one, a counter-height barstool, was awesome, this lamp, to me, is even better. Packed well, made well, and looks like a million bucks installed, it was a dream to work with. The drop pendant style is my favorite, but sometimes Hubby has to mickey-mouse what I like to fit into our somewhat shorter ceiling heights. This time adjusting the drop was a breeze, just by adjusting the plastic cord “lock” inside the mounting plate. Installation took Hubby about 30 minutes, because we’v done these types of lamps before, but one huge oversight (which is probably just an anomaly) was the lack of instructions for installing. Thankfully, we know our way around them and it wasn’t an issue. The glass “canister” is thick and sturdy, and the antique-bronze looking metal accents are gorgeous. It swings free when installed so even if your ceilings are slightly uneven, your lamp won’t be. It also accepts incandescent, LED, and CFL bulbs and can be used with a dimmer as well. Revel Home even included a vintage-Edison-style LED bulb, which in and of itself can sometimes run you $10 or more, but Revel Home gives it to you for free.

Therein lies the only minus I could find, and it’s not a shortcoming at all of the lamp, but all of these style of bulbs cast a harsh yellow pallor over everything. When turned off they look stunning, and I have no doubt in the right environment there’s no issues, but in my cream-and white color scheme in the room I installed it in, every thing was yellow. Very, very yellow, and I replaced the bulb with a cool white LED just fine.  At $55.99 on Amazon it’s a little on the steep side, which stops me just short of a 5 star rating, because similar lamps can be had elsewhere for as little as half that price, but I adore everything else about the lamp and the company and recommend them highly.

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I received the above product(s) free of charge. I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion. I received no other compensation in exchange for my review. My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.

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Madking Edison-Style Filament 60W Incandescent Bulb (6-pack)

I’ve been a fan of Edison-Style filament bulbs from the moment I saw them. They are so intricate, delicate, and beautiful and bring a little bit of fancy into an otherwise utilitarian object. And while pretty incandescent bulbs are now quite in vogue, it wasn’t too long ago that they were quite hard to come by. I was thrilled to get to try a new set with a different design, but alas, all Edison-style bulbs are not created equal.

At first, everything was perfect. Most of my light fixtures now had some version of Edison-Style lights in them. They have a standard (E26) base as well as a standard (A19) bulb shape. They run on standard 120V power and are supposed to be rated for up to 3,000 hours (more on that later). The Madking bulbs were a little brighter, but a little extra light in a room can be a good thing. Then the first bulb blew out, just a couple of days after I put it in. I chalked that up to rough handling from shipping, but a few days later, the replacement blew out as well. Then another went in a separate fixture. So unless every bulb had the bejeezus shaken out of it during shipping, there must be a defect in the materials somewhere. I’m hesitant now to put them back into fixtures, because what’s the point if they only last a few days to a week? A quick check of the reviews on Amazon shows that this is a pretty common occurance, and while Madking seems to be great about shipping replacements, those seem to sometimes blow out just as fast. The last thing I want to be doing in dragging out the stepstool every few days and replace more bulbs. That’s not a merry-go-round I want to ride, thanks.

It’s a shame these didn’t last better or longer, because while they work, they’re beautiful. While they are a tad brighter than I would like, they are at a nice intersection where form meets function, without either really taking precedence over the other. If they could just figure out why they burn out so fast and fix that, Madking has a real winner on their hands.

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I received the above product(s) free of charge from Madking.  I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion.  My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.

 

Enlightened Ambience 60 Watt Antique Edison Style Light Bulb

Everyone has “a thing” for something. For Hubby it’s watches, Leatherman tools, and flashlights. For me, I have a thing for antique-style lightbulbs, among other things. I know, weird. But they are just so beautiful to see, a real neat conversation piece that can take a drab or utilitarian light fixture and really make it pop. I’ve tried some of Enlightened Ambience’s bulbs before, and to say I’m a fan would be a huge understatement. And these medium-base Edison-Style bulbs are my absolute favorite yet.

As I mentioned, a ho-hum pendant lamp can be made a statement piece with a gorgeous bulb. And while LED lights appeal to my inner cheapskate as far as energy consumption and long life, sometimes you need beauty for beauty’s sake. Enlightened Ambience understands this and has made a line of bulbs that, no matter the fixture, bulb size or shape, look like works of art. These Antique-style bulbs feature a Squirrel cage tungsten vertical filament pattern, that when lit look jaw-droppingly gorgeous. The standard medium e-26 base will fit just about all average light fixtures with ease, and the best part? They’re dimmable! Light dimmers not only make for a very personalized lighting arrangement, but can significantly extend the life of a bulb so long as one doesn’t turn them on at full power each time. I use dimmers with a gradual rise to the pre-set lighting level, and consequently go many, many years between replacing bulbs. And I wouldn’t want to miss a single minute of these bulb’s estimated 3,000 hour life. And the light-smoke finish on the glass means they’ll look as sharp off as they do on. I love these bulbs, and if I didn’t have so many closed lighting fixtures I’d put them in every room in the house. The light they give off is pleasant and warm, and make the rooms I have them in feel so much more cozy!

