$30 Ceramic Candle Wall Sconces That Look Like Designer Lighting

One of my favorite things about fall isn’t the pumpkins or the changing leaves.

It’s the way our homes begin to glow again.

As the evenings get shorter, I find myself turning on lamps a little earlier, lighting candles while I make dinner, and creating those little pockets of warmth that make home feel extra cozy. I’ve always believed lighting is one of the easiest ways to change the feeling of a room, which is why I’ve wanted candle wall sconces throughout my 1932 Tudor since I found it.

The only problem?

My home still has its original lathe and plaster walls.

When I talked to my electrician about installing hardwired sconces, he explained that it would mean opening the walls, running electrical, repairing plaster, repainting, and paying for all of that labor. I knew it would be expensive before I even started shopping for fixtures.

Then I found the sconces I thought I wanted.

They were beautiful ceramic sconces with scalloped edges…and they were almost $500 each.

By the time I added the cost of two sconces, an electrician and repair work, I knew I needed another plan.

That’s when I stumbled across these ceramic candle wall sconces.

They’re only $30 each, and honestly? I like them even better.

Why I Fell in Love with These Ceramic Candle Wall Sconces

When the box arrived, I wasn’t expecting much.

For $30, I assumed they’d be lightweight and feel like a budget find.

I couldn’t have been more wrong.

The first thing I noticed was how substantial they are. They’re made from heavy ceramic with a beautiful glossy finish that reflects candlelight in the prettiest way. The scalloped edge and beaded detailing give them so much character, and they’re much larger than I expected at almost 15 inches tall.

Sometimes you open a package and immediately know you’ve found something special.

That was exactly how I felt.

They Look Like They Belong in My 1932 Tudor

Whenever I’m decorating my home, I always ask myself one question:

“Does this look like it belongs here?”

I don’t love filling my home with trendy pieces that I’ll be tired of next year.

I’d much rather buy something classic that feels like it could have been part of the house all along.

These ceramic candle wall sconces have that timeless feeling.

They’re simple.

Elegant.

Classic.

They don’t compete with the original character of my home—they complement it.

I hung two on either side of the mirror in my dining room, and the room instantly felt warmer and more finished.

The Secret Is the Battery-Operated Taper Candles

The sconces are beautiful on their own.

But the real magic happens when you add the candles.

Instead of using real taper candles, I found the prettiest battery-operated taper candles.

They have a warm brown wax finish that looks so beautiful against the creamy white ceramic.

The fluted sides give them a vintage look, and the flickering flame is incredibly realistic.

Most people assume they’re real candles until I pick up the remote.

And yes…

They come with a remote!

My Favorite Feature of Tese Remote-Control Candles Is the Remote

I simply grab the remote, turn them on, and the room instantly feels cozy.

The brightness is adjustable, so I can create a soft glow while we’re eating dinner or brighten them up a little if friends come over.

They also have built-in timers, so I can set them for two, four, or six hours.

They turn themselves off automatically, which saves battery life and means I never have to remember before going to bed.

It’s one of those little luxuries that makes everyday life just a little easier.

The Sconces Were So Easy to Hang

One of the biggest reasons I chose candle sconces instead of hardwired lighting was how simple they were to install.

No electrician.

No wiring.

No holes cut into my original plaster walls.

I used my favorite picture hangers instead of large wall anchors, and they were up in just a few minutes.

I’ll link the hangers below because I use them all over my house.

I Loved These Ceramic Sconces So Much I Ordered 8 More!

Originally, I only ordered two.

I wanted to make sure I loved them before buying more.

That lasted about a day.

After hanging them in the dining room, I kept walking back into the room just to look at them.

That evening, after dinner, I turned on the candles, sat down with a cup of tea, and realized how much the soft glow changed the feeling of the room.

Before I went to bed, I’d already ordered eight more.

Now I’m trying to decide where they’ll go next.

The hallway?

Our bedroom?

The living room?

Honestly…I want them everywhere.

Why I Love Layered Lighting

If there’s one decorating lesson I’ve learned over the years, it’s this:

Lighting changes everything.

When a room feels cozy, it’s usually because there are several different light sources instead of one bright overhead light.

I love mixing lamps, candles, picture lights, and candle sconces throughout my home.

The result feels softer.

Warmer.

More inviting.

Especially during fall and winter, I reach for cozy lighting long before I start decorating with pumpkins or garlands.

A simple glow can completely change the mood of a room.

