Right Ways to Lighten Up Bathroom

The bathroom is one of the only places that we have shower and lock ourselves inside. It is sometimes necessary to make this place as clean and comfortable sanctuary with the proper lighting. Then how to make this private room to be a well illuminated refuge that can be relaxing as well as functional? Among all of the basic four types of lighting such as task lighting, decorative lights, accent lights and sparkling lights, Let’s have a look at which light can offer the best atmosphere.

As for task lighting, we can see by its name that it is used mainly for some certain task, or it is a type of lighting via which we can see objects or ourselves clearly. In the bathroom, proper task lighting at the mirror seems rather essential. So we can try a pair of sconces fixed at eye level on either side of the mirror to offer shadowless illumination for makeup application, tooth care, etc. Still, we have to keep in mind that above the mirror, no light. Any lighting above the mirror will just reflect a very strong light back into our forehead and cast deep shadows below the eyes or chin.

Then, we still need to consider the right wattage for the task lights. For better relaxation in the bathroom, we can try the light fixtures that offer 75 to 100 watt. For the task lights in powder rooms, we can use fixtures with even less wattage for not anyone will need to do the morning ritual. Light with such wattage range can give out much softer and inviting ambience to family members or even guests.

Then let's come to accent lighting. Accent lighting is usually a kind of light for artistic purpose. If you enjoy any art in this room, you may try to use the accent light for better show off the art or just highlight the art. For better illumination, try to use recessed directional lights for even proper focus.

Different from accent lights, decorative lighting is much about adding some visual sparkle. We can try to use some creative and water proof lights of different types in the bathroom for right atmosphere. For a bathroom of square shape, maybe we can try a single pendant light. For a bathroom with rectangular shape, maybe we can use two or even three light fixtures fixed along the ceiling plane for enough light. If you like the romantic and welcoming tone, try candles that can give out very splendid sparkle. Be sure to keep it far away from towels or hair that can catch fire easily.

Then we come to the last lighting - ambient lighting. It is much a fill light. If our bathrooms have taller ceiling or cantilever details, we can use ambient lights. Such architectural details can help hide the light fixtures and still offer indirect illumination. Try a pendant light together with a translucent shade for the ambient lighting effect or combining the pendant fixture together with ambient and decorative lights.

We can use just one type of light and still combine the use of different lighting. For example, for the mirror at the sink which is much about function, we can use task lighting such as sonces. For tub area, we can use recessed cans in dimmers to create ambient light since romance and relaxation are emphasized here. For additional decoration, we can use wall sconces. Anyway, for the lighting at the bathroom, we need to balance the function against ambience.

Bright Ideas For Home Lighting

Among all the rooms at a house, living room serves as social center and always space for grand family activities, such as friends gathering, playing games, self-entertaining, watching TV, etc. Decoration for living rooms can be creative, especially about the lighting decor. Compared with bathroom or kitchen where the use of lighting fixtures will be limited by the built-in furniture or electronic devices, living room lighting decor is much more flexible.

In this space, we can apply recessed lights for glamour, down lights for dimension or the maximum brightness on the floor or furniture or led branch lights for adding more vividness to the house. The lighting used in living rooms will not be monotonous for we can apply different types of lights or we can make the lights clustered over one particular area or spread out in between. For the better home lighting decor, we still need to know much about questions such as how much light is needed for a certain room.

As for the proper amount of light for a certain room, here is a formula we can refer to. Multiply the length times the width of the room and multiply that number times 1.5. The result will be the wattage amount for proper lighting in a certain room. This formula has much to do with the dimension of the room. Here we give an example: a room measured 12*16, and the wattage amount should be 12*16*1.5, that is, 288 watts. Then we can get 8-light chandelier, each with 30 watts. The wattage amount is still a bit more than the actual need.

For the area with special task lighting need, maybe we need to add much stronger light, and we achieve this by multiplying the square footage of the rooms by 2.5. For example, the kitchen room where cooking and housework is frequent and this area needs much stronger light.

If we have a lot of artwork or anything related to art, we can try to use track lighting. The track lights can work well in illuminating architecture details, artwork, wall paintings, natural stone fireplace, bookcases or anything that we love to emphasize. The lighting to focal points will not only bring us ambient light, but also create any strong light to our eye. We can also add wall washers or recessed lights to the track lighting for ideal lighting effect.

One of the most applied techniques in lighting decor is wall washing. That can add light to a room by creating more shadows for texture accent. A wall wash can make a wall look very smooth and minimize the texture. For the better even illumination effect, lights are usually placed further away from the wall. Then how about the distance between the lights and wall. Follow this: mounting and spacing distance : 2-3 feet for ceilings up to 9' high or 3-4 feet for ceilings between 9 and 11' high. The wall washing can not only create aesthetic effect of wall glazing, but also make the full use of light reflected off the walls.

Often, lighting can be amazing in that proper lighting can bring a big change to a space, sometimes even on a limited budget. That's really what needs us to come up with more tricks and that's often achieved by using portable lamps or other decorative lights. It's common practice for home decor lovers to haul some floor or table lamp out from nooks and crannies in the house to create pools of light. That can create instant visual impact in the room. There are a lot of tricks for getting the most with the least money. But when using the lighting, we need to make sure, only illuminate what we really want to highlight.

3 Different Types of Lighting

When we plan a lighting decor at home, we need to consider what activities that will engage in the specific rooms, the function of rooms and as well the lighting types. There are different types of lighting. In general, lighting sources need to be switched separately for better effect and versatility. Lighting is not just produced via the same light source. For the right mood, proper interior lighting decor and the lighting tasks we expect, we need to choose the right types of lighting. Besides, a wonderful lighting plan requires us to blend different lighting. Now let's have a look at the lighting types.

Ambient lighting, or commonly known as general lighting source, is a type of lighting that can illuminate the whole space of a room. Briefly, it is a light for overall source. The light it radiates is comfortable and the brightness features no annoying glare. The ambient lighting is basic for it can allow us to see and walk about safely, without light focusing into a beam or in particular direction. Ambient lighting source is usually chosen as the primary light of task lighting for some rooms such as laundry room. We usually blend the use of ambient light with other types of lighting sources such as chandeliers, ceiling lights, wall-mounted lighting fixtures, led string lights, track lights. The general lighting can also be used together with lanterns mounted on the outside of the house. For a good lighting plan, we need to use ambient light as the central lighting source in all of the rooms.  

Accent lighting is usually a kind of lighting for decoration, indoor or outdoor, for holidays or other special occasions. The accent lighting can create stunning visual effect, so the lighting is more and more popularly used for extra decor at home, office, or garden. Accent lights are such lights that can attract our attention to a certain area the lighting covers, to a sculpture accented by string lights, to a painting illuminated by lights, or to a tree in the garden that are decorated by lights. It is a light for highlighting a partial space or a certain object. Usually, for better visual or aesthetic effect, we need accent lighting as least 3 times as much light on the central point as the general lighting that surrounds it.   

Task lighting, as its name suggests, is a lighting source often used for enabling tasks. The lighting helps us better accomplish such jobs as cooking food, playing with friends at night, reading books, doing homework, engaging in some hobbies, and such tasks that need adequate light and brightness. The lighting can be given out from recessed and track lights, under cabinet lights, desk lamps, pendant lights, etc. For better care of our eye, the light should be bright enough and are never the ones that distract glare or shadows.  

For better decorating our houses, we need to know the types of the lighting. We need to well use different types of lighting sources for better effect.