Like I said, Enlightened Ambience gave us something that is beautiful for the sake of being beautiful, where once we simply thought it was utilitarian. There’s nothing wrong with making a necessity like a lightbulb into something that puts a smile on your face every time it lights up a room.

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I received the above product(s) free of charge from Enlightened Ambience. I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion. My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.

Kohree Real Wax Flameless LED Candles with Full Function Remote Control

I have reviewed a number of flameless candles recently, some that I loved, some I wanted to, and some that fell just short. The Last pillar candles I reviewed from Ohuhu fell just short, but based on my experience with Kohree products, I had much higher hopes. And for the most part, these Kohree Reaal Wax Flameless Pillar Candles with Remote Control are my new favorite flameless pillar candles ever.

To start, they are covered in real wax, so you should probably not put them on a hot surface or in bright sunlight for extended periods of time. You have a choice between a “constant on” feature, and a slow “flicker” effect from all three. You can even control the bightness! Low for a more relaxed setting and high to really brighten up a corner or accent table. Powered by 3 AAA batteries (sadly, not included. Insert sad face here!) each, they will run for quite some time before needing to be replaced (or, if your clever, recharged!). And because it’s a flameless candle, there’s no mess, no smoke, no hot melted wax to be worried about. And it’s always the perfect height and size, it’ll never melt smaller or irregular. The included remote is full-function, so you can adjust the brightness, the setting, and even the pre-designated timers of 4 and 8 hours! And the best part about them is they look just like the real deal. The last pillar candles I tried from Ohuhu would change colors, but the one color lacking was a true, actual “flame” color! So you immediately knew there was something off. With these Kohree Flameless Wax Candles, they 100% look and act like the real deal! They make for a great centerpiece to your holiday table, to any possible holiday decorating you could have in mind! And because they’re LED lights, they’ll last for years and years, and never need more than fresh batteries and quick wipe and they’re ready for the next season!

I really liked these Kohree Flameless Wax candles, and at just $16.99 for the set of 3, you could spend a lot more and get a lot less! The look and feel of a real candle, the convenience of a full function remote, and the low price, you can’t go wrong with these Real Wax Flameless Candles from Kohree!

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I received the above product(s) free of charge from Kohree.  I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion.  My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.

EvoBrite’s LED Ultra Energy Efficient 9w (60w replacement) Bulb

 

Let’s be honest, whether we like it or not, it’s becoming more important every year to be as energy efficient as possible. One of the easiest ways to do that was to change out your old incandescent bulbs for “greener” CFL’s. Yet the light was atrocious, there was usually a delay when you flipped the switch, and they didn’t last very long. Disposal was also a nightmare. So you’d be forgiven if you put off switching out your bulbs. Especially when the alternative, LED’s, were very expensive and not easy to find. But EvoBrite’s New 9w LED bulb puts all those old concerns to rest, at a price that means there’s no excuse to keep putting off the switch.

EvoBrite’s 9w bulb puts out the equivalent light of a 60w incandescent bulb, but draws almost a tenth of the power! You could expect maybe, if you were lucky, about 1,000 hours of use from your old bulbs, but with the new LED’s, you can expect in the neighborhood of 50,000 hours! So while, initially, incandescent bulbs seem cheaper, as Hubby’s grandfather used to say, “The cheap comes out expensive” in the end, because you’ll be rebuying those incandescents a whole bunch more while your shiny new LED is still plugging away! And the light quality is comparable to most soft white incandescent bulbs on the market today, not the harsh, nasty light of the CFL’s they tried to pawn off on us a few years back. In fact, with the exception of the patented “”Reveal” brand of bulbs, I find my EvoBrite LED is probably my favorite light in the house. Plus, it’s on in an instant, no more waiting for the bulb to come on, or for it to achieve “full brightness” like CFL’s. And because there’s little to no glass, EvoBrite’s LED bulb is shock proof, there’s no filament to break, and doesn’t put out the heat a normal bulb would. There’s literally no downside. At $7.39 shipped (with Prime) it’s about the same price as the ones you’d get in you local big-box store, but delivered to your home, no muss, no fuss. I can’t speak to disposal, because I’ve never had to replace a single LED light in this house!

While you can’t dim this particular bulb, I see no reason to not start replacing all the incandescent bulbs in my house with LED’s. I’ve already changed three, and now with EvoBrite’s 9w LED bulb, 4. I don’t miss the old bulbs a lick, and most of time forget they’re LED’s. Except when I’m changing out an old Incandescent. Which happens a lot. With EvoBrite’s bulb, that may soon be a thing of the past!

