Post #741089 by KreepyTiki on Sat, Apr 11, 2015 7:53 AM

Aloha, Ohana!

In searching through the voluminous topics that have been covered on TC over the years I couldn't quite find one that specifically centered on comparisons and contrasts in tiki-centric lighting -- both exterior and interior -- over the years. There are many comparisons of architectural alterations in various tiki temples, but aspects of lighting that were discussed were incidental.

I don't think I'm stating anything particularly revelatory here by saying that both interior and exterior lighting is an extremely crucial aspect of the ultimate atmosphere inherent in any tiki locale, be it home bar, commercial bar, restaurant, etc. And judging from the vast majority of home bars I've seen posted by the TC Ohana, this is a lesson well-learned by many of you who have created home paradises and private hideaways to rival many of the best commercial establishments, making up in terms of atmosphere what you may lack in terms of space and money, illustrating that it doesn't always cost big bucks to get big results. In the realm of home bars, imagination is king.

Having a spectacular tiki environment, architecturally speaking, without having equally spectacular lighting is tantamount to having wonderful sets for a film or stage production and then not taking the trouble to light them properly. All that work can be for naught -- or at least for a lot less -- if equal attention is not paid to the myriad possibilities inherent in lighting, both of the usual and special FX variety. And, given careful and imaginative thought and implementation, it can make the difference between something merely okay or good and something truly magical.

My own personal experience with this comes from years spent in creating the best home tiki lounge I could while somewhat hamstrung by the fact that my lounge was necessarily constructed within a rented apartment and thus was limited by what I could and could not do, structurally speaking. And yet I found that, in my case, careful and elaborate lighting could cover a multitude of other deficiencies and, in the process, turn a limitation into a strength.

For easy reference, here are a few images of my own Paradise Cove Tiki Lounge...

For a more in-depth look you can check out these links:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=28843&forum=20&hilite=Paradise Cove

http://critiki.com/location/?loc_id=658

(Just yesterday I added a new lighting layer to my lounge with some nifty underwater light-ripple FX which I'll post pics of as soon as I take some.)

But what specifically urged me to create this particular post was something I experienced a while back upon my last visit to the wonderful Don The Beachcombers in Sunset Beach, one of SoCal's last remaining Tiki Palaces (along with Bali Hai and Damons) now that Trader Vics and Bahooka have left us, joining the other Tiki Temples in the sky.

Pictures being worth their proverbial weight in words, this is the sight that greeted me upon my last visit to Dons...

Attractive? Yes. Cool? Of course. I love this place, as do most of you. BUT -- and this is my point -- THIS is how the exterior looked at night when I visited DTB the PREVIOUS year...

Now, is it just me, folks, or was it way cooler and more magical looking before, with the use of multi-colored lighting, than with the standard white? (Fortunately, I saw no alterations in the superb indoor lighting.)

But because I haven't been there in quite a while, please let me know if they've (hopefully) gone back to their earlier more atmospheric look now.

And please share pics and stories of your own adventures/experiments with lighting and lighting-FX in your own home lounges and bars, as well as what you've seen in the outside world that applies to this topic. I'll be very interested to see Before & After pics as well as other illustrations of what differences lighting can make in a tropical/tiki environment.

Cheers and Mahalo :drink: :tiki:

[ Edited by: KreepyTiki 2015-04-11 09:20 ]