Rechargeable Batteries Make The Sconces Even Better

One little tip before you order the candles…

I always use rechargeable batteries.

I’ve used them for years in twinkle lights, flameless candles, and seasonal décor.

They’re less wasteful, save money over time, and I always have a charged set ready to go.

I’ll link my favorite rechargeable batteries below because they’ve worked perfectly with these candles.

These Ceramic Sconces are One of My Favorite Decorating Finds This Year!

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve become much more intentional about what I bring into my home.

I don’t want more things.

I want better things.

Pieces that make me smile every time I walk into the room.

These ceramic candle wall sconces are exactly that.

They gave me the classic look I’d been dreaming about without spending hundreds of dollars on designer sconces or opening up the original walls of my 1932 Tudor.

Paired with the battery-operated taper candles, they create the softest, coziest glow every evening.

It’s one of those little changes that makes home feel even more like home.

And if ordering eight more isn’t a good enough recommendation…

I don’t know what is.

Shop This Cozy Corner

I’ll link everything I used below so it’s easy to recreate this look.

• Ceramic candle wall sconces
• Battery-operated taper candles
• Rechargeable batteries
• Battery charger
• Heavy-duty picture hangers
• velvet pumpkins
• wicker vase
• velvet bow

Welcome to My Next Chapter

One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned in this season of life is that creating a beautiful home isn’t about filling every corner—it’s about surrounding yourself with things you truly love. As an empty nester, I’ve found so much joy in simplifying, downsizing, and being intentional about the pieces I bring into my home. Every project, every decorating decision, and every little cozy corner is part of creating a home that reflects this next chapter of my life.

You can find out more about The Next Chapter here!

If you’re navigating an empty nest, downsizing, or simply looking for inspiration to create a home you love after 50, I’d love for you to join me over on Instagram – @tatertotsandjello. That’s where I share weekly decorating ideas, home projects, cozy recipes, style inspiration, and honest conversations about embracing this new season of life. We’d love to welcome you to our wonderful community as we create beautiful homes—and beautiful lives—together.

I can’t wait to see you there!

I hope this inspires you to add a little extra glow to your own home this fall. Sometimes the smallest changes end up becoming your favorite ones.

Happy decorating!

xoxo

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9 Ways to Add Charm to a Kitchen

I love houses. New, old, remodeled, fixer-uppers. I will always treasure the time I spent fixing up the #1905Cottage. I loved that little home the first moment I went past it. I loved learning about the history and I loved the process of remodeling it and seeing it transform into a modern home that retained it’s vintage charm. Now that we have moved into a brand-new home, I also love bringing in charming accents that warm up a new home’s interior to reflect our family story.

The #1905Cottage before

9 Ways to Add Charm to a Kitchen

The #1905Cottage after

9 Ways to Add Charm to a Kitchen 

As we have been working on our brand-new home, I’ve loved seeing inspiration from many different sources. A couple of years ago I was introduced to Cindy Ambuehl Lifestyle, a wonderful source for high end decorating inspiration.  I love the homes she has shared on her site. Most of which have a modern California vibe and many are also older homes that have been remodeled.

As we work on adding charm to our new-construction home, I thought it would be fun to share 9 ways to add modern charm to a kitchen! These are beautiful, high-end homes, but the gorgeous kitchen ideas that follow can be used to add charm to any home.

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1. Add vintage elements. 

This island is made out of an antique table. I love the warmth that the wood island top brings to the clean, modern kitchen.

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2. Consider adding butcher-block countertops.

Instead of granite, think about warming up the space with wood countertops. Not only do wood countertops bring color into a room, they are less expensive than granite or marble countertops.

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Instead of just tiling under the countertops, tile an entire wall to the ceiling. It will make the room seem larger.

3. Tile is an inexpensive way to bring in texture and color to a room.

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4. Add specialty windows or doors. 

We added a dutch door at the #1905Cottage and it ended up being one of my favorite elements in the home. Another idea is a tilting window like the one above. It makes a wonderful architectural element in the room.

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5. Add clean-lined planked ceilings.

The wood brings in warmth and texture to a modern kitchen space.

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6. Bring in more light with multiple light fixtures and skylights.

Instead of recessed lights, add a few chandeliers or vintage-looking light fixtures to bring in character. And if your kitchen is still dark, consider adding a skylight or two. I added skylights in my bedroom at the #1905Cottage and I loved the natural light they provided.

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7. Install an unexpected ceiling.

