When you’re decorating your home, you’re probably putting a lot of energy and resources into the furniture, accessories and colours you’re using. But how much thought do you give to the light in your home?

It goes far beyond just choosing a light shade but the placement, type and brightness of the light all have to be taken into account too. 

Why light is important 

How you use light in your home is important not only from a design perspective but from practical and health perspectives too. Make the most of the natural light you can have in your home. It is great for making a space feel light and airy, improving your mood and even making you more productive. Exposure to natural light can also help your body get into a good sleep rhythm. 

Don’t go for harsh lights in the bathroom

 Lighting in your bathroom needs to be bright enough to be able to see what you’re doing when you’re washing, putting on makeup, dyeing your hair or looking in mirrors. A white flush mount ceiling light will give a more diffused effect. If the light is too harsh, it can be very unflattering. 

Ambient lighting

This type of lighting is designed to create a soft, even light in a space and it should be the basis of the rest of your lighting scheme. A good level of ambient light usually comes for lights on the ceiling or a number of recessed lights spread throughout the room. 

Accent lighting 

When you want to create separated spaces in a room, you can use accent lights. These lights are usually used in addition to a low-level ambient light. Accent lighting can be provided by lamps, wall lights and recessed lighting. You can use accent lights to draw attention to certain items such as pictures or ornaments. 

Task lighting

Often ignored, or confused with accent lighting, task lighting should be up to ten times brighter than the ambient light levels in your room. By having strong task lights in a room, you can reduce eye strain and performs tasks safely. Halogen lights are popular for this but can be quite harsh, which is why most people use them for this type of light rather than accent or ambient lighting. Take the time to think about what you’re going to be doing. Reading needs bright light but you don’t want to be stuck under a hot halogen bulb for hours at a time.  Doing tasks in the kitchen needs bright light in order to make sure you’re working safely and while you’re standing at the kitchen counter, you might block out other types of light and create a shadow. 

Key points

Lighting is so important when creating the atmosphere in your home. Not only is it practical, but it can also create a great atmosphere and ambience that you can change depending on the mood. Don’t leave lighting decisions until the last minute, incorporate them into your plans when you’re designing a room.