From time to time, we tackle points of personal style aside from the clothes on your back here on SG. Because while style is about clothes, it’s also about putting more intention into every thing you do and living well across the board – from your workout to what you’re putting on the table for dinner. Today, some tips on living your most stylish life at home.
Too many of us – guys and girls alike – go home, switch on a sad overhead light, and sit in the gloom until the sun comes up, or turn on a floor lamp boasting a harsh halogen light reminiscent of your favorite horror movie set in a hospital. I’m here to tell you: A good lighting scheme can entirely change up the feel of your home, from institutional and gloomy to welcoming and friendly—you know, like someone actually lives there.
Above: Lighting fixtures by The Good Flock
What You Need to Know
Don’t think you have to bring in an (expensive) electrician. “Light is such a critical element of developing a space into an inspired place for working or living,” says Marco Murillo of The Good Flock, a Portland lighting design company. “The good news is that light can be added onto walls and floors without needing to redo your home’s entire electrical and lighting plan.”
So: Think small—literally. People tend to believe that a new light either needs to fill the entire room with its glow/glare (as with those classic dorm room halogens) or that it’s not worth bothering unless you’re making a statement with something pricey hanging from the ceiling. Not true. “Light fixtures are one of the best ways to update a space,” says Jennifer Brown of Hangout Lighting. “It’s so easy to change and can make a huge difference.” So don’t be scared off by expensive chandeliers—there are plenty of affordable options out there.
Where to Start
It might sound obvious, but consider starting with the first part of your home you encounter as soon as you walk through the door. Brown suggests a foyer if you have one, and then moving on to dining table lights or a kitchen pendant light. Oh, and that pendant light? While they do hang from a cord which are often wired through the ceiling, Brad Michael of Lucent Lampworks points out, that’s not totally necessary: “You can always get a fun pendant light and swag the cord across the ceiling” and down a side wall. Easy peasy.
Another tactic is to start with the smallest room in your home or apartment. “Design your home in small bites,” says Michaels. “I see the biggest obstacle in making a change in lighting is looking at the ‘whole home.’ It’s easier if you start with the smallest space first and make it over it exactly as you want it—then you can tackle the next room and so on.”
Walk Towards the (Natural-Looking) Light
The Good Flock’s Marco Murillo recommends a survey of your living space: What gets natural light? What stays dark and gloomy? Chances are, you’re spending way more time in the former than the latter—which is a great opportunity to add some (actual) living space to your home. “There are plenty of wall or tabletop lighting solutions that you can use to bring light and people to that particular space,” says Murillo. “People tent to gravitate to spaces that are cozy and lit.”
Consider the Space
Each room will have different lighting needs. “The light in your closet isn’t the same as the light you would want in your bathroom or kitchen,” Murillo continues. “Perhaps in your living space you want a relaxed mood, somewhere you can unwind and relax. In that kind of space you will want diffused or soft lights.”
Watch out for…
- Renters throwing in the towel. Remember guys? We’ve talked about this! “Don’t just settle with what you have,” Michael says. “This goes for renting as much as owning.”
- Tacking on your lighting budget late in the design game. “Try to make [lighting] part of the ongoing design decision and not an afterthought or the final $100 of your budget,” Michael says. When I redid my home office, my designer pushed hard for a great overhead light from Restoration Hardware, the pricetag of which initially made me gag, but I eventually got on board…and now it’s one of the first things I point out to visitors when I make them admire my new work area.
- Not paying attention to a room’s needs. “A new laundry space might not need a statement piece of lighting ,” Michael says. “But a cute reading nook may be a perfect spot for a well-thought-out statement lighting piece.”
- Hewing too closely to your existing decor. Just like a contrasting pocket square might be just the thing to make an outfit really pop, sometimes you have to think differently when it comes to lighting. “A trap many people fall into—myself included—is actually trying to blend the lighting too much with the room decor,” Michael says. “An example may be choosing to match all the finishes in your kitchen—the cabinet hardware, lighting hardware, plumbing hardware and door or window hardware. This may look great, but it will not make any one item stand out. Allow yourself the freedom of differing finishes with lighting.”
Tell me:
When was the last time you updated your lighting (and yes, changing a bulb counts!)?
Looking for more SG at home? Check them out here, here, and here.
changing light bulbs is on the to-do list for me this weekend
ha! perfect timing then. To Ed’s point above, are you planning on CFL bulbs, LED, etc?
Outdoor floodlight, oven light, vanity light, Just boring basic stuff
Having made the transition to all CFL bulbs some time ago, I’m now gradually converting all my light fixtures to LED. Our master bedroom/bath is all LED and so is the recessed kitchen lighting. I go for the soft bulbs because I prefer the warmer light, even though the color rendering accuracy may not be as good as a daylight bulb. They are a great upgrade from CFL’s because they don’t have the warm-up period that CFL’s do to achieve full brightness, it’s just there the moment you turn them on. Also, the longevity of the bulbs should be a big advantage as I’ve found that CFL bulbs, in my experience, didn’t live up to the life expectancy claims they made when they first hit the market.
