Distinctive or Recognizable Tiffany Design Pattern

Tiffany lampshade designs range from simple to increasingly complex. These include blown glass shades, pressed glass shades, geometric patterns, multiple repetitions of the same pattern, and non-repeating floral pattern shades. Geometric patterns may seem elementary; however, the choice of color or the painstaking application of solder found in the design makes the lamp a sophisticated work of art. Tiffany designers used decorative patterns through the repetition of motifs, allowing them to create a unique and captivating shade.

Tiffany lamps can be generally grouped to form the following categories, each specifying different characteristics: irregular upper and lower borders lamps, favrile (hand-crafted) lamps, geometric lamps, transition to flowers lamps, flowered cone lamps, flowered globe lamps, and irregular lower border lamps.

The following are some of the most popular Tiffany design patterns:

• Dragonfly designs consisted of large blue-bodied dragonflies with overlapping purple-striated-blue wings were imposed on a blue-green background mottled with yellow. The wings, themselves, were covered with a metal filigree to simulate the dragonfly's veins, and its red eyes, which touched the shade's lower edge, or apron, were made of glistening glass jewels.
• Wisteria pattern lamps fell into the irregular upper and lower borders category. The multicolored Wisteria shades integrated vines and blossoms. The traditional straight edge of the opening at the top of the shade was replaced by an openwork crown cast in bronze which simulated the twisted branches of the vine. Wisteria clusters terminated in an irregular lower border of unopened blossoms. Each Wisteria lamp consisted of over a 1,000 pieces of glass.
• Floral designs usually were found on a domed shade, also known as the flowered cone. Many featured profuse floral patterns of flowers in mottled colored glass with stems made of granular glass. Tiffany also made flowered globes and shades with irregular lower borders.

Other pattern designs emerged throughout the century and touched on many natural motifs. Each were delicately crafted and chosen to enhance an interior's aesthetic appeal. Some other popular and impressive design patterns were rose, peony, and magnolia and could be categorized under the floral design patterns.