Planked or wood ceiling have been increasingly popular, but how charming would a reproduction tin ceiling be? I love that idea, especially when paired with ultra modern counters and tile backsplash in a new kitchen or kitchen remodel.

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8. Add some rustic charm with a log ceiling.

The texture and color of the wood planks and beams would be a beautiful contrast with a new builder-grade home.

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9. Add glass fronts to cabinet doors or add built-in furniture instead of builder-grade cabinets.

9 Ways to Add Charm to a Kitchen

For more beautiful homes and design inspiration, be sure to head over to Cindy’s site. I also love following Cindy on Instagram.

Yesterday, Cindy and her real estate company The Agency were sponsors at the annual Express Yourself fundraiser hosted by P.S. Arts. P.S. Arts is a non-profit Los Angeles based organization that brings dance, music, visual & theater arts to underserved public schools. Each November, celebrities and their families attend this awesome fundraiser to raise money and awareness for arts education in public schools. This year the booth’s theme was “Home is Where the Art is” and was staged to look like a living room with a football game going. Celebrities like Mark Feuersteing and Adam Scott stopped by with their kiddos and made Duck Tape crafts. So amazing.

As a mom of four, and PTA committee member, I am a huge believer in encouraging the arts in schools! My kids love expressing themselves through art, and I am a huge proponent that all kids should be given that opportunity. Cindy and Duck Brand spent yesterday creating Duck Tape crafts for the kids at her Express Yourself booth. I love seeing celebrities and their children giving back to their community and supporting the arts! Awesome!! You can find out more about the fun event on Cindy’s blog!

xoxo

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It’s been so fun working on a project I love so much. The 1905 Cottage is a little home I fell in love with years ago and bought about four years ago. You can read all about it here. A couple of years ago I started an addition and now I’m sharing the projects from the addition. Today I would like to share the 1905 Cottage Addition: Dining Room.

This is the outside of the home. The bigger window is the window in the kitchen and the smaller window at the back is the porch which was turned into a room and is the south side of the dining room.

Here’s a picture of the old kitchen and the wall which we took out. The green carpeted room is the room which is now the south part of the dining room.

This is the side of the wall we took out that opened the kitchen to the dining room.

The dining room is one of my favorite rooms at the 1905 Cottage. The south side of the room was a porch when the home was built in 1905. A long time ago that porch was enclosed into a room. When we did the remodel on the original home we took out a wall between the kitchen and what is now the dining room and found one of the long original windows. And in the center of the room is an opening under the home that was a root cellar.

So when the addition began we knew the dining room would be the gateway to the new part of the home. So in the center of the room is a beam where the original outside walls of the dining room were. And it was a little tricky trying to decide how to decorate the room with a beam in the center.

So what I did was I decided to get two long light fixtures to go above the dining room table and have them mirror each other on each side of the beam. I was going to make a light fixture but I ended up finding  a light fixture from World Market that was almost what I had in mind. I painted it to make it blend in a little better with the room and I used chain to chain the two fixtures together and help them hang straight over the table.

I put a rug over the opening to the root cellar. Because….. zombies!! LOL just kidding. But it is a little creepy down there. I’m not going to lie. The rug is the Sierra Paddle Rug from RugsUSA.com.

On the north side of the room I did a simple board and batten treatment to add a little interest to the wall and then hung some Ikea shelves above a garage sale dresser that I turned into a buffet. I like to keep my collection of cake plates on the shelves. But they are fun to decorate for the different seasons!

I made a little bench to put on one side of the table. It’s a little rickety but I love it.

And under the window I put another bench with some cute pillows.

One the north side of the room is a nook that used to be a closet. I took out the closet and put in a tall banquette bench from Overstock. And the table is an antique table my mom gave me when she moved to California. It’s a cozy spot to eat breakfast or do homework.

And on the west side of the room is the door to the cottage’s courtyard. I hung a little gallery wall there above my grandmother’s table. And underneath is a place where the kids can put their shoes when they come in. They like to use the courtyard as their entrance as they come home from school.

Probably my favorite part about the 1905 Cottage’s dining room is the fact that there are windows on both the west and east sides of the room. So it’s always light and a very happy space in the home!

I hope you enjoyed this room. I plan on sharing all of the rooms of the addition. It has been such a fun project to work on and a labor of love!!

Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog – I really appreciate it!! 

xoxo

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About four years ago I fell in love with a tiny little house in my neighborhood. You can read all about it here- 1905 Cottage Remodel! 