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I received the above product(s) free of charge from EvoBrite.  I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion.  My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.

AGPTek’s LED Solar Motion Sensor Wall Light (New Generation)

LED’s have been making a major push into the US market this past year, and making a huge impact too. With the next generation of LED lights now entering the marketplace and the prices starting to make them not only attractive, but irrefutably budget and environmentally conscious choices. And one of the companies that has made a major splash is AGPTek. They’ve become ubiquitous  with cutting edge technologies at a price point that makes sense. Their LED Solar Motion Sensor light is no exception.

Gone are the days of the necessity for heavy, bulky cast aluminum or pot metal wall lights, with their aesthetically unpleasing solar or motion-sensor add-ons, and with them are also gone the days of replacing incandescent bulbs every few months, and the waste associated. This wall lantern looks just as snazzy and functions just as well, or better, than most of the budget lamps you can buy in your local big-box store. The light this AGPTek lamp provides is adequate, and not that harsh, bright almost blue/purple light you get from cheaper, poorer quality LED’s. And because the AGPTek lamp is lightweight, it’s mountable on any surface with zero fears of it falling or damaging walls, and because it’s solar powered with a long life lithium-ion battery, there’s no wiring to do, and no hiring an electrician. The motion sensor will pick up moving opjects up to over 25 feet away, so it can also function as a security lamp as well. It’s also waterproof so outdoors lighting is A-Ok. One day’s worth of sunlight provides you an entire evening worth of illumination. And the LED light is good for thousands and thousands of hours, so no more replacing bulbs every few months either.

I was slow to adopt LED lights because of the price and the quality of light, but this last generation of LED’s has won me over in a big way. And AGPTek’s Solar Motion Sensor Wall Lamp, like all it’s products are first rate, are made of quality components and made to last. Priced at $24.99 (It’s no miniature lamp, this a full-size real deal lantern!), you get plenty of bang for your buck. There’s a place in my home for plenty of AGPTek’s products going forward!

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I received the above product(s) free of charge from AGPTeK.  I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion.  My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.

Ohuhu Solar Landscape Lights, 8-Pack

I’ve been trying to “finish” my landscaping for the last, oh, lets say decade or so, and while some areas are just the way I want them, others seem to be a continual “work in progress”. Like in the area of lighting. While the old standard of running a bunch of low-voltage line everywhere was fine in places, how many of us have electrical outlets 40 feet from the house?! And the longer you run low-voltage line, the dimmer the farthest lights get. Solar lights seemed to be my savior, but until recently they were very utilitarian, lacked any real flair, and didn’t stay lit long. And they were expensive. Then Ohuhu came in to save the day again with their 8-Pack of Solar Landscape Lighting, all for only $27.99? Sounds too good to be true!

This 8-Pack of Solar Lights is a simple and affordable way to provide accent lighting all around your yard, your pathways, your garden, and even your driveway, all without ever having to worry about whether the cord will reach an electrical outlet. They’re weather resistant, so your sprinklers should give them no issues. The units are made entirely of plastic, and the stakes aren’t the strongest, so don’t try putting them in any particularly hard ground. They have a single, bright white (almost blue) LED that shines bright enough to give a decent halo of light around them. Ohuhu says they’re good for up to 8 hours on a full charge. And while the looked nice and initially lit well and stayed lit throughout most of the night, I found as time went on that the lights dimmed quicker and quicker, and went out earlier and earlier. Hubby broke them down and might have come up with a reason why: The rechargeable battery used to power the units is a paltry 600 mAh nickel-metal hydride AA cell. That’s a really low powered battery, and despite Ohuhu’s claims of “dusk ’til dawn” capabilities, there’s very little chance of that being possible with so small a battery. But, placed in a full-sun area, you are looking at a good 4-6 hours of really attractive light, anywhere you want to place it!

So while I think there’s some room for improvement, this last generation of solar lighting has really changed my tune as to it’s viability and usefulness around the house and yard. Ohuhu continues to surprise me with the quality of product you get for the money, and the Ohuhu 8-Pack of Solar Landscape Lighting is no exception! And Ohuhu’s
30-day Money Back Guarantee & Full 12-month Replacement Warranty means there’s really nothing to lose!

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I received the above product(s) free of charge from Ohuhu.  I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion.  My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.

AGPtek Lighting Waterproof Mood Ball by Foober US

These cooler fall nights are just what the doctor ordered after a blistering finish to a hot SoCal summer, and that means dinner in outside int he waning light, night swims and lights, lights, and more lights. I never thought much about “decorating” the surface of the water of our pool, especially since so much money and effort is spent keeping it crystal clear! To say I was intrigued by this Foober “mood” ball would be an understatement.

