6 bulbs, 1 idea: turning an IKEA Vidja into a living light sculpture

I have a soft spot for ambient lighting. The kind that doesn’t just illuminate a room but quietly performs in it. Recently, I stumbled upon the VIDJA floor lamp from IKEA… and it came with a surprise: it needs six E17 bulbs.

Six. Not two. Not three. Six.

At first, that sounds like overkill. But then a dangerous idea sneaks in: what if each bulb had a personality? 🎭

The setup: going full RGB (and noticing a… pattern)

With a lamp like the VIDJA from IKEA, the “safe” option would be:

Use regular white bulbs
Or simple dimmable warm light

That already works well. Clean, simple, predictable.

But six bulbs open another door.

Instead of treating them as one light source, I decided to treat them as six independent pixels. So I went for six TRÅDFRI LED smart bulbs from IKEA with full RGB support.

Bulb: TRÅDFRI LED bulb E17 810 lumen
Lamp: VIDJA floor lamp

Price? 899 yen per bulb. The VIDJA itself? 8999 yen.

Six bulbs × 899 yen… paired with an 8999 yen lamp.

At this point, it feels less like shopping and more like IKEA whispering: “you know what to do.” 🧩

ZHA: instant color loop magic

If you are using ZHA, you get a very convenient feature: built-in light effects.

There is a native color loop effect you can directly select per bulb. No scripts, no hacks, just a dropdown and suddenly your light is alive.

For Matter, I will investigate that later 🔍

The trick: making them dance (slightly out of sync)

If all bulbs change color at the same time, it looks… fine. But we’re not here for “fine.” We want something alive.

Here’s the recipe:

Create a Light Group Helper Group all six bulbs into a single entity in Home Assistant. One switch to rule them all. Tip: Once paired, you can use the Identify function in Home Assistant to figure out which bulb is which. It’s a lifesaver for setup and it helps to name them accordingly.
Create an Automation with as trigger When the group turns ON…
Stagger the color loop Turn on each bulb one by one, with:
- Color loop effect enabled
- A 500ms delay between each bulb (I actually set it to 300ms, 400ms, 500ms, 400ms, 300ms for a more organic feel)

This tiny delay is everything. Instead of synchronized sameness, you get a flowing rainbow cascade 🌈 Each bulb starts its loop at a slightly different moment, creating a constantly shifting gradient across the lamp.

The result: controlled chaos, beautiful vibes

What you end up with feels alive. The IKEA VIDJA stops being “just a lamp” and becomes:

A slow-moving aurora in your living room
A conversation starter
A low-effort, high-impact upgrade

Final thought

Sometimes, smart home magic isn’t about adding more devices. It’s about using what looks excessive… on purpose.

Six bulbs. 899 yen each. One 8999 yen lamp.

That’s not a coincidence. That’s a blueprint.