plumen wattnott light bulbs illuminate memories of thomas edison

in 2010, london-based company plumen radically re-imagined the form and created the ‘plumen 001’, the world’s first designer low energy light bulb. just like tesla use design and engineering to make the electric car much more appealing, plumen use design to bring the beauty and poetry back to the humble light bulb. this vision struck a chord and its first design received global attention picking up some design awards, not to mention recognition by the MoMA; V&A; and cooper-hewitt design collections. today, the product helps to shape a new attitude towards low energy bulbs.

plumen’s latest collection, ‘wattnott’ light bulbs, combine the best of 20th and 21st century lighting–beautiful designs creating a warm, comforting light, whilst featuring the latest energy efficient LED technology. with this new range the company has tried to address every possible reason not to switch to efficient lighting–be it the light quality; life-time; or looks, making sure that every ‘wattnott’ design beats the classics on every front. ‘wattnott’ has an average lifespan of 25,000 hours–that equates to approximately 25 years. 

the company’s mission is to get the whole world to embrace low-energy lighting, so it has taken the classic edison bulb as a starting point and given it a modern, energy-efficient makeover. using new flexible filament technology, it has created the same light quality and aesthetics as an edison –with all the extra benefits of LED. same look, but with LED filament technology people get to choose the right light color and finish for them (warm; or super warm white light, and clear; or tinted glass). there are seven traditional edison designs to choose from, plus one plumen original: wilbur.

‘when we saw the new filament led technology, we knew we had to use it. it’s a cost-effective way to create charming and useable light bulbs that hit the plumen standard for performance and efficiency’, comments nicolas roope, creative director of plumen. he continues, ‘this new range gives the consumer no excuse not to boot out their old edison bulbs once and for all. why wattnot? because you’ll use fewer watts with wattnott – that’s why.’

the british company believe that the best way to inspire people to adopt sustainable lighting is to create products that are beautiful as well as efficient. on the outside plumen’s designs are pretty, playful and provocative. on the inside, our rigorous engineering team has given our bulbs long lifespans–at least 10 times longer than an incandescent bulb while using at most, 20% of the energy.