 

It’s just what it says it is: A lightweight, color changing ball that floats along the surface of the water. It’s watertight and runs on just two little button-cell cr2032 batteries. It is a little difficult to open at first, because it’s sealed so tight, but that’s better than being loose and letting water in to fry the little circuit board inside. About the size of a softball, in the day time it doesn’t look like much, but once the sun sets it really comes to life. It will only work in water, so don’t think you can fudge it an have it in a planter or something. A single ball tend to get lost in a moderate to  large pool, so if you really want a cool effect, be sure to pick up a few! Though at $7.99 for one, I would like it to be around the $4.99 mark, because while it is neat to look at, it’s very small and is the very textbook definition of “novelty” light.

There could be numerous applications for in the home, too, like filling a wide-mouth vase with a little water and letting this little guy float under some flowers. It’s an energy efficient LED that gives this little Mood Ball his light, and ensures that it will last a good, long while before needing to replace the batteries. A neat little bauble for those nights under the waning light.

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I received the above product(s) free of charge from AGPTek.  I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion.  My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.

 

Ohuhu Solar Multi-color String Lights

 

Some things you buy just because they are fun, or cute, or just because. Like these little solar lights from Ohuhu. bright vibrant LED’s with a multi-function control and solar powered? Sounds like fun, and they are. When we first moved in, we repurposed Christmas lights into all the artificial plants in the house to try to liven things up. And they worked for a while, until the bulbs burned out, or the strings inexplicably went bad. Making sure the plant was close to an outlet. It was all the hassle of Christmas lights all year round. We swore that was the last time we did anything like that.

And then Ohuhu sent us these adorable little lights, with their super long-life LED bulbs and their solar power panel meaning we weren’t bound to a light socket or always buying batteries. Fifty bright lights in four colors on a 21 foot sting with two separate functions (Constant On and Flashing). What’s not to love? And lest you think that these little flower-shaped lights are like the old rigid, sharp, worse-than-death-pain-if-you-step-on-them light shrouds of our youth, these are a soft, foldable plastic that will never cause you to curse they day you were born. And while they are waterproof and suitable for the outdoors, I don’t know that I’d leave them out there for any extended period of time. That soft, malleable plastic tends to yellow quickly (sometimes even brown!) in long-term direct sunlight exposure. It can even get brittle. Also, though they are solar powered and need no plug on the wall to power them, they do use a rechargeable 1.2V 600MA NI-MH battery and temperature extremes are not any battery’s friend.

I thought these light were just so cute, and with them you’re set for any kind of decorating, with a stake to stand the solar panel if you so desire. I do wish there were more than just the two functions, but at this low price point it just doesn’t seem feasible. I do also wish they had a bright white version as well, but I can see these lights coming in very handy for all manner of special occasion. They lasted almost 8 hours on their initial charge, so you can count on them going into the wee hours at your party. In the end these are a neat addition to any home’s decor and can really add a refreshing splash of color to an otherwise drab room. Another winner from Ohuhu.

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I received the above product(s) free of charge from Ohuhu.  I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion.  My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.

 

Esky 3-Piece Solar-Powered Tulips

Sometimes there’s a product that seems like a good idea, like it could be cute under the right circumstances, maybe enhance a yard or planter. And then it gets here, and you just kinda go “Huh!”, because it just missed the mark, and now you have a product you don’t really know what to do with. That is what my situation is here. It’s not even that I don’t like them, because I do, I just don’t know what I’m going to do with them.

I’m old enough to remember the last couple of waves of solar-powered products. They were overpromised and underdelivered. They didn’t last long, weren’t very bright, not at all efficient and were not very attractive looking. We needed technology to catch up with the innovation. And It looks like it has, because these Esky Solar Tulips are bright and vivid and dazzling and last a good long time after about 6 hours of sun (something we’re not exactly lacking in California!) A single monofilament LED is surrounded by a quartet of vivid cloth “petals”, and a pair of pretty green leaves sprout from the “stem” that is the metal rod used to stand both the flowers and the solar cell that powers them. LED’s like these are a very bright, pure white, but are such a low drain diode that you lots of time lit with very little energy used, and they don’t get so hot that they melt everything they touch. And all powered by a single 600mA rechargeable AAA Ni-MH battery. So it won’t cost an arm and a leg to replace and keep lit for years and years!

In the end, they are bright without being overpoweringly so, and are cute in a very novelty way, but they truly don’t look much like tulips, either lit or in natural light, and stand out in a flowerbed because, really, how many of us have light-up flowers? They do everything they say the would, and it’s up to you whether you think they’ll add to or detract from your garden or decor. For me, the shine came off the apple fairly quickly and I couldn’t find a place to put them where I thought they looked nice, and could weather the California sun and heat and not end up some bleached-out stem of white and pale green “stuff” that lights up at night.

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I received the above product(s) free of charge from Esky and HisGadget, Inc..  I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion.  My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.