Lighting 101: Room-By-Room Tips

You surely know the importance of properly lighting your home but let’s go through every room separately and determine which type of lighting fits best. One of the reasons why lighting is so important is that it accentuates the furniture, the focal points, the artwork and other important architectural elements. Without being properly lit, these significant aspects would not be that easily visible, thus they will have little to no meaning in the room.

Generally, all types of lighting products should meet a very important criteria: the light in every room needs to be strong enough to make things look better than they actually are, and soft enough to create a cozy ambient.

Living Room

The living room is probably the most important room in the house, since this is where the family gathers to spend time together, watch TV, play games or simply chat. As such, special attention needs to be dedicated to choosing the right lighting products. Designers’ advice for the living room is that you get lights that bounce off the ceiling for ambient illumination. Bouncing light is great because it avoids the shadows or downward direction of recessed lights.

Kitchen

The sink is and always has been the focal point in the kitchen. Designers advise that it should be illuminated with natural light and that means that the ideal position for it is below a window. And if you want to augment the natural light from the window, use a ceiling mount light or recessed light above the sink. To illuminate the countertop, use under-cabinet lighting, so you will not need to rely heavily on overhead light.

Bathroom

We all spend considerable amount of time in the bathroom getting ready for work in the morning, doing our hair and make up and checking the overall vision. So, thinking whether you need to dedicate some special attention to the lighting in this room, is simply absurd. To get the ultimate effect, the bathroom needs to have lighting that will illuminate you but will not cast shadows while you stand in front of the mirror. This means that central ceiling-mounted lighting products would not be the best option for a bathroom. The perfect lighting plan for a bathroom would include two wall sconces on both sides of the mirror and one on the opposing wall (from the mirror position).

Dining Room

The dining room is the heart of the home! The focal point in it is the large table with chairs around it, the favourite spot for families to wine and dine while talking about their day. A very important aspect in all of that is of course the atmosphere. Having the perfect lighting at the dining table should help create a warm atmosphere that screams closeness among family members, family time, harmony and positive energy. And trust me, if your lighting in these moments is too soft and dimmed, then everyone is going to feel the decrease of energy and enthusiasm for the family dinner. So, the best choice for illuminating the dining table would be a large chandelier, but one that actually will provide the room with strong and bright light, and not just act like a lighting decoration. Also, to enhance the lighting pattern, add lights on the walls. However, be careful not to place them too close to any pictures or wall decorations since the point is to accentuate the width that the white walls provide the room with. These can easily be dimmers, so you have a choice when you want a more romantic and intimate atmosphere for dinner.

Bedroom

Now here you can be creative. The bedroom is your own personal space and the room where all the magic happens. So, dimmers are a must. You can add a few lighting products that will be your first choice when you need that romantic atmosphere for a little romance with your significant other. Some of them can be wall-mounted light fixtures that will provide light for bedside reading. They would ideally have an adjustable arm for directing the light on the reading material. In general, ceiling mounted and recessed lighting fixtures are used for bedrooms, and the most important thing to consider when choosing one of them is the paint on the walls; dark colours reflect less light and make the room look a lot smaller.