I recently read an interview with a professional interior designer on the matter of light fittings. And the thing that made me put the finger on my forehead was the simple answer of the designer on a very tickling question: “ Do you ever critique the lighting when you enter a home?” and the answer was: “Only in my mind ”. And you know how the perfectionist’s psyche instantly puts pressure on your thoughts: “Oh my God, what would she think if she entered my home? Is the lighting good or not?” And an avalanche of doubts and worries about the lighting in the house comes to mind and there it is – a new project to take care of on my hands.
After reading the entire interview, I realised I really needed to do some changes in my home to get the maximum out of the beauty of the interior design, so I started looking for light fittings online retailers. The offer is vast! And there are some pretty amazing fixtures that can really fit in my overall design. The interview was very detailed and the designer’s directions on choosing the right lighting fixtures were pretty concise:
Every room needs specific lighting
Of course you shouldn’t aim to have the same lighting ambiance in all your rooms. Some rooms are simply designed for intimacy, while others are designed for hosting people and active living. So, here’s how it goes:
- Living room – the room where everything happens should have the strongest lighting. Think about the natural light effect which you can achieve with several types of light fittings online retailers offer: table lamps and floor lamps should be the proper addition to the strong source of light from the ceiling; also, a chandelier with fluorescent bulbs as these spread the light instead of focusing it.
- Bedroom – think intimacy. And intimacy needs low light which you can achieve with sconces by the bed. Don’t point them towards the bed, but away from it – towards the dressing area for example. This way you will have perfect light but will not be under the spotlight; that’s the lighting effect we all look so good under, especially on the white sheets.
- Bathroom – here you want strong light, especially above the mirror. Nobody uses the bedroom vanity for makeup anymore, we all know everything is done in the bathroom right after the first splash of water on the face. Choose overhead sconces which you can adjust and point them in the desired direction.
- Dining room and kitchen – the kitchen needs more functional light. You need sconces with strong fluorescent light bulbs that will provide strong light for simplifying your way around the kitchen. The dining room on the other hand, can handle versatility; you should have a perfectly lit room for family dinners and hosting friend gatherings – meaning a chandelier with reflectorized incandescent bulbs for changing the strength of the light. If you are up for a romantic dinner and need an intimate ambiance, then you’d need floor and table lamps which will provide the needed dimmed effect.
Mind the design of the light faucets
You’ll use a lot of overhead lights in your rooms, so make sure you pick the right ones from the wide light fittings online offer.
- Flush mounts are perfect for the kitchen and the bathroom, as they provide extremely bright illumination which is much needed in these rooms.
- Semiflush lights hang from the ceiling and are slightly more charming than flush mounts. Considering their design, they can also fit perfectly well in a living room.
- Pendant lights – from fixtures attached on a hanging chain, to chandeliers, they all fall under this category. Pendant lights are perfect if you want them above a dining table or in the living room.
- Track lights – these are adjustable, so you can easily point each fixture towards the direction you need the light in: an art piece or a specific object. These can also do a good job in the bathroom for lightening the mirror.
Having in mind that good lighting can make things look so much better than they actually are, I believe this matter deserves proper attention. And what do you know, you just might have your home look a lot different (in a good way) after adding a few new light fixtures!