When thinking about home renovation and interior design, many individuals overlook a certain aspect. However, this element is one of the key ingredients to completely transforming the entire environment. We are talking, of course, about lighting design. With the right approach to how you design your lighting, your room can look completely different. This week, we have a selection of lighting design tips to ensure your home project looks professional!
Make the Most of Natural Light
British weather is quite temperamental, making it sometimes difficult to embrace the properties of natural light. However, having the right window’s in the right place and implementing mirrors can make a huge difference to how light bounces around each room. As a result, you can even save on energy as less artificial light is required.
Planning the Room Interior
You will get the most out of your lighting design when it goes hand in hand with the overall room design. This is why you should plan your furnishings and décor before you move onto lighting. This will enable you to design the lighting around the room, enhancing all the wonderful features!
Task Lighting vs Mood Lighting
Task lighting and mood lighting are two very different things. Each of these serves in different ways and choosing the wrong one can have a big impact on your interior design scheme. Task lighting is designed for function and usually is colour temperature 4000 kelvin Cool White or 6500 Kelvin Daylight. It is often used in work areas such as offices or kitchen counters. You will often find that this lighting is harsher and should only be used for its intended purpose. Mood lighting, which is usually on the warmer side of the spectrum, 3000 Kelvin and below, is the key to creating the atmosphere of the room. This lighting is often chosen for aesthetic purposes and can help tie a room together.
Be Careful with LED
Despite the slightly higher costs of LED lights, they are extremely energy efficient. What’s more, they have a long shelf life and require virtually no maintenance whatsoever. It’s important to remember, however, that how you place them within your design is essential. This type of lighting does not provide the same ambient effect of mains filament or incandescent lighting. LED spotlights are a wonderful way to showcase specific items such as ornaments.
Make Shadows your Friend
At a first glance, you may be put off by the idea of having too many shadows present in the room. However, without shadows, you will notice a lack of depth, variation, texture and atmosphere. By carefully positioning your lighting, creating a few areas of shadow can enhance a space. The look and feel will differ greatly once you create depth with a combination of both light and dark. Just be careful with how much darkness you let in. Too much can make the room feel smaller. In the end, it’s all about balance.
Using Lighting to add Space
The brightest point of the room will be the first area where all eyes turn. Carefully positioning recessed adjustable spotlights to hit walls can expand the overall feel of the room.
Focal Points
As mentioned earlier, adjustable spotlights are great for specific items such as ornaments. By doing this, you are creating focal points. Placing these strategically around the room can be quite effective if you want to draw attention to certain pieces such as artwork.
Dimmers for every Mood
Want to create multiple moods in the same room? Gain control of your lighting scheme by installing dimmers. The ability to control a domestic lighting system is crucial. It enables you to change the atmosphere in the room at any given time.
Lighting Layers
Your lighting design should reflect the dimensions of your home. Before you install any lighting, make yourself aware of all the potential possibilities. This could be wall-mounted lights, recessed lighting, up-lights and more. Think about the ways in which you can bring these elements together for a more cohesive overall environment.
Budget for the Best
You don’t need to go overboard with your budget, but it is important to factor in both quality and cost. Look at a variety of lighting options and compare brands to see what you can get for your money.
Talk to ABM Electrical
At ABM Electrical, we can assist with helping you find the products you need within a price range you can afford. If you are working on a home project and are in need of the right lighting, then look no further. Talk to ABM Electrical today to see how we can help.
