Have you thought about updating your furniture? Before that, have a look at how your lighting is. It is one of the most important design elements and is also one of the most inexpensive ways to refresh your home without having to break the bank. It helps to add style and also sets a mood, and without it, the artwork, the architectural details, and the focal points all go unnoticed. When done perfectly, the home lighting is like a well-tuned orchestra, creating a perfect lighting composition. But before you go ahead and buy lights and lamps online from popular retail manufacturers like Wakefit there are a few things to know. Read below to get a better understanding of home lighting.
Types of Lighting
Each light in your house falls into one of the following categories: Accent, general, or task lighting.
- General lighting: It is the main light in the house and is also known as ambient lighting. It includes the natural lights that stream in from the windows and the skylights, as well as the light fixtures that you add.
- Task lighting: These are lights that provide light to a specific work area. It can be a vanity light for the dressing table, a desk lamp for the home office, or a light above the washbasin. Sometimes, these fall into both general as well as accent lights like the kitchen island lights. These add depth and dimension to the room, and lights can be layered by adding multiple lights.
- Accent lighting: These brighten a specific part of a room. It can be a beautiful art piece, a reading chair, a dining table, etc. They are ideal for places where you want to highlight an element without overwhelming it. Hanging lights for home are the best accent lighting.
Light Colour and How Light Bulb Temperature and Colour Influence Ambience
The light colour here is not the light bulb colour but the cool and warm light colours. The cool colours are green, blue, and grey, whereas orange, yellow, and red are the warm colours. The light colour depends on the temperature, is a measure of a lamp light’s whiteness, and is measured in Kelvins. If the kelvins are in higher numbers, it means cooler and whiter light, and a lower number means yellow or warm light.
You can control the ambience of your home by paying attention to the cool and warm light bulbs to create different atmospheres and moods. Here is a guide for the light bulb temperature that comes in handy when choosing LEDs.
- Warm Colours: A light bulb in the range of 2000 K – 3000K gives a warm and soft light with a tinge of yellow. This creates a homely and cosy feel that is best for relaxing and entertaining.
- Cool colours: When the Kelvins are at 4600, they measure a bright light with a bluish hue. Daylight is at 5000 K, so if you want a light for a specific task, then opt for cool colours.
- Neutral colours: When the light bulb colour is between 3100 and 4500 K, it is brighter and cooler and is ideal for the kitchen and reading. This also gives more clarity to the eyes and gives an energetic vibe due to the absence of blue and yellow tones.
Colour Guide For Home
Here is a guide to help you choose the best lights for each situation in life, whether you want to illuminate your home with cool or warm light that complements celebrations, family nights, or anything else.
Kitchen: This is the heart of the home and one of the most popular places in the house. It is also the most difficult place to light as there are many activities that you do. From romantic midnight snacks to baking to homework to game nights, many things take place in a kitchen. So it is essential to have multiple layers of lighting to achieve flexibility. Start with ambient lighting from the ceiling, like sophisticated and sleep LED downlights. Choose lighting designs with dimmers so that you can change the options and opt for a softer glow at night. Also, add task lighting like pendants or chandeliers for more focused lighting over the countertops or islands with light bulbs of neutral colour. Lastly, have under-cabinet lighting to prevent deep shadows. Add a dimmer option for a glowing effect.
Bathroom: For the bathroom, the lighting needs to be flexible. Both the master bathroom and the guest bathroom need clear and bright task lighting for grooming. A warm and soft light source for relaxation Choose dimmable LED lights that allow a variety of brightness levels.
Bedroom: While the colour temperature needs are personal, some recommendations can give you an idea. Lights for the bedroom should be warm and soft. Pendant lights can be used as they are flexible in their placement and are in bedrooms to provide a comfortable touch to the place.
Living room: The shared living spaces like the family room and the living room are the places where entertainment happens. It can be get-togethers, family nights, movie marathons, etc. So choose living room lamps that give off a welcoming and warm vibe. Opt for light bulbs in the range of 2400K to 3000K, as these are ideal to showcase quirky light choices. A retro-inspired fixture is great as decorative lights for the living room. Their filament is old-school but the lights have a warm glow that does not warm up the space or add to the electricity bills.
Home office: If your home office doubles up as a playroom, then the lighting choices for this space are tricky. The best way to go about it is by choosing commonalities. For instance, for both activities, i.e., kids play and office work, you need a bright light, so a combination of task and ambient lighting is needed. You can opt for a mix of tabletop lights, floor lamps, ceiling fixtures, or study lamps online to complement the natural lights coming from the windows. The bulb should be between 3000K- 3500K, and this gives a white and clear cast that boosts productivity.
After reading the above, you know everything about the styles of lighting and the right type of light for every home. Also, you have learned that the light colour has a major influence on the feel, look, and mood of the room. Choose a design style or room, and then narrow your choices to find the best fit of lights and lamps online.
