The shift away from harsher recessed lighting may seem like a modern decorating trend, but archival images of Goldie Hawn‘s kitchen show she did it first.
Back in 1992, Goldie and Kurt Russell’s kitchen perfected the same lived-in charm that’s so sought-after in contemporary homes. Blue-and-white checkerboard tiles, open shelving, and a stainless-steel range all contributed to this mood. However, it’s the small table lamp (sitting on the counter behind the stove) that offers the secret to a truly ambient kitchen.
In a decade when kitchen lighting was primarily about practicality, Goldie and Kurt’s table lamp introduced a softer element. Its warmth catches the kitchen cabinets behind the stove, adding an inviting layer of light that feels just as considered as the tiles beside it.
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This is an easy detail to recreate at home, too. A lamp with a pleated shade, such as this Ravenna table lamp from Wayfair, will give a kitchen that same charm. Plus,this ambiance is, perhaps, why the idea has endured, as design experts explain.
(Image credit: David Turnley/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images)
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Ravenna 1- Light Dimmable Pleated Elegant Table Lamp
To bring Goldie’s low-level glow into your own kitchen, I love this pleated table lamp from Wayfair. Its soft shade and classic silhouette would sit beautifully on a countertop, adding a little atmosphere that larger lights just can’t achieve.
Marmaron Cordless Table Lamp
For a more modern take on the idea, Pooky’s cordless lamp pairs a weighty grey marble base with a black-and-white ikat shade. The cordless design makes it easy to tuck onto a kitchen counter, where its glow can bring a little atmosphere after dark.
Threshold Fluted Brass Table Lamp
I similarly love this brass table lamp, designed with Studio McGee, no less. The stone detail and softly shaded light will make the smallest of countertops feel collected (without looking overly styled).
Wooden Mid Tone Lamp With Pleated Shade
It’s always a good idea to look for lamps at Target, and this find reminds us why. With its wooden base and softly pleated shade, it would bring that same low, inviting glow to a kitchen countertop, shelf, or side table.
Empire Shade in Caret & Gold Snakeshead Silk
A cordless table lamp like this is an easy way to bring a softer layer of light into the kitchen, without having to rethink the existing lighting scheme. Place it on a countertop or shelf and switch it on as the evening sets in for that same relaxed feeling.
For another contemporary take on the countertop lamp, I like this design (also from Target). It brings the low-level glow to the kitchen, but with a fresher feel that makes it an easy update to the idea Goldie and Kurt got right decades ago.
‘Light is much more than simply illumination; it’s one of the key elements that can transform the feel of a room with the flick of a switch,’ says Tom Raffield, the founder and creative director of Tom Raffield. ‘Table lamps, in particular, bring a softer, warmer quality to a space, creating little pools of light that can make a room feel instantly more inviting.’
Goldie and Kurt’s lamp follows this perfectly. It creates a small but warmer focal point that doesn’t feel overwhelming. The effect is subtle, but it changes how the room feels after dark.
Tom suggests taking the idea further by using several smaller light sources throughout a room rather than relying on a single central fixture. ‘Varying the height and position of the lamps helps to create those layers,’ he explains, while similar materials and forms can help the different sources feel connected.
In a kitchen, that might mean a lamp on a countertop, another on an open shelf or even a small light tucked into a darker corner. The point isn’t to replace practical lighting entirely, but to have another layer to turn on when the evening begins, and the room no longer needs to be lit for cooking.
There is something particularly charming about seeing the idea in Goldie Hawn’s kitchen three decades ago. Before countertop lamps became an industry talking point, she was just using one to make her room feel warmer.
It’s a reminder that some of the trendiest design approaches aren’t really new at all. In this case, they were quietly sitting in the background of a 1992 kitchen, waiting for someone to notice.
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