I agree that lighting is an essential part of home design. I haven’t yet but there a group lighting projects that I want to undertake. One is a bar light over my little kitchen bar and the other is a lamp made from copper and concrete of all things. I also want to get one of those bending floor lamps with the multiple joints, can’t remember the name for them.
What I also really want to do is either get those lamps or switches that can connect to the wifi and be controlled by your phone.
Wait, is this copper and concrete lamp a thing that exists now, or that you want to create? If the former, I want to see a link..I’m intrigued!
It’s something that I want to create. I found the directions online.
http://look-what-i-made.com/2013/07/17/turn-me-on/
This is deffo on my list for my next house (my current house is a straight cash, homey proposition) as I want to have a pretty small house next time. Lighting makes all the difference.
Glad you agree!
Where I’m currently renting I have decent lighting. Nice ceiling fixtures, table lamps next to the beds/couches and warm diffuse lights above mirrors. I was thinking of mounting a wall light above my bed for reading. But I never thought about light like this. I need to re-evaluate my options.
I’m starting to think that having your own lights means you’ll be able to have something familiar and pleasant looking anywhere you might be.
Well put! Yes, I agree – good lights (like my new Restoration Hardware number) will travel with you wherever you go next
Glad I stumbled upon this article. I’m in the process of trying to find a table lamp for my bedroom. Its a new place so I’ve been only using the light on the ceiling. It’s WAY too bright for some things.
they want to be approached by writers.
some only want agented material, so forget those, unless you want to take the time to try and get an agent. (there are writers digest books geared to this, as well). other publishers will only accept “exclusive” manuscript submissions. this means
this day and age, advertizing in ezines
is very costly, especially in ones with good number of subscribers. some people charge huge amounts dollars for an ad in a small section of their ezines. by writing articles, you use your resource box as your ad space and this
trouble eating a big meal after an
intense weight training routine. if you are one of them, you should consider using a post-workout recovery drink. these preparations help to replace the lost fluids and the glycogen store in the body.while there are several products available in the ma…
premise to keep their attention. the only
way you can do this reliably is if you focus on one hook — if you wish to make a more complex point, then you should make another post for that.keeping it simple also refers to design.a complex design, with too
generator. it is also good for brainstorming
creative ideas.19. word count plus – counts the number of words, spaces, letters, and punctuation marks on a document.20. book form 1.0 – reformats a text document into pages that can be printed and put together in book form.21. efficient diary
more than 3 or 4 phrases. one
ideea, one paragraph, because having paragraphs with many phrases will make the text unreadable.before writing anything on your blog, you should know that using lines, or bullet points instead of paragraphs when you mention things like specifications o…
will add value to your content. based
on my experience, your posts will have 95% chances of getting accepted if they have relevant images, illustrations, or graphs.resource box. take the time when writing your resource box as this will act as the gateway to your website or blog.
which can point to your blog. this
serves two purposes by giving a link from an authority site so you blog post will move up the search engines and also driving traffic from the article itself.all three of these tips are great for promoting your blog and the
trends and news.this approach involved subscribing to
free and paid versions of the best publications in my areas of interest, like online writing, article writing, interiors and home design writing, architecture writing, women’s interest publications, family magazine writing and lots more. i learned how…
available to you, you should do your
best to dedicate an hour a day to blogging. before you know it, the search engines will be finding your articles and leading people to your blog which will then lead to more potential clients and therefore, more sales.second, make sure
and keyword density. this simply means that
the writers will know that a keyword should be harnessed within the article a certain amount of times to be able to give the article great seo value.the second thing is that the writers should be from your native country. why
not brilliant? no, you will do the
best that you are capable of doing at that time.it is also wise to remember that not everyone thinks the same. you may think that an article isn’t that good whereas ten or fifteen readers may love it and thank you
make the most of your blog several
factors should be considered. you cannot just go and post a blog anywhere and expect to become popular overnight. it just will not happen. there are certain things you will need to do in order to have a successful blog. here
become a blogger and make money with
ads.however, if you want to make good money with blogging, you need a lot of visitors to you blog. that means you should know how to market your blog (or website) online.now that you know your options, find out more about
if writers submit a project many days
after the deadline â· if they submit substandard, shoddy, plagiarized content that would not serve any purpose. â· if you try to contact the team leader so that he or she could get the articles, reports, excel sheets and other documents
are nice to receive because an article
is not really rewarding the person giving the comment as far as google is concerned. if you are going to comment on a blog post or article take the time to read the article. add a point of interest in the
project if you care about the subject
area. you need to be motivated to succeed and picking a topic you love can give you that motivation. blogging isn’t something you can just do once before moving on to something else. success relies on updates and ongoing attention. failing
not comfortable doing it, you can always
pass.start a part-time business. you don’t need a big capital to start a business. sometimes, you can start with next to nothing. the quick ways to make money include setting up a day care, walking your neighbors’ dogs, bake cakes or