Use Lighting to Enhance Your Home

The lighting in a home can make a huge difference, both aesthetically and economically. Try different lighting methods to make your home more appealing, and install eco-friendly light bulbs to save on your electric bill.

The Kitchen and Dining Area

Chandeliers are the royalty of lighting, and they always look fantastic in a dining area. Real chandeliers can be expensive, but there are a lot of fun and more modern alternatives out there. When lighting your dining room, think about restaurants—they’re usually more dimly lit, with a soft glow, because it provides a feeling of warmth and intimacy.

In your cooking area, however, you will want a lot of light. The most dimly lit areas in a kitchen tend to be the counters and the pantry. Solve both of these problems with recessed lighting to illuminate your food preparation area and your food supplies.

Bathrooms

Since most people get ready in the bathroom, whether they’re putting on makeup, shaving, or doing their hair, it makes sense to have good lighting. However, you don’t want super bright fluorescent lighting, because that can make everything look different than it will in the rest of the house. Choose lighting that provides a softer, natural light instead. You can also add some class to your bathroom by replacing that ugly row of bare bulbs above the mirror with something nicer.

Living Room

Living areas and great rooms are usually the most used rooms in the home, which means they should be adequately lit. Chandeliers can be great here, too, but they don’t provide as much light. A simple solution is to have a fancier, focal light and then add recessed lights or lamps around the room for additional lighting as needed.

Whatever lighting system you decide on, consider installing a dimming switch. These are great for saving electricity, since you may need less light during the day when the sun is coming out, but more light at night. Dimming switches are also helpful during movie nights, since they keep the room dark but still provide enough light that people can get up to use the bathroom and still find their way back to their seat.

Bedrooms

Bedrooms often benefit from soft lighting, but it’s also a good idea to consider the occupants of the room. For instance, you may want soft lighting in your master suite, but kids may prefer brighter light as they play with their toys. Different bulbs can provide the type of light you want and make sure each room feels cozy.

Hallway

You shouldn’t neglect the hallway, either. Hallways are often overlooked when it comes to lighting and are dimly lit as a result. While you obviously don’t want a chandelier in your hallway, you do want to make sure that people can see where they’re going, especially at night. Instead of nightlights that can be obtrusive, why not install recessed lighting along your baseboards to provide a soft glow that will help children and guests find their way at night?

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