Working on this little house has really been such a labor of love. I don’t know that I believed that houses have hearts or souls until I found this one. While we were working on it we found out so much about the history of the settlement where it was built. The home was on the site of what was the general store when the settlement was a mining town. And after they heyday the Justice of the Peace turned the general store into his home in 1905. During the renovation we found some arrest warrants from the late 1800’s and some other things.

Here’s the 1905 Cottage kitchen before:

and the 1905 Cottage Kitchen after:

Last year I started an addition on this little home so we could live at this happy little house.

I really tried to stay true to the original home with the new section of the home. And now that the addition is complete, I am so excited to share the projects and details with you!! It’s still feels like a small home but now there is room for my little family.

I have shared a few of the projects like, Ella’s Tween Bedroom:

And My Bedroom Office Nook:

I spent the summer working on building four huge DIY Barn Doors and the hardware too. Those tutorials are coming up this month.

Some other things I’ll be sharing in this series are:

• How I transitioned the new and old parts of the home together
• Modern Planked Walls
• Picking out timeless tile
• An Indoor/Outdoor Fireplace
• When plans don’t turn out exactly how you want and you have to start over
• A small courtyard
• Things I wish I had known and changed before I started the addition
• Storage solutions for small spaces
• Things to consider when designing a laundry closet
• Designing rooms with multi functions — one room that is a guest room, office, teen hang out room
• Vinyl fencing designs and decisions
• Installing skylights in your home
• How to tie an old home’s exterior and new addition together so it doesn’t look awkward
• DIY Lighting soltutions
• And more!!

I hope you might follow along with how the addition came together and see the progress. It’s been such an amazing journey. I really didn’t think I could love this home more but I really do!! And I know the world of blogging and Instagram can be depressing with the “perfect” life that is portrayed. So I hope you don’t mind if I share some of the imperfect moments from this project and from my life. I’m a very private person and I have a hard time putting myself out there in fear of getting hurt and rejection. But I would like to share some real moments with you. Being real and meeting readers and bloggers is what I fell in love with when I started blogging. And some of my strongest and most dear friendships today are with people I met through my blog – readers who became friends in real life. I really want to go back to that place in blogging where we share and are a community of imperfect people, lifting each other up. I’m certainly not perfect, I struggle every day to be a better person and mother. And I appreciate the support and want to give support back too.

Have a Beautiful Day!! 

xoxo

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We knew it was going to be one of the biggest projects. A bathroom is a major project in any house, but in this nearly 110-year old house, it was extra exciting. We knew we’d have some unpleasant surprises, but we didn’t expect what we found …

So here’s what we did to renovate this bathroom from top to bottom, some of the surprises we encountered, and some of the unique pieces we did that might inspire your bathroom DIY renovation!

Here’s my short video tour … and then read more about it!

Here’s what the bathroom looked like when we bought the cottage:

Everything worked, but it was very dated (pink!). It had a drop ceiling and unfortunate carpet over a spongy floor. There was a strangely placed sewer vent through the  corner cabinet. And the door cleared toilet by about 1/4″, not to mention the toilet paper dispenser on the back of the door. And you couldn’t open the door all he way – it ran into a cabinet at the end of the room – whoops!!

Tearout and Unwelcome Surprises

Clearly, like the rest of the house, it was time to tear this bathroom down to the walls and see what we could find.

We ripped everything out of the bathroom — everything down to the brick on two walls and the drywall on two sides. The first thing to go was the dropped ceiling — it went from less than 7 feet tall to 10 feet! We learned that the bathroom had been carved out of a larger room in the house, and had a window covered over in the wall that opened into the small back bedroom. The small back bedroom was the original porch on the house, so this window must have overlooked the porch.

Here’s what it looked like after we stripped it to the walls:

Then, since the floor was spongy, we knew we needed to put in a new subfloor, so we took the floor out. We discovered more than we wanted to discover — we found out that the house’s sewer pipe was cracked, and had even collapsed in some places. It was kind of like an open Roman sewer! Yuck. Obviously we had to replace it. We have an excellent plumber who has done some great work for us over the years, and we had asked him to help with plumbing in the house. He took one look at that and said, “That has to go … and let’s run a scope down it to see if there are any other problems.”

