If you’re like me, then you can’t just abandon the old incandescent bulb. The shape, the filament, the clarity—all these characteristics appeal to you (and that doesn’t begin to address the emotional aspect that old bulbs carry). Now you don’t have to neglect the iconic light. With Bulbs Unlimited, you can turn burnt out light bulbs into designer lighting. The company provides various kits with which you can build pendant and table lamps using only old light bulbs that get ingeniously attached to one another using the Bulbs Unlimited construction kits.

Virus and Circle 3 Lights. Manufactured by Bulbs Unlimited.

Lamp Kits Link Together Old Bulbs

Bulbs Unlimited provides construction kits that transform standard European light bulbs into various lighting objects. Using a system that links the bulbs like Legos through a network of snap buttons, Bulbs Unlimited allows you to construct your own chandeliers and lamps. By following the company’s recipes, you can create different lighting pieces. The secret lies in Bulbs Unlimited’s Inkubator, a jig that allows you to precisely position light bulbs so they can each be marked in an exact location. The Inkubator can theoretically “be used to build uncountable different shapes of Bulbs Unlimited light objects.”

Circle 3 and Virus are but two interesting and different models offered by Bulbs Unlimited. Circle 3 contains 36 bulbs that create “a circle shape surrounding a single light sourcing bulb.” This design uses mirrored and opac bulbs and requires 120 snap buttons. Besides a captivating pendant lamp, Circle 3 can be made into either a table or floor lamp. This model requires using the Pro-Pack construction kit, which includes 150 snap buttons. Virus uses only 20 standard incandescent bulbs in the shape of an icosaeder. With 60 snap buttons, all you need is the Rookie Pack kit. Hang the star lamp or use it on a table. Thanks to Bulbs Unlimited, you can hang onto your old-school bulbs and still feel good about it.

About the Manufacturer: Bulbs Unlimited, based in Hamburg, produces kits to turn old incandescent bulbs into designer lamps. Part of Ambientshop.com, which includes six lighting subsidiaries, Bulbs Unlimited provides different models for constructing pendant and table lamps from kits. Construction kits use a design system called the Inkubator, which helps you determine where to position Snap Buttons, which connect the bulbs to one another.