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    INTERIOR DESIGN LIGHTING TIPS

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    The lighting you choose can transform your home, for better or for worse. And since it’s always preferable to land on the former—especially because lighting has such a direct impact on mood and energy—it’s important to make informed decisions when shopping for a new fixture

    Almost every room can benefit from applying a few interior design lighting tips. By planning a suitable lighting arrangement for your space, it will be more functional while also creating just the right ambiance.

    Wayfair’s Resident Style Expert, Nadia McCowan Hill, shares her tips on how to use lighting effectively to make your home feel bigger and warmer.

          
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    Make a lighting plan

    If you’re starting from scratch or redecorating a room, create a mini brief or lighting plan that tackles the essentials. Think about what activities take place in each room (eating, relaxing, working), key features of a room you want to highlight and what architectural boundaries you may need to take into account. Consider style, scale, output and even colour temperature of lights before you go rushing into design decisions. Early planning makes for less headaches and rushed last minute decisions.

    Layer your lighting

    Take a layered approach to lighting with different light sources across different levels to create ambience and interest in a room. Use lighting to make the most of a room’s size and shape –uplighting makes a room feel larger, low hung pendants will create an illusion of height and clusters of lighting make large rooms seem cosier.

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    Make sure the lighting is helpful

    Consider what tasks you may be undertaking in each room where lighting can affect or aid you. Cooking requires more concentrated lighting, therefore a combination of bright downlights and recess lighting, in cabinets and above stove tops, is useful. For reading, flexible and directional lighting aimed away from you is better.

    Choose the bulb carefully

    The bulbs you choose should be more than an afterthought, racing through the supermarket when you realise they’ve blown. You should consider the following:

    • How bright do you need your space (watts)
    • What atmosphere are you trying to achieve (colour temperature, e.g. lower temp is more similar to candlelight, while higher temps are more akin to a blue sky outside)
    • Should energy efficiency be considered (for more frequently used lights)
    • Are you trying to make a design or focal statement (with scale, shape or colours)?

    Use spotlights to highlight your favourites

    Use lighting to subtly (or not so subtly) focus on a feature wall, architectural element or key possession (like your mahogany leather sofa or winged armchair). Wall mounted lights symmetrically arranged on either side of a statement mirror above the mantelpiece of a fireplace will add warmth, sophistication and elegance to a room.

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    Light the way at night

    Midnight bathroom breaks are made worse with harsh lighting that causes temporary blindness upon flicking a switch. Invest in directional floor level lighting in hallways, staircases and the bathroom to create subtle warmth and a guide.

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    Less is more

    Keep theme, colour schemes and material finishes consistent throughout the home, especially when it comes to lighting. Too many different styles in a sordid array throughout the home can be confusing on the eye and will cause uneasiness. Neutral, lighter tones will open up a space and make it appear larger, statement pops of colour (e.g. through lampshades) will add interest, while darker hues add a touch of luxury and cosiness. Keep it simple and consistent.

    Make Your Rooms Appear Larger

    Bounce the light onto the ceiling and walls, light one side of the room more than another, and light all corners of the room. Use vertical light beams, and hang your pendant lights lower than usual.

    You already know that mirrors can help ­­make a room appear larger, but experts also suggest placing mirrors directly across from windows to help bounce light around the room and maximize what’s already there. It’ll provide the illusion that there are more windows than you really have.

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    Source: countryliving.com