When it comes to turning your house into a home, lighting is a huge influence. If you have rooms that are too dark, this can lead to having a negative effect on your mood. However, darkened rooms can be useful when you want to watch films. Bright rooms, on the other hand, are great for motivational activities and for when you want to do some cooking and cleaning.
On the whole, you need a balance of lighting. The degree of brightness is dependent on what you are doing or your mood. There is nothing better than having cosy lighting for when you want to wind down in the evening. We will go through some steps below on how to light up your home with the right ambience.
- Dimmer Controls
If you have a room that serves different purposes, such as a lounge, dining room or kitchen, then it may be worthwhile investing in a dimmer light controls. By dimming your light, you can quickly change the mood and ambience of a room. You can switch from cooking and everyday living, right through to hosting a cosy evening in with friends.
By dimming the lights, you are able to select the level of lighting depending on your mood or activity. If you want to relax in an evening but your main lights are too bright, then dimming them will help.
You could also look into automated controls, which are motion-sensitive and environmentally friendly.
Lighting dimmer controls
- Get to know the different types of lighting
Did you know there are five different types of lighting?
General lighting is very practical and offers simple lighting across space.
Ambience lighting is lighting that can be controlled by dimming or brightening a space to control the feel of a room or living area.
Mood lighting, unlike the two above, does not cast shadows, as it doesn’t light a large space. It’s a clever way of balancing both dark and light by carefully positioning table lamps and floor lamps.
Accent lighting, such as spotlights, draws your attention to one particular area of a room. This is commonly seen above a sink in the kitchen.
Task lighting does just that- it allows you to see better when completing a particular task. This is common in lit mirrors or reading lamps that are attached to beds.
When you have gotten to know the different lighting categories, you can start to think about what is needed in your home to fit your needs.
Different types of lighting
- Each room has a different requirement
Each room in your house serves a purpose. Some may be multi-purposed, as mentioned above- where living areas can be used for relaxing, to hosting, cooking and meeting the needs of family time. A bathroom can also be somewhere where an individual uses the space to get ready in the morning, or it can be a place of relaxation and pampering. That is why you can focus on task lighting here, but also ambience lighting.
A bedroom is usually where you go to relax and sleep. It is recommended to read in bed to help you to sleep, so both task and mood lighting would be very beneficial in this space.
Go through what your requirements are for each room, what activities are done and more importantly, think about how you want to feel in each room. Do you always wish for your lounge to feel cosier? Maybe it’s best to look into ambience and mood lighting. You could position a floor lamp next to your sofa, and use this in the evenings for more of a cosy feel.
Room mood lighting
- Do you have any features?
Go through each of your rooms that you want to create an ambience for. Are there any features that you love in these rooms? Maybe it’s an alcove, fireplace or bookshelf? Place spotlights and other accent lighting, such as targeted lamps, to emphasise these parts of the room. This way, you can draw attention from the other aspects of the room that you’re less fond of. This also increases the ambience and feel of a room.
Feature lighting
- What natural lighting do you have?
It is really important to consider natural lighting when it comes to each room. Where does the sunrise, and set? If you find that it sets in your kitchen, you may need less artificial lighting in this room. Take note of the natural way your rooms are lit and the times of the day. You can then use curtains, blinds and shutters to help control the flow of this lighting if necessary.
- Lighting and décor
Often you can create décor out of your lighting. There are some absolutely beautiful floor lamps, table lamps and lampshades available. If you are after more of a fancy décor in a room, then a chandelier is also a great choice of lighting.
When you are considering what to buy and where to place it, think of the lighting categories mentioned above and carefully scan each room to think of where certain activities, such as reading and dining takes place. You can then match your needs with your décor when you’re on the hunt for lighting products.
Don’t forget to consider your bulbs too, when purchasing any lighting product. Don’t go for cheap LEDs with blue artificial lights. You also don’t want to go for anything that looks too ‘clinical’ and white when aiming for a cosy feel. Warm white is a great bulb colour choice to achieve cosiness and warmth in rooms.
Lighting as decor
I hope that this guide has given you an insight into how to select the right type of lighting for each room. If you follow the hints above, you will be on your way to achieving the ultimate ambience, helping to create the right look and feel for your home.
If you need help achieving the right look and you’re unsure of what would fit your home, then why not seek the help of a professional interior designer? They are experts when it comes to creating the right ambience and feel in homes