Glazen kapverlichting

Choosing a glass shade by how it looks switched off is the most common mistake in home lighting. The shade you pick decides how bright a room feels, whether you squint at dinner, and what colour your walls read at night. This guide goes through the decisions in the order they actually happen — colour, size, bulb, fitting — with real products from the LEDSone glass shade lighting collection against each one.

Step 1 — Pick the glass colour

Each tint does a different job. Match the glass to what the room is for, not to the furniture.

The rule that saves you: choose the tint by how close your eyes get to the bulb. A pendant 1.5 m above a table can be clear. A wall light at seated eye height should be amber, ribbed or opal — every time.

Shop by glass colour

Best reviewed

Vintage Amber Glass Ceiling Pendant Light

The easiest warm upgrade for an existing pendant. Retro amber tint, E27 easy-fit.

£24.59

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Modern

Globe Smoked Glass Pendant Light Shade

Moody grey globe that flatters an exposed filament. Works as a replacement shade.

£28.79

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6 reviews

Coloured Glass Tiffany Style Pendant Shade

Stained glass panels that cast coloured light. A hallway or landing feature.

£20.89

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Step 2 — Get the size and hanging height right

Glass shades are listed by two numbers: the fitter (the opening that grips the lamp holder) and the shade width. The fitter decides whether it fits at all; the width decides whether it looks right.

• E27 easy-fit is the standard here — the shade sits on the shade ring of a normal E27 holder. No wiring, no electrician.
• Widths in this collection run 105 mm to 155 mm, with heights from 150 mm to 280 mm. Compact 105 × 150 mm sizes suit clusters and bedsides; 155 × 280 mm reads as a single statement light.
• Over a dining table: 70–90 cm from the tabletop to the bottom of the shade. Measure from the table, never the floor.
• Over a kitchen island: 75–95 cm, with multiple pendants spaced about 1.5 × the shade width apart.
• Single pendant to table ratio: shade width roughly one third to one half of the table width. For long tables, use a cluster instead of one oversized shade.

Running more than one shade from a single ceiling point? You'll need a multi-outlet ceiling rose — this collection includes 1-way, 3-way and 5-way options — plus fabric cable in a matching finish.

Step 3 — Match the bulb to the glass

With glass shades you can usually see the bulb, so it's part of the design rather than a component.

For a single pendant over a dining table, 400–700 lm is usually plenty. Browse E27 base bulbs, vintage filament bulbs and dimmable LED bulbs.

Step 4 — Pendant, wall light or lamp?

The same glass behaves differently depending on where you mount it.

Glass pendants

The default for dining tables, islands and stairwells. Hung from a ceiling rose on fabric cable, one amber or smoked pendant does most of the visual work in a room. See the full pendant lights range.

Glass wall lights

Better than pendants where ceilings are low — hallways, bedsides, staircases. Adjustable arms let you aim light at a wall or a book. Because they sit at eye height, tinted or ribbed glass beats clear. See wall lights.

Cage and bulkhead fittings

Metal over glass gives an industrial or nautical look and physically protects the shade — sensible in garages, porches and low hallways where something could knock it.

Adjustable arm

Industrial Ribbed Amber Glass Wall Light

Brass fitting with a ribbed amber cone. Low glare at seated height.

£20.43

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5-head cluster

Industrial Wine Bottle Cluster Pendant

A statement fitting for long tables and bar areas. E27 throughout.

£56.69

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Caged glass

Nautical Bulkhead Cage Wall Light

Marine-style cage over glass for porches, utility rooms and coastal schemes.

£38.29

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How to fit a glass shade safely

1. Switch off at the consumer unit — not just the wall switch — and confirm the circuit is dead.
2. Let the old bulb cool. LEDs run warm; halogen and incandescent bulbs burn.
3. Support the shade from below with one hand while you unscrew the shade ring. Glass is heavier than it looks.
4. Check the fitter size first. An E27 easy-fit shade will not sit on a B22 bayonet holder without an adapter.
5. Hand-tighten only. Overtightening the shade ring is the number one cause of a cracked new shade.
6. Check the weight rating of your ceiling rose and cable grip before hanging anything large.

Anything touching mains wiring — new fittings, moving a ceiling point, outdoor installs — is a job for a qualified electrician working to BS 7671. Diagrams for our fittings are in the installation guide.

Cleaning glass shades without ruining them

• Power off, remove the shade, wash in warm water with a drop of washing-up liquid, and dry fully before refitting — trapped moisture marks the glass once the bulb heats it.
• Never clean glass while it's hot. Thermal shock cracks it.
• Skip abrasive creams and ammonia cleaners on stained, mosaic and coloured glass; they dull the finish and can lift the leading.
• A soft brush reaches into ribbed and fluted glass far better than a cloth.

Frequently asked questions