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When most people think about the design of a room, they first consider the furniture, then the paintwork and perhaps the flooring. But as many designers know, light can have a profound effect on the appearance of a room – so much so that it changes the entire character.
The reason light is so compelling is that it’s the other side of the design equation. Designers need light to showcase what they’re trying to achieve: without it, any visual effect is moot.
Light, however, is tricky to get right. Most home designers prefer to use natural light where possible, thanks to its calming effects and positive influence on personal wellbeing. A light home is a happy home. But using light effectively takes experience and patience.
Solve The Lighting Problem First, Then Focus On Everything Else
When designing a room, it can be tempting to splurge on the fixtures and fittings and then worry about lighting later. But many leading designers think that sorting the light problem in your rooms should be your priority before even opening a design magazine. Without the right lighting setup, your interior design efforts will fall flat on their face.
Many interior designers see light as the thing that animates a room. It’s not so much the elegant design or a lamp or the grain on the wood flooring that makes the difference, but the way that a simple ray of light can bring the whole show to life in a way that you wouldn’t expect. Lighting products, such as those from Fenster Components, help to open up a room and maximize the use of light in any space.
Use More Than One Light Source
Have you ever opened a design magazine and just stared in awe at the incredible interior designs? They just look so vibrant, complex, and moody. How do designers achieve this remarkable effect?
Mostly it comes down to using more than one source of light. Thickly illuminated rooms tend to combine both the coolness of natural light with multiple sources of warming, mellow artificial light to complement.
Another thing that skilled designers do is use different light sources to vary the level of light within a room. For instance, some of the most enticing rooms rely heavily on using light around the perimeter while keeping focal points, like dining room tables, darker and moodier. Lighting a room with consistent illumination throughout is dull and flat. Contrast is what creates interest.
Think About How The Orientation Of Your Rooms Affects Lighting
Lighting in south-facing rooms is easy: sunlight beams in all year round, no matter what the season or time of day.
North-facing rooms, on the other hand, are a little trickier to manage and may mean that you need to be extra creative with how you use light.
Central chandeliers, for instance, are great for dark, north-facing bedrooms, combined with recessed lights in the four corners of the room. Bedside lamps can help too by providing additional sources of light at a lower level, bouncing more light off the ceiling.
You can also get extra creative by using wall-mounted lighting to illuminate rooms in the horizontal as well as verticle directions.
