Lighting is on its way!

Large range of LED colors available. Image from Evan Designs.

I just placed a giant (but not expensive) order with Evan Designs for LED lighting for Rosehill Cottage. I want to give a huge shout-out to Shelly Jamison, co-owner, who answered my thousand questions and helped me figure out what I would need via email. (Their website has so much helpful information about everything you might need to know about lighting your project - please check it out.) After counting up every lamp, sconce, hanging pendant and fireplace I came up with 44 individual lights. Believe it or not, those will all run off a AA battery! No clunky transformer switch connected to the wall! And LED lights do not throw off heat, so I can enclose my project as I planned with no worries. I ordered three switches so I can light the house in various ways; one switch will handle the fireplaces, one will light the upstairs and one the downstairs.

If this works out the way I expect, I am going to light other projects I have been working on. I hate the copper strip tape lighting I have used in the past, and never could wrap my head around round wire lighting. I have in mind a room box based on the set of "Dial M for Murder" directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Wouldn't it be cool to be able to switch the lighting around to get different scenes from the film, like when Grace Kelly goes to answer the phone and the light from the bedroom streams across the darkened living room? Lighting really makes miniatures come to life, and it sounds like LEDs are a great way to do it for less money and effort.

Please visit Evan Designs at http://www.modeltrainsoftware.com if you are thinking of lighting a project. You will be blown away by the possibilities!