How to Choose Lighting for Your Home

The type of lighting that you install in your home can make a really big difference to each room, in terms of both style and functionality. For this reason, it’s well worth researching all your options carefully, and perhaps even discussing your ideas with an expert, before you make any final decisions on new lighting fixtures. If you are not sure where to start, the suggestions below should help you to focus on the most important factors you need to consider. You may also like to visit one of our display homes in Perth, to see how our lighting experts tackle the job of illuminating residential property interiors.

Factors to Consider When Installing Lighting in Your Home

Whether you are planning to move into one of our brand new double storey homes in WA or you would like to upgrade the lights in your current home, you’ll find it easier to choose the best lighting fixtures after considering the following factors:

• How You Will Use Each Room – Although it’s good to have an overall theme for your home lighting, we find it most helpful to consider each room independently when deciding exactly what type of lights to install. In your kitchen, for example, you will almost certainly be preparing food on a regular basis, which is why you will want plenty of direct illumination, to see what you are doing. If this is not the case – if you are a couple who rarely cooks at home for instance – softer lighting that creates a more romantic ambience may be more to your liking. But make sure that you consider both your current and your future needs: you may not cook often now but if this situation changes, you’ll be glad you had the foresight to install the right kind of lighting when you first moved in.

• Aesthetics – There are two types of aesthetics to consider when choosing new lighting: the visual appearance of the lighting fixtures themselves and the effect that the light they produce has on the appearance of your home. You may, for example, think that recessed lighting is a great choice because it won’t spoil the clean lines in a modern interior. However, recessed lighting fixtures tend to cast ugly vertical shadows everywhere, which can ruin the appearance of even the most carefully decorated living room. In most cases, a tasteful mix of surface-mounted ceiling lights and occasional lamps is the best choice. It’s important to consider the size of your lighting fixtures too: you may love the look of a large, ornate chandelier that you see for sale in a local store but it could be very out of place in a small living room or hallway. Try to pick lights that will look at home in the rooms you are planning to install them.

• Flexibility – Another reason that a mix of ceiling lights and occasional lamps is a good option is because it gives you a choice of illumination levels. You don’t want to end up with lights that only give you two levels of illumination in each room: on or off. If you consider your living room for a moment, you can probably think of many different uses it will be put to in the future. You may spend a lot of time relaxing in it, watching television, but there will be occasions when you use it to entertain guests too. You might hold a party for a child’s birthday in your living room or use it to host a get together for adult friends. All these uses call for different types and levels of illumination, which is why you should aim to create a very flexible lighting scheme for your home. Include strong overhead lighting, handy task lighting and ambient floor lamps to cover all possible scenarios.

• Energy consumption – The type of lighting fixtures you install will affect your annual utility bills. Very few homes have old-fashioned incandescent lights nowadays but many still have CFL lighting. If you are keen to minimise both your electricity costs and your carbon footprint, we recommend focusing on LED lighting fixtures. They are kinder to the environment, more economical and, because the lights themselves need replacing far less frequently, they are more convenient too. You can see some great examples of stylish LED lighting in our 2 storey display homes in Perth.

• Your bathroom – We’ve included the bathroom as a separate factor to consider because it’s one of the most frequently overlooked rooms when lighting is being planned but in reality it’s also one of the most important. The reason it’s so important is because it’s the room where you shave, where makeup is applied and where all the family brush their teeth and shower. These tasks – especially shaving and makeup application – require excellent lighting, especially where the mirrors are located. Due to safety considerations, it’s much easier to get the lighting right in your bathroom if you plan it when your home is being built – the double storey homes we build in Perth all have an excellent level of bathroom illumination included in the designs. However, if you’re moving into an older property, you can still improve the bathroom lighting, it will just cost a little more. 

• Security – Don’t forget to include decent lighting at the entrance to your property, for safety and security reasons. It’s a great deterrent to burglars and helps to make your home more welcoming to visitors you have invited!

If you are interested in moving into one of our beautiful new homes in Perth, you can discuss your lighting requirements with us before building commences. We have a team of interior design and lighting specialists who would be only too happy to help you choose the perfect fixtures for your new home and to answer any specific questions you may have about residential lighting plans. Contact us now for more information on what we can do for you.