People often neglect lighting when decorating the rooms in their home. It’s often an afterthought, rather than being considered a crucial part of the décor, even though it is the latter. If you want your home to shine in more ways than one, you have to pick the most ideal lighting options for every room. Doing this feels difficult at first, but you only really need to follow a few steps when making your choice. Here are some tips that will help any homeowner pick out the right lights.

Consider the four types of lighting

Before you can pick out the best kind of lighting for every individual room, you have to get familiar with the different kinds of lighting that exist. A lot of people think that a light is just a light, but it’s more complicated than that. You have to see where it’s coming from and how it illuminates a room before you can decide whether or not it fits the look.

There are four types of lighting that are generally used in home settings. You have your ambient, task, general, and accent lighting. With task and ambient lighting, you can derive their purpose from the name. General lighting normally refers to overhead lighting from a ceiling lamp, but it can refer to every other kind of light source, depending on how it’s positioned. Accent lighting adds flair and personality to a room. It’s strictly decorative, even if it can help you perform certain tasks.

Think in layers

Most home lighting isn’t particularly complex. Homeowners often rely on a singular ceiling light to take care of a room, while only certain rooms have lamps for task lighting purposes. This singular view of lighting only diminishes and limits the room’s aesthetic. There’s a lot more that can be done by thinking of a room’s lights in layers.

Every room needs to have at least three different kinds of light sources. You’ll always have one overhead light that provides general lighting, but it won’t always be on. Ambient lighting can replace it or compliment it, depending on how you place it. Task lighting is only important if you have a particular task that requires good illumination in one area of the room. Adding a few lights to accent a room’s look makes it a lot more pleasant to spend time there. Combine a few of these and you’ll give a well-decorated room a perfect atmosphere.

Get to know different light bulbs

The type of lightbulb you use has an enormous effect on how the light is projected in your home. In most cases, homes are outfitted with a range of bulbs that include incandescent lights, halogens, and fluorescents. They provide all sorts of different kinds of light, and their efficiency varies from bulb to bulb.

Incandescents are the ones most akin to sunlight, but they’re ridiculously short-lasting for how much power they use. When you want efficiency, LEDs are your best bet. They’re the most efficient ones by far, and produce pleasant enough lights to be worth installing.

When you decide on a particular lightbulb, consider whether you want them built-in, hanging from a chandelier, or fixed to a lamp. Built-in lightbulbs are great for ambient lighting and they’re not too difficult to install, especially when it’s done by reliable electrical services that you find locally. Lamps and chandeliers are simple enough, as you just need to screw in a lightbulb. This doesn’t mean you should disregard built-in ones, though. They all have their uses.

Stick to a specific style

A room’s lighting depends on the style that it’s decorated with. You won’t use the same type of lights for a midcentury look as you would for a sleek and contemporary, modern room. It all depends on the picture you want to paint with your light design.

Having to choose a particular style for your room can feel overwhelming. There are so many bulbs and colours available that it feels like finding the right piece of hay in a haystack. The good news is that you don’t have to build a style from scratch. Art often imitates art or at least takes inspiration from it. 

Consult home décor magazines, as they will always have detailed descriptions of lighting in a room. You can get a good idea of how certain lights would match your room’s style. Then it’s smooth sailing from this point and you’ll have your ideal lighting system in no time.

Conclusion

Lights are a crucial part of every home’s décor. They give visibility, help set the mood, and improve the overall look of every room. With the right lighting options, you can turn a gorgeous setup into a movie-like setting. The trick is to figure out what kind of lighting best suits it. If you’re having any doubts, consult the above pointers and you will undoubtedly choose the right lights for every room.