Five Lighting Ideas for Your Home
What is the best way to brighten up or illuminate your home? Here are five lighting ideas that can transform any room!
- Prior to Remodeling or Redecorating, Commit to a Plan. Before you start, ask yourself: How will this room be used? A living room, for instance, can have multiple uses: dining area, TV room, part-time office, a place for entertaining. How a room is used should determine lighting choices and placement.
- Incorporate Layering. When a room serves many functions, then layering (combining different lighting types for appropriate balance) is important. A single type of lighting is often not enough. So when layering consider a room’s size, the availability of natural light, a room’s dimensions, and ambiance desired. A large chandelier can work well for distributing ambient light; table lamps or pendant lights are ideal for reading; and wall sconces can create the desired mood or atmosphere.
- Familiarize Yourself with Lighting Options. There are three broad categories of interior lights– ambient, task and accent – and it may take all three to get the desired lighting effect you want.
– Ambient Lighting. General lighting is another name for ambient lighting and is typically the starting point for illuminating an entire room. Recessed lights, chandeliers, track lights, outside lights, and torchieres (standing floor lights) are examples of ambient lighting.
– Task Lighting. If you have a job or duty to perform—reading, cooking, studying, writing—you’ll need a handy task light, such as a desk lamp, table light, vanity light or pendant light.
– Accent Lighting. When looking to create a subtle or dramatic effect, use accent lights. Accent lighting will draw attention to art objects, architectural features in a room, wall hangings — almost anything you want to call attention to. - Swap Out Certain Lights. If your kitchen has recessed track lights, try swapping them out for pendant lights. Pendant lights, a type of task lighting, can be lowered to provide more direct light on food prep areas such as kitchen counter tops or islands.
- Buy a Family of Lights. Lighting manufacturers often create lighting families, lights with similar styles or design components. Stylistically-related lights offer visual continuity and take the guess work out of buying.