The Trafalgar was a mistake that worked – and became one of Pooky’s best-loved and most durable lamps…
The Trafalgar began life as a piece of scrap….
Very early on in the Pooky days (over a decade ago now), there was an offcut of brass lying on the workshop floor, slightly dented and destined for the bin. But Pooky founder Rohan, being an obsessive turner of things into lamps, picked it up and immediately saw the potential in it.
That offcut became the Trafalgar – and it’s been with us ever since.
Why it works (it’s just a column, basically)
Strip it back and the Trafalgar is nothing more complicated than a tall, tapering brass column on a square base. The taper is subtle because the lamp is tall – it doesn’t suddenly narrow, it simply becomes slimmer as it rises.
The larger table lamp stands at 77cm high on a 22cm square base, yet the column itself is only a few centimetres wide at the bottom. That contrast is part of the magic. It feels light and upright, but it’s solid and weighty.
Indeed, when customers unbox it, the first comment is almost always about the weightiness (literally and figuratively). It’s a reassuringly sturdy lamp: you put it down and it stays put.
“Statuesque” is another word that crops up again and again in reviews, and that seems exactly right. The Trafalgar has presence in a room, despite its slimness and understated style
A safe pair of hands
Interior designers have loved the Trafalgar for years because it doesn’t get into arguments — with shades or anything else, for that matter. It works in pairs on a console table, behaves beautifully in a hallway and is really excellent in a dining room. And the tiny portable version is surprisingly good on bedsides where space is tight.
Most importantly, it will take almost any shade you care to put on it, from big gathered linen ones to clean, minimalist drums. The simplicity of the column allows the shade to do the talking.
In a nutshell, it’s one of those lamps you simply can’t go wrong with. Nobody is going to quibble with your taste if you have a Trafalgar. It’s impeccable in that quiet way that doesn’t need to advertise itself.
A touch of Englishness
There’s a hint of classic Englishness about the Trafalgar — some see a Victorian hotel dining room, others a stately home side table. The name began as a bit of a joke on the idea of a column (Nelson, Trafalgar etc), but it turned out to suit it perfectly.
It could plausibly be an antique you’ve owned forever. Equally, it looks entirely at ease in a modern setting and it doesn’t date, which of course is the beauty of understatement.
The design that kept stretching
What’s been pleasing over the years is how easily Trafalgar has adapted. First came the table lamp, then the floor lamp – which simply extended the column further into the room, rather as if it had been waiting to do that all along.
After that, the rechargeable table lamp version arrived, giving the same elegant line without the need for a socket. And then the portable tiny Trafalgar – 26.5cm high on a 12cm base – which can tuck itself almost anywhere while still carrying that same statuesque feel.
Finally, the wall fitting. Here the taper inverts (thicker at the top, slimmer at the bottom) which we think is a rather splendid twist on the original idea.
Why it’s still here
If you line up the Trafalgar family now – brass or bronze, table, floor, cordless, tiny, wall – what’s striking is how little the original idea has changed. It hasn’t needed embellishment or reinvention; it’s simply a well-proportioned column of brass.
That’s why the weighty, solid, statuesque Trafalgar that started out as a discarded offcut has lasted for over a decade: it simply never lets you down.
See the Trafalgar in all its splendid versions here.
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