The right lighting can make all the difference to the look and feel of a room. We invited home lighting experts and designer lamp makers, Pooky, to share their top tips for choosing and using lamps in the home…
1) Understand layering and the different kinds of light
Everyone who loves home styling instinctively knows how important light is for atmosphere – for creating the feel of a room. But there is some science to it as well. The key is to understand that there are three types of light. Ambient light is the general light you need to be able to move around a room without bumping into things (in most homes, it’s the kind that comes on when you flick the main switch). Accent light is more intense, focused light used to emphasise certain things in a room, such as paintings or architectural features. Typically, accent lights should be around three times stronger than ambient lights. And task lighting is light for a specific practical purpose, such as a desk lamp or overhead kitchen lights. Once you’ve identified the kinds of light, you can use it to create different textures and moods in a room. This is what’s known as layering light – you can read more about that our practical guide to it here.
2) Use multiple table lamps and floor lamps for flexibility
One of the basic principles of layering light is to avoid relying on a single overhead source. Instead, use multiple lamps – table lamps, floor lamps, wall lights and pendants. This allows you to be flexible, especially in rooms with multiple functions. For example, with different lighting ‘scenes’ the same room can be a bright home office during the day, a glamorously-lit dining room for guests in the evening and – with a well-placed armchair and table lamp – a cosy reading nook at night.
3) Create ‘scenes’
Investing in a central control panel, especially ones fitted with dimmers, can allow you to easily alternate between your pre-set lighting ‘scenes’ at the flick of a switch.
4) Make a statement
There is a fourth kind of light which we didn’t mention earlier… Decorative light refers to any light source that is meant to be beautiful in itself, in addition to the actual light it casts. We reckon a lamp should be a gorgeous room feature even in broad daylight when it’s switched off. So be bold, or understated, or modern, or retro, or whatever suits your style. Make a statement with a big, flamboyant lighting – why not?
5) Mix and match lampshades to suit your style
Like sofa.com, we’re great believers that everyone should have maximum flexibility to choose styles that suit their taste. Mixing and matching lamps with lampshades gives you enormous freedom to find your unique décor look: whether it’s a gathered patterned cotton shade for a vintage theme, or a sleek black or ivory silk shade for something cool and contemporary. So don’t just go with the shade that comes with the lamp by default – shop for the one that works in your room.
6) Get the lampshade size right
The general rule of thumb for table lamps and floor lamps is that the height of the shade should be about three-quarters the height of the lamp’s base, and that if dithering between two sizes you should go for the bigger one. However, rules are made to be broken, and very thin and tall lamps can often suit smaller shades.
7) Think about materials
One way to think about choosing a table lamp, floor lamp or pendant for a particular room is to do it by material. How about buttery, warm brass – or some distressed wood for a shabby chic look? A ceramic or glass table lamp can be a beautiful ornament in itself, while we’ve experimented successfully with more unusual materials like marble and even resin. Sometimes a simple rattan ceiling pendant can completely transform a room.
8) Use pendant lights for dining areas
In a dining room, it’s crucial to have low-level lighting centred on the table. That’s what creates that lovely, intimate, slightly dramatic atmosphere when guests are gathered together. A great way of achieving this is to have a pendant light or a series of pendants, hanging relatively low. Typically, the bottom of the light fixture should be around 36 inches above the table, and odd numbers of pendants work better than even numbers (so threes and fives are better than fours). See more detailed tips for lighting a dining room here.
9) Use light to make a small room look bigger
Making small spaces appear larger is one of the most common interior design challenges – but along with your mirrors and clever storage solutions, don’t forget the power of light! Spread light around a room with multiple sources, hang pendants on long cords to emphasise vertical space, and enhance corners or recesses with wall lights. (More lighting tricks for making small rooms look bigger are here.)
10) Use designer flex
Finally, one