Guess what: there were. The iron sewer pipe in the crawlspace underneath the house led outside to a larger clay pipe leading to the curb … and the beautiful, large pine tree in front of the house had insinuated its roots through the seams in the pipe … and there was barely a finger’s width of space left in that pipe. So, this was an expensive surprise we could have done without, but we had to replace all of the sewer line all the way to the street. Our plumber wisely suggested that we spend just a tiny bit more and run a full new water line to the house as long as we had to dig a big trench in the front yard, so we did!

To save some money, my husband, father-in-law and nephew dug out part of the foundation to let the new pipes in, and then took the old pipes out and filled the hole with concrete to keep out any curious critters. We also figured out that the foundation is made from the same granite that the Salt Lake City LDS Temple is built from — since the quarry is just up the canyon from us. I have more history on that I will share another time. They said that digging through a granite foundation from a crawlspace is inconvenient to say the least.

We even found some newspapers from 1919 and 1927 underneath the bathroom floor! (“Have you been neglecting your home to assemble your Easter costume?”)

So something you’ll never see in the house now is that it has all new water and sewer lines, just like it has all new electrical wiring (a subject for another post).

(As an example of the gift that keeps on giving, we still haven’t quite gotten the sprinkler lines figured out since we had to dig them up in the trench — even though we tried to be careful.)

Rebuilding

But once the water and sewer lines were all done, we could start building this bathroom the way we wanted. We moved the horrible giant sewer vent pipe from the corner of the room and hid it in the wall, venting out the roof. We moved the water lines to accommodate the sink moving closer to the door, the toilet moving between the sink and the shower, and for a walk-in shower.

We of course used all of the right waterproof/resistant boards and subfloor around the shower. We made sure the subfloor was extra sturdy, adding some supports underneath as well. Note that we did not keep the old window, since we couldn’t figure out a good way to make that architecture work. We filled the former window with insulation to help block noise.

I wanted to stick with a modern, white look to this small bathroom to help it look bigger, and I love subway tile, so we tiled the shower and the largest wall — the one you can see from the door — all the way to the ceiling. We put in a wall-mounted vanity and modern lights on each side.

I couldn’t find a vanity that I liked, so we ended up building one from an inexpensive kitchen island I found. We used a vessel sink and adapted the vanity to accommodate the plumbing, including adjusting the height and rebuilding the drawers. (I’ll do a separate post on how we did it.)

You may even notice that not only did we raise the ceiling, but we cut out the door to be a larger, standard-size door with a glass transom above it — both echoing period architecture and allowing more natural light into the bathroom.

I added some touches like the towel rack and the sunburst mirror, too.

And possibly one of our favorite features is the bath fan (the bath fan!). What makes it so cool? It has a Bluetooth speaker in it. The folks at Homewerks were kind enough to send me a fan to try — it’s a Homewerks Bluetooth® enabled ventilation bath fan. Not only is it a quiet, high-capacity bath fan, but it includes a Bluetooth speaker so you can enjoy your tunes in the shower! How awesome is that? And you can turn the speaker on without turning the fan on.

It’s easy to install as long as you have attic access, which we did. We replaced the smaller fan we had in the bathroom — and cut a larger hole through the drywall and the lath and plaster on the ceiling. We just measured it first, tried hand-cutting and gave up, pulling out the RotoZip (as you can see in these pictures):

Once you have the hole the right size, the rest is super simple to put in — it’s an easy DIY project. For us, the hole took about an hour (including cleaning up all of the dust) and the fan installation took about 15 minutes! Yours would go much faster if you weren’t sawing through so much stuff (see the top picture).

Then, once it’s in, it’s easy to pair with your phone:

You just find it in your Bluetooth settings, pair it, and then play your favorite songs!

The girls think it’s a perfect excuse for a bathroom dance party, even without taking a shower:

You can find out more about the Homewerks Bluetooth bathroom fan on the Homewerks web site — and it’s available at home improvement stores, too! (It retails for about $149.)

Plus, you can win your own Homewerks fan! 

Like Homewerks on Facebook for a chance to win a Bluetooth Bath Fan. Homewerks will be giving away one fan per week through October 15, 2013.

So, what’s next for the bathroom? Well, we want to put a light tunnel in to add more natural light. And we think we have figured out how we can put in a barn door … along a curved wall! But I’ll save those for a future post when I figure them out.

What’s your bathroom renovation story?

Share YOUR ideas in the comments!!

xoxo

This post is sponsored by Homewerks Worldwide LLC; the opinions, content and bathroom renovation stories are all mine. See my disclosures.

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