Accentuate Your Home With Lighting Solutions

In Part II of this article, we have a look at some of the other rooms of the house. The focus (pun unintended) is on the correct mix of functionality and energy efficiency. Make a great looking home and cut down on your bills as well.

We have already covered the major rooms of the house – the master bedroom, living room and the attic in my last article. Let us now look at some of the other rooms that comprise your house. Remember, the correct lighting can make the difference between a good, functional energy efficient house and an electricity guzzler. Attention to small details will make the difference.

Children’s Room: You have already set up your own room- its time you paid adequate attention to the kids as well. Ensure the switch is close to the entrance to enable you to use it while entering or leaving the room. Use bedside lamps beside the single platform beds to allow them to do some bedtime reading. Keep a provision for extras like a music system, PC etc, besides the very essential table lamp on the study table. A smart table lamp is sure to attract your teenager to at least sit at that table – what he does there is a different matter!

Bathroom: Most modern houses have the bathroom attached to the bedroom. You would not like your bathroom lights to play havoc with the settings of your bedroom furniture, hence it is best to place the light where it does not shine directly on your bed when the bathroom doors are open. Having taken care of that little detail, use an adequately bright light to light up the bathroom.

A set of three focus lights hanging from the ceiling could give your bathroom that extra special look. Use miniature halogen lights in them to give a bright look and augment the look of the tiles you spent a fortune on.

Dining Room: The basic need of lights in the dining room is to light up the food. Your special china will look best under the arc lights that will bring out its finer details. Use hanging halogen lights just over the dining table to avoid that extra light spilling over to the sectional sofas in the living room. Soft white light may be used to light up the rest of the room, with a dimmer to enhance that romantic feeling whenever you are in the right mood. Light up the bar thoughtfully – it’s the place that is going to command the maximum attention during any party!

Kitchen: Coming to that most important of rooms where the lady of the house spends most of her time preparing meals. More so, everyone would chip in with some kind of help at some time or the other. Since cleanliness is so important here, lighting that lights up all the horizontal and vertical spaces is essential. Use a circular CFL for shadow free, bright results. The refrigerator or chopping platform could be given a focus light of its own. If you have a false ceiling and would like to highlight the features, go in for cove lights to enhance the effect.

Balcony, Staircase, Other Common Spaces: In case of common areas, you would need to have adequate lighting as they tend to be used for heavy movement. A light in the balcony would be lit for long periods of time, hence it is best to go for an energy efficient option like a CFL – the wattage can be small. Wall lights are suitable for staircases to light up the entire area well.

So go ahead and enjoy your creations, and be comfortable at the same time.

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