Most bedrooms have one overhead fixture, usually a flush-mount dome in the middle of the ceiling, trying to light the whole room on its own. A lantern does that job better, but the bedroom is also where sizing mistakes show most. Hang one too big or too low over the bed and you'll brush it every time you sit up or change the sheets.

This guide covers the three spots that matter in a bedroom: over the bed, beside it, and the reading corner. Each comes with exact dimensions and costs in two kinds of shade, our handcrafted linen lampshades and our premium fine-line paper lanterns. Every product named below is in stock as of today. A full bedroom comes to $101.74 in fine-line paper or $119.44 in linen, and both clear our $99 free shipping threshold.

Linen or Fine-Line Paper: How to Choose

Linen lampshades are natural white-beige eucalyptus linen stretched over a steel wire frame, hand-crafted shade by shade. The fabric gives a warm, slightly creamy light and resists tearing, so it's the one to pick when you want a fixture you put up once and leave up for years.

Fine-line paper lanterns are our premium, extra-sturdy paper with very fine, closely spaced ribbing. They glow a bright, even white, cost less per light, and come in shapes you won't find in a standard round lantern: ovals, a bulbous shape, a spherical dome and a tall oblong.

Both take the same pendant cords and bulbs, so you can mix them. A linen shade over the bed with fine-line pendants beside it is a combination that works well.

Over the Bed: Size to the Room, Shape to the Ceiling

Size: add the room's length and width in feet, and that number in inches is about the right diameter. A 10 by 10 foot guest room takes about 20". A 10 by 12 foot bedroom takes 20" to 24". A 12 by 14 foot primary bedroom takes 24" or more.

Shape: under a standard 8-foot ceiling, go wide and shallow and hang it close to the ceiling. With a 9-foot ceiling or higher, you have room for a deeper shape and a longer drop.

For an 8-foot ceiling:

• The Large UFO Diamond linen shade, 20" wide by 8" tall, $20.00. It's the flattest shade we carry, so it spreads light out across the room instead of dropping it straight down. Our pick for most bedrooms.
• The Large Saturn Oval linen shade, 19" by 10", $20.00. A softer, rounder profile with 2 more inches of depth.
• The Large Oval fine-line lantern, 22" by 13", $17.95. The widest of the three, in bright white paper, for a larger room.

For a 9-foot ceiling or higher:

• The Large Round linen shade, 20" by 20", $22.75.
• The Extra Large Round linen shade, 24" by 24", $29.25, for a primary bedroom with height to spare.
• The Large Spherical Dome fine-line lantern, 20" by 15", $17.95.

Where to hang it: center it over the bed. On an 8-foot ceiling, keep the top of the shade a few inches below the ceiling. A 20" by 8" shade hung that way sits well above your head even when you're sitting up against the headboard.

How to power it: the 15-foot white pendant cord ($11.49) is long enough to hook to the ceiling above the bed and swag across to a wall outlet. Add a warm white 0.8-watt LED bulb at $1.90, which brings the cord and bulb to $13.39 on top of the shade. This cord has no switch, so plug it into a switched outlet or a smart plug and it turns on with the room.

All-in, with cord and bulb: UFO Diamond or Saturn Oval linen, $33.39. Large Oval fine-line, $31.34. Large Spherical Dome fine-line, $31.34. Large Round linen, $36.14. Extra Large Round linen, $42.64.

Beside the Bed: Swap the Table Lamps for Pendants

A small pendant over each nightstand frees up the whole tabletop and puts the light where you read, not wherever the lamp base happens to fit. Hang each one with its bottom 20 to 24 inches above the nightstand. That puts it roughly level with your shoulders when you're sitting up in bed, low enough to read by and high enough to stay out of your eyes.

Keep them about 16 inches wide. Any bigger and they start to crowd the headboard.

• The Oval fine-line lantern, 16" by 9.5", $9.95. Shallow and wide, so it washes light down over the nightstand and onto the page.
• The Bulbous fine-line lantern, 16" by 11", $10.95. A rounder, fuller shape.
• The Round Oval linen shade, 16" by 11", $15.50. The linen option, matching the warm tone of a linen overhead.

How to power them: use the 11-foot white pendant cord ($10.95) on each side. It has an inline on/off switch about 3 feet from the plug, so with the outlet behind your nightstand, as most are, the switch ends up right beside the bed. You can turn the light off without getting up, which is what makes a bedside pendant practical.

A pair, with cords and bulbs: Oval fine-line, $45.60. Bulbous fine-line, $47.60. Round Oval linen, $56.70.

The Reading Corner: The One Place to Go Tall

A chair in the corner is the one spot in a bedroom nobody walks under, so that's where a tall shape belongs. Hang it to one side of the chair and a little behind your shoulder, with the bottom at about head height when you're seated, so the light lands on the page rather than in your eyes.

• The Oblong fine-line lantern, 10" wide by 20" tall, $11.95. Narrow enough for a tight corner.
• The Kawaii linen shade, 16" by 20", $16.50. Taller and fuller, for a corner with more room around it.

On the 11-foot switched cord with a bulb: Oblong fine-line, $24.80. Kawaii linen, $29.35.

The Whole Bedroom, Added Up

All fine-line paper: Large Oval overhead ($31.34), two Oval bedside pendants ($45.60), Oblong in the corner ($24.80). 4 lights, $101.74.
All linen: UFO Diamond overhead ($33.39), two Round Oval bedside pendants ($56.70), Kawaii in the corner ($29.35). 4 lights, $119.44.
Mixed: UFO Diamond linen overhead ($33.39), two Oval fine-line bedside pendants ($45.60), Oblong fine-line in the corner ($24.80). 4 lights, $103.79.

All three clear our $99 free shipping threshold. For the other rooms in the house, see our room-by-room indoor lighting guide. For every linen shape side by side, see the linen lampshade guide.

Quick Answers

What size lantern should I hang over a bed?
Add the room's length and width in feet and use that number in inches as the diameter. A 10 by 12 foot bedroom takes a 20" to 24" lantern. Under an 8-foot ceiling, choose a wide, shallow shape, such as a 20" by 8" linen UFO Diamond, and hang it close to the ceiling.

How high should a bedside pendant hang?
Hang the bottom 20 to 24 inches above the nightstand top, and keep the shade about 16 inches wide so it doesn't crowd the headboard.

Is linen or paper better for a bedroom?
Both work. Linen gives a warmer light and resists tearing, so it suits a fixture you'll leave up for years. Fine-line paper glows brighter white and costs less per light. They use the same cords and bulbs, so you can mix them in one room.

What bulb should I use in a lantern lampshade?
Use an LED. Our warm white 0.8-watt LED bulb stays cool inside paper or fabric. Choose warm white over cool white, which turns white shades grey and makes a bedroom look like an office.

Can I turn a pendant lantern off from bed?
Yes. Use a pendant cord with an inline switch, like our 11-foot white cord, which puts the switch about 3 feet from the plug. A cord without a switch can go on a smart plug or a switched outlet instead.

Paper Lantern Store carries the world's largest selection of lanterns and lighting, shipped from our Union City, California warehouse for 24 years.