Lighthouse Decorations

by Giorgina Devereaux

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to come home to the natural beauty of lighthouse decorations? 

Lighthouse decorations, like Coastal and Nautical decor, all welcome beach themed pieces with a light and breezy sense of the shore into your home.  

By incorporating lighthouse decor into your home, you can celebrate these magnificent towers that for centuries lit the safest route enabling ships to return home safely. 

Presently, lighthouses are used for tourism, but for many, it is a desirable decorative item because it is a symbol of truth, hope, and light.

With lighthouse decor, you can relive the pleasure of the ocean breeze gently blowing across your face and the sound of waves crashing on the shore. 

It is amazing how you can create the effect of a fantastic retreat through the use of furniture and accessories that feature a lighthouse theme. 

If you want to experience a tranquil getaway time and time again, then lighthouse decorations may be perfect for you. 

By embracing this icon of light into your home, you will forever capture its spellbinding magic.

Lighthouse Decorations for the Home

Art and Wall Decor:  Excellent art and wall decor choices for lighthouse decorations are those that consist of the following:

• Black and white beach and ocean scene prints displayed in light frames, as well as boat prints. To enhance this style, you can even apply watercolors of the seaside or floral prints onto chippy white frames.
• Mural that features a lighthouse
• Prints of ships at sea, lighthouses, seashells, starfish, birds, harbor scenes, and coastal scenes.
• Sculptural wall plaques that feature a lighthouse
• Signs that depict lighthouses
• Tapestries that feature a lighthouse
• You may also wish to add a trompe l´oiel of a port hole for the wall or hang a lovely tapestry with romantic ocean panorama to complement the surrounding lighthouse decor.

Bathroom Accessories: Perfect bathroom accessories include those that feature a lovely lighthouse on the shower curtain, curtain hooks, lotion dispenser, toothbrush holder, tumbler, tissue holder, bath towels, bath rug, and wastebasket. 

These bath coordinates create a very serene sea theme and bring the lighthouse decorations to life. 

You may also wish to do a stencil design consisting of a lighthouse and seagulls on the bathroom cabinet. 

Decorative Accessories:  There are many ways to accessorize your home to further enhance the lighthouse theme. You can display large starfish on white shelves, along with glass bowls or vases filled with sea shells and beach sand to create drama.

Other fabulous must-haves include:

• Blue crab figurines or wall plaques
• Candles with inset sea shells
• Drawer pulls with a lighthouse theme
• Etched glass mirror or coat rack that feature a lighthouse
• Lighthouse bookends
• Lighthouse decorative plates, figurines, and clocks
• Lighthouse night light
• Lobster trap markers and fish nets
• Mirrors shaped like port holes
• Perpetual calendar with a lighthouse design
• Picture frames with a lighthouse or sea shell border
• Sea shell mirrors
• Stained glass that contains images of a lighthouse
• Switch plates with a lighthouse theme
• Rope and metal sandpiper on a stand
• Weathered wood seagull figures
• Wooden ship wheels

To help complete the feeling of being at sea, you may also display sea themed items, such as ship replicas, old brass spyglasses, vintage sextants, a nautical knots shadow box, worn lanterns, and lighthouse sculptures.

Another great decorative touch is to hang an oar or fishing pole on the wall. These are never fading decorative accessories that are safe bets because they don’t go out of style.

To soften the look a bit and accentuate furniture pieces, add decorative needlepoint pillows with a lighthouse or seashore design, along with solid blue and white colors.

Kitchen and Tableware:  To carry the lighthouse decorations throughout the house, consider decorating your kitchen with lighthouse decor. 

There are various lighthouse kitchen and tableware items to choose from, such as:

• A table runner with a lighthouse design
• Lighthouse salt and pepper shaker set
• Lighthouse paper towel holder, napkin holder, cookie jar, utensil holder, spoon rest, and toothpick holder
• A backsplash tile mural featuring a lovely lighthouse amidst the roaring sea

Furniture:  It’s not absolutely critical that the furniture match, but it would be best if the family room has several pieces that are comfortable, overstuffed, and upholstered in easy to clean sport fabrics.

Striped slipcovers are a great way to capture this style.  It’s an added bonus to use slipcovers because you can change them to a different coastal decor pattern whenever you like.  This keeps things fresh, exciting, and interesting.

For wood pieces, consider those painted in pale, milky colors.  

You can also paint some pieces in a white, light green, or light blue color by using chippy paint.

Chippy paint gives the furniture a weathered or distressed look and you can add whimsical beach themed designs on the pieces.

Another super idea is to add, for instance, seagull knobs that come in antique brass, antique copper, pewter, black nickel, or bright nickel to furniture.  It’s definitely a neat way to incorporate your own touches.

With lighthouse decorations, you want to create a textural experience that resembles the rough grains of sand and smooth seashells of the beach by using a combination of rough and smooth surfaces.  

One idea is to opt for pieces, such as wicker or painted wood.  Wicker successfully blends rough and smooth textures, which is characteristic of the beach, and is actually quite comfortable to sit in.  It is reminiscent of seaside cottages and you can further enhance the look of these wicker pieces by accentuating them with cushions that coordinate with the restful and peaceful tones of the room. 

When trying to decide on bed and nightstands, include wicker or painted wood seaside style pieces for added drama. 

Lighting:  Lighting is a principle element for lighthouse decorations. 

You have so many exciting choices and can choose from table or floor lamps that feature:

• Anchors

• Bamboo

• Bird cages

• Brass combined with a glass shade

• Coral reefs

• Cranes

• Egrets

• Flip flops

• Lifeguard chairs

• A lighthouse

• Pelicans

• Round cage bulkhead lights

• Sailboats

• Sea urchins

• Seagulls

• Seashells

• Starfish

• Shorebirds

You can also install an overhead ceiling fan in a white finish with a brass anchor fan pull or nautical themed pendant lantern type lights. By including theme based lighting, you are sure to make a statement.

Rugs:  You can bring warmth and add to the design theme by including area rugs throughout the home.

Wonderful choices to consider are sisal mats, short pile rugs, or stenciled floor mats that come in a tan or blue color.

Other examples of rugs for this style include a beautiful coastal scene featuring a blue heron with a striking black border or a rug design with lighthouses, sailboats, and anchors that are surrounded by a rope border.  

If you can afford hardwood, a light stained wood goes perfectly with area rugs.

Wall Color: One of the most important things to consider when decorating your home in a lighthouse style is the wall color. 
Color can make a dramatic difference in bringing together the elements of your desired style.

You may wish to consider using cool and soothing colors like white, light yellow, and light blue on the walls, or you may use a simple beach themed stencil, or wall borders/murals with a lighthouse or coastal/nautical theme.   

 

A wall mural provides a sense of realism to the space and gives you the opportunity to enjoy a beautiful lighthouse scene in the comfort of your home. 
 

Window Treatments:  The ideal window treatments consist of drapes or curtains that are light and airy with designs of sailboats, lighthouses, seashells, and navy blue with white stripes for that ocean feel.

Fabrics include lace, cotton, and even canvas.  You may also wish to consider bamboo shades or roman shades. 

Return from "Lighthouse Decorations" to "Choose a Style"

Related article: Coastal (Nautical) Decor and Furniture

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