I’m pretty sure I want something colorful, but it’s not mandatory. I’ve considered Christmas lights, but they don’t look appealing to me. Besides trying to figure out what to google so I can see what’s out there, I checked Spencer’s Gifts website, but nothing appealed to me.
My one friend has a light that changes colors every three seconds or so. It’s cool. I figure it’s expensive though.
Get sheer fabric in a color and pattern you like and re-cover a plain white lampshade.
Pick up a BeDazzler and bedazzle the shit out of the *inside *of a lampshade - the light will bounce off all the sparkly colorful things and throw little prisms around.
They’re really not all that expensive, though maybe we just mean different things. Kits like this one at Amazon are only $22 for 16 feet of LED lights. At 72 W of power, that’s a lot of light.
Hit the local thrift stores. Yes, you can find Xmas lights at some even now. (I know, I saw someone buying some just two weeks ago.) Not to mention other odds and ends. The odder they are, the more likely they’ll end up in a thrift store.
If you are happy with LED light (I prefer it, but many don’t) then go to your local IKEA and look around. Be sure to check the kids section as well as the large lighting bit. I got a lovely overhead light shaped like the sun for Celtling’s old room, and it only cost $15. She was thrilled with it.
They have some really “out-there” shapes and styles already, but if you really want to hit it, try googling[IKEA hack lighting].
This is very “college,” but my college apartment had Christmas lights framing some big posters that were hung with thumbtacks (using the tacks to wrap the lights around the perimeter of the poster pretty neatly). I used all white lights, and it was actually a decent mood lighting effect considering it cost all of a couple of bucks.
Mosaic strip lighting. I bought it as accent lighting for our upper kitchen cabinets. Comes with a remote and you can change colors. At full strength one kit will definitely light up a room!