Phone: 07919 448240
Phone: 07919 448240
There has been a bit of a revolution in home lighting which started with the fantastically useful rechargeable table lamp. The first ones where rather poor relations to our everyday plug in lamps, often being small and underpowered and I think it would be fairly to say, the tiniest bit ugly. Fortunately, this is all changing rapidly and big, beautiful versions are available and honestly, you would hardly know that they are rechargeable models, other than there isn’t an annoying wire trailing across the floor. This allows for a place in a room which is without a socket to be suddenly bathed in glorious light; a garden to be lit up exactly where you want it as dusk sets in and a dining table to have some extra light (we hope it has already been carefully lit by pendant or other ceiling lights) as and when needed.
Rechargeable table lamps have been swiftly followed by rechargeable wall lights and rechargeable ceiling pendants so places in the home where wiring is near on impossible, or in situations where wiring can’t be altered such as rented property, can now be lit just as well as anywhere else. This is all a huge step forward but as with any new technology, don’t discount the traditional way and whatever you do, don’t part ways with your trusty electrician. Over reliance on rechargeable lighting (in its current form anyway) will drive you mad so it is a happy addition rather than the new way to light your home.
So how do you work out where you need light in your home? The first step is to know the layout of your room and this is true from a tiny shower room to a huge open plan space. Once you know what you are going to be doing in the space – eating, sleeping, working etc – and therefore what furnishings you want, you will know where you need the light, how much light you need and how you want to control it.
You will also need to consider what light you need at different times of the day. There are the obvious nighttime requirements but many rooms need a bit of additional light during the day to supplement whatever natural light they get. This is even more true in the darker, dismal winter months but there may also be corner of the room that will benefit from a bit of additional light during the summer. In this situation, you don’t want to consider putting all lights on so just a lamp or a wall light may be sufficient. For anyone wanting to read, work or generally see what they are doing, there will be some task lighting required which may need to be fairly strong, just in that particular place, particularly for those of us whose eyesight isn’t quite what it used to be.
Once you know where you need light in the room, you can consider the best light sources to provide it. Start by thinking about what you are trying to light – a table, seating areas, pictures, a work space and then you will know whether you need light from a ceiling light, or a lower level table lamp and so on. What you don’t want is uniform light across the whole room as you will miss the opportunity draw attention to areas or items using light. Generally, getting some contrast between lighter and darker areas is always much more inviting that everything having the same amount of light.
You will also find that if you get some light into the corners of a room, you will make the room feel larger. The problem with a bog-standard pendant light in the centre of a room, is that it misses the corners and simply lights whatever is in the centre of the room. At the other extreme, rows and rows of downlights in the ceiling, that haven’t been designed to light your layout but are just simply applied at regular intervals, won’t give you those lovely pools of light that make a room attractive and will tend towards being overly bright, even with the obligatory dimmer switch to hand.
It's a small point but the colour of the light also makes a difference – this is primarily about the colour of the light bulb you use which can be almost any shade but is normally either a warmer yellow light or a cooler white light. The light colour can also be affected by the light fitting you use, so if a lamp shade for example is a particular colour or density of material, that will also alter the amount and colour of light you get. The good news is that by changing the light bulb, you can generally alter the light you get fairly easily.
The style of the light fittings you select will probably depend on the overall style of your home and there are endless models to choose from. Remember that you probably don’t want all of them to be eye catching – some lamps are genuinely works of art and should be displayed as such but others are just about providing light and therefore can be discrete and hopefully blend into the surrounding furnishings. You may have use for some concealed lighting where the fitting doesn’t show at all and you just get the effect of the light. This works particularly well under a shelf or in an alcove but if you plan well, concealed lighting can be really effective in many areas of a room.
If you are in the luxurious position of putting in your lighting from scratch, planning is everything and you can genuinely transform a room with good lighting. Indeed I think it is very hard to make an interior look beautiful without good lighting. But if you aren’t in that position – a room or home isn’t being completely refurbished – still plan your lighting as if you were and then talk to a good electrician to see what is possible. The chances are that some of it can be achieved with less mess and upheaval than you feared. After that, rechargeable lights will become your very best friend.
© Angel + Blume
