Like the genre that inspired it, Steampunk lighting is tough to define. For our part, we designed the Maria Steampunk as a statement chandelier with a vintage functional aesthetic. Coined in the late 80’s to put a name to a rising science fiction sub-genre, Steampunk was retrospectively applied to works of fiction from the 50’s […]

When Urban Cottage Industries established itself as a company, we stocked a single bulb type. Since then; tastes, trends and technologies have developed and so has our range. We now offer four main lamp types each with their own strengths and weaknesses. With these varied characteristics, we have all of your lighting needs covered.   […]

Strong and beautiful kraft paper is a staple of the Factorylux & Prelogram brands. There’s information below on how and why we use brown paper for wrapping, packing and printing. SHOP KRAFT PAPER By popular demand, high quality Prelogram kraft paper is now available to buy in three sheet and three pack sizes. A5, A4 […]

Earlier in the year Factorylux asked composer and musician Tom Parkinson to capture the sounds of Factorylux light shades. As well sampling the shades to compose two original pieces, Tom has used the samples to play Christmas carols. There are nine carols in the series and we are releasing them here in the run up […]

The limitations of the various task management solutions for businesses are not always easy to spot until you’re in chest-deep and it’s a struggle to get out. Here’s a quick overview of our experience and why we chose Get Flow from Metalab. As a fast-growing company we need a robust project management solution. It is, […]

#Huelloween – Hue Lux lights in a pumpkin are controlled by the frequency of #Halloween activity on Twitter using IFTTT (‘If This Then That’) functionality to process the data and create the triggers. SHOP FACTORYLUX LIGHT BULBS As always, our skilled technicians are working to BS EN 60598, though the pumpkins (and all vegetables) are […]

Factorylux commissioned composer Tom Parkinson to create music using the sounds of Factorylux lamp shades. SHOP LAMP SHADES It’s an ongoing project and the latest pieces are Christmas carols. Here’s Good King Wenceslas: Tom is an internationally recognised musician, performing and recording across a range of musical styles, including contemporary music. He composes and performs […]

Urban Cottage Industries runs exclusively on Apple hardware – there’s not a single Windows laptop, desktop, tablet or server in sight. Every employee gets their own MacBook or iPad, or both – whatever they prefer, irrespective of their role. It’s a big investment in one way and an absolute no brainer in another. I’ll look at the […]

There’s a fascinating story behind Factorylux Eco-Filament bulbs, a story which encapsulates the exceptional quality and durability of the product. SHOP ECO-FILAMENT BULBS The filament in an Eco-Filament bulb is actually a thin 2.8mm glass tube which is bent to form the cage shape. The Dutch electronics giant Philips started work on narrow diameter fluorescent tube […]