Tudor illumination, continued

As planned, I went on to make display lights in the Tudor house. Once again, the purpose of display lights is to illuminate the scene, regardless of what kind of lights would be used in the period you are re-creating. You can add what filmmakers call realistic lights, including fake lamps and chandeliers, or electric lights, but display lights allow the viewer to see details that wouldn't be visible in "authentic" light. For instance, if you have been to Museum of Childhood in London, where they have a huge collection of dollhouses, some have realistic lights, some don't, but all have display lights.

As I mentioned in the previous post, I had some issues with battery holders because they are hard to hide. In the solar, I did as I had planned: made a slit in the roof and led the battery into the attic. At the moment it is just there, but I will disguise it as a chest.



The LED strip is attached behind the front beam, and although it looks far too bright in the picture, it is a soft and even light, and you can see well into the room.

For the great hall, on the middle floor, I had several options. I could lead the battery outside and attach it to the wall, disguising it as something. I would have to make a slit in a cross-beam. I didn't much fancy it. I considered hiding the battery behind the stairs of the room above. It would fit, but I have tried several ideas about how to attach it, and it didn't work. So finally - or perhaps temporarily until I find a better solution - I simply hid it behind a beam, which I initially didn't want to do because it would be too conspicuous. However - can you see it?


Of course you cannot see it because I have cropped the picture. If you look very carefully, you can see a bit of it under the second beam, on the left. Believe me, it's not bad at all. (I may change my mind tomorrow).

I did  the same in the kitchen, and because it's below eye-level, you cannot see it at all, unless you look from below, and why would you?



Now you can see all the details at the back of the kitchen: the inglenook, the utensils, the hanging meats; and it doesn't matter that there were no LED lights in the Tudor era because there are no realistic lights (except candles and oil lamps), only display lights.

If you are curious about how furniture and other objects are made, search my blog with the tag "Tudor".