Iconic designs reimagined for a lighting expert.
Our latest project with the nation’s leading supplier of high-end lampshades, Charlottesville’s own The Shade Shop, started with a conversation back in June. In partnership with Gracie, the world-famous atelier of hand-painted wallpaper, The Shade Shop was working to create a pair of custom lampshades based on two beloved designs, Hampton Garden and Greenfield. These lampshades would evoke a sense of luxury and highlight the unmatched attention to detail synonymous with both The Shade Shop and Gracie. Having worked with The Shade Shop on a redesign of their packaging, along with in-store photography, we understood their brand well and were excited to help them introduce these exclusive lampshades to the world.
The Challenge
We first met with the client for a briefing on the creation of the lampshades, some background on the wallpaper designs that inspired them, and their plan to produce and market the lampshades. We viewed videos of the lampshades being painted by hand in Gracie’s studio, using centuries-old techniques, and we were able to bring the painted but unfinished lampshade flats to our studio, along with the first prototypes. The initial part of the campaign would be teaser ads to run on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest that would foster anticipation for the Gracie collection ahead of its release, and the second part would promote the product launch.
The Process
We developed ad concepts with storyboards, wrote copy, and presented a suite of ads—using videos, carousels, and static images—for both parts of the campaign. For the teasers we wanted to create a sense of mystery, so we chose to use shadow, motion, and close-up details to hint at the look of the lampshades without revealing them completely. With the prototypes in the studio, we used a white marble surface to suggest luxury and let the colorful lampshades dominate the frame. We created mottled light, turned the lampshades slowly while using a very narrow area of focus, and homed in on the finely rendered birds and butterflies.
For the product launch ads, we scheduled an on-location shoot at the store to capture wider shots of the lampshades on both Paul Schneider and Hwang Bishop lamps. With the first batch of lampshades delivered to the shop, we could photograph more than one together as well as feature each design in front of its corresponding hand-painted wallpaper panel. The on-location photos allowed us to demonstrate the versatility of the lampshades in tasteful store displays and home-like vignettes designed by the Shade Shop team.
In addition to the paid ads, which were easily adapted into organic content that the client posted to their social media channels, we wrote and designed an e-mail blast announcing the product launch to go out to the shop’s customers, interior designers, and other contacts. We included photos from our on-location shoot, plus a longer video—thirty seconds as opposed to the fifteen seconds preferred on social platforms—in a horizontal format that combined footage of both lampshade designs together. This gave viewers a more detailed look at the lampshades, and multiple buttons encouraged readers to shop the collection. The Shade Shop had their first online Gracie lampshade purchase within an hour of the e-mail blast being sent.
This project allowed us to be imaginative, work with gorgeous designer lamps and lampshades, and see this new collection before almost anyone else. And we loved the challenge of creating a campaign from the ground up; it’s not every day that we get to utilize such a wide range of our creative skills from strategy to copywriting to photography and beyond. We are so thankful for the opportunity to work with the team at The Shade Shop to bring bespoke luxury into homes everywhere.