Last year I built a murphy bed for an AirBnb property. It was a fun project, and I am a decent woodworker, so it came together in about a week, and for a fourth the price I might have paid to buy one.
But, there was a problem. Since the bed folds up into the wall, the sides stick out a foot or so, and then the bedside tables don’t really work for lighting because the side of the bed is in the way.
![](http://www.terraincogito.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Screen-Shot-2020-02-12-at-4.01.37-PM.png)
So you can see how it might be interesting to get reading lamps on each side. So I started looking for lamps that might work, that had a narrow focus, and I found one on Amazon that was very expensive and could be focused – overkill, but would work well. Then I found one on AliExpress that was inexpensive, bright, ran on 12 volts, and had a 30 degree beam — perfect!
![](http://www.terraincogito.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Screen-Shot-2020-02-12-at-4.07.26-PM.png)
But I needed a small switch. Looking on eBay, there are some little 12v controllers that let you turn them on and off, and dim – so that’s what I got, and installed them on the inside edges of the bed where they were easy to get to – and they work great! Just hook up a 12v power supply and you are all set.
![](http://www.terraincogito.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Screen-Shot-2020-02-12-at-4.10.28-PM.png)
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