Ethereal Lighting Shines Brightly
Pamela Vandergrift focuses on Old World craftsmanship
by Barbara Brill / photos by Stephanie Handler

Lighting is one of the most important areas of a home and one that is often most neglected.

With simple improvements, your home can feel more welcoming and more spacious, and the right lighting choices can even turn a bland room into an exciting one.

"I feel the single most understated and effectual element of an interior space is lighting. The ambience, nostalgia and dramatic quality it brings to a space is unparalleled to that of any other interior application," said Pamela Vandergrift, the owner of Ethereal Lighting in Laguna Niguel.

Vandergrift offers her clients what she calls her Sui Generis (unique) Lighting Designs in many styles and finishes, with one in particular being the most popular and fitting to the Mediterranean, Tuscan and Old World look that is so prominent around Southern California.

"I work closely with clients to capture a particular look that reflects their own unique style," said Vandergrift, who then designs custom, one-of-a-kind pieces, from candelabras and chandeliers to lanterns, table, floor and swag lamps and sconces, with prices ranging from $500 for a set of sconces to thousands for a large chandelier.

In addition to her own designs, she welcomes the ideas of her clients in order to achieve a desired look, always suggesting what will work best. And, when it comes to size, style and adaptability, Vandergrift will use her unorthodox approach.

"The possibilities are limitless. I take great pride in achieving a desired result that will fit the style of each individual project I am working on. I want to please my client for years to come," she said," explaining that she works with many materials, including brass, bronze and crystal and that she even does her own ironwork and welding.

Vandergrift's creative and artistic talents began showing at an early age when her imagination prompted her to build miniature apartments out of wood and cardboard along the back sidewalk where she lived in Southern California with her sister and adventurous but struggling single mother.

She decorated each room, making custom furniture and window coverings, and she also taught herself how to sew on an old Singer machine, which led to making skirts out of scrap fabrics for her mother.

Vandergrift's career started when she opened a marble and granite showroom in West Hollywood, but it changed directions many times.

She was a national trainer for a brokerage firm, she bought and sold antiques, and she published a newspaper for the law enforcement community.

In 1994, Vandergrift started Heywire, a line of lanterns, jewel boxes and picture frames made out of sculpted wire and beads, and while in search of vintage glass, she was inspired to design lamps.

"I was hooked and soon was building chandeliers and sconces from cast parts". In 1996, the word spread to designers and high-end retail galleries and Ethereal Lighting was born.

To take a break from the hustle and bustle of Southern California, Vandergrift in 1998 moved to one of the remote San Juan Islands off Washington.

She spent four years there designing lighting and developing a market that soon included top galleries and boutiques in Seattle, where people like Demi Moore and Sally Struthers purchased pieces from her collection.

Since moving back to Southern California in 2002, Vandergrift has been working with designers, architects, builders, retail galleries and private clients.

Among other projects, she recently finished a 14,000 square foot home in Newport Coast, adding that she gives credit for much of what she has learned to a small group of people who have been leaders in the lighting industry before mass overseas production began.

Vandergrift's work can also be seen at Lightopia, Laguna Beach; Scene Gallery, Newport Coast; Timeless Interiors, Seattle; and Coastal Living Magazine Idea House, Pacific City, Oregon.

She offers free in-home consultations, and referrals are available, upon request.

Ethereal Lighting Studio and Showroom
27324 Camino Capistrano, Unit 176
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
(949) 367-1300 / (949) 366-4005
www.ethereallighting.com

(South Coast Magazine - Spring 2007)