How You Can Select the Best Type of Lighting for Your New Abode

If you have a new home and you are at the point of choosing the lighting for it, you may know very well that lighting can make a big impact on how your home looks and feels in the end. But choosing lighting for your home can be a downright challenge, as lighting comes in many forms. There are lights that are bright (perfect for task lighting), there are lights that are dim (perfect for ambient lighting), and there are all kinds of lights in between – from wall lights to ceiling pendants to chandeliers and everything else. You may have to spend time carefully selecting the lighting for your home, but believe you me, it’s well worth the time and effort. But it doesn’t mean it needs to be difficult – indeed, it can be downright fun! Here’s how you can choose the best lighting for your new abode.

Know the three kinds

First off, there are three different kinds of lighting. We already mentioned ambient lighting and task lighting, but there is also accent lighting. Ambient lighting is essentially a room’s main lighting, and it can be anything from an overhead ceiling fixture or a recessed downlight. Often, the ambient lighting can be determined by your home’s contractor, and they will measure the room’s lighting via ‘foot-candles’. Places that need more ‘foot-candles’ include bathrooms and kitchens.

Task lighting can provide you with light for specific activities such as reading, preparing food, or applying makeup. It often accentuates a small area in a room, and you can choose task lighting on the wall, on a desk, or beside a mirror. Accent lighting, on the other hand, provides light that is more decorative, and it can draw attention to a specific spot such as a fireplace, a painting, a bookshelf, and so on. Accent lighting is often elegant and simple and doesn’t attract too much attention, focusing instead on the object, but you can also opt for sconces, chandeliers, and lamps to serve as accent lights. 

Know your choices in lighting fixtures 

You have plenty of choices in lighting fixtures, and some, like sconces and chandeliers, have already been mentioned. Sconces are usually fixed on the wall, and you can generally purchase them as a pair to hang on either side of a mirror or picture frame. You can also opt for semi-flush mounted lights or flush-mounted lights, which are usually on the ceiling and serve to brighten up a room and light up space so you can see better while walking around.

Pendant lighting is particularly popular as a modern lighting option, and you can hang them down from the ceiling with a chain, a cord, or a wire. They are usually ideal as task lighting, especially when hung above a kitchen island or dining table. Chandeliers are quite striking, and you usually suspend them from the ceiling, and they can be either decorative or functional, depending on where they are installed. Of course, lamps are a common sight as well, and you can use table lamps or floor lamps in your living room or bedrooms. Lamps are great as task lighting because they only light a specific area, and they’re a versatile choice because you can easily move them around and aren’t heavy on the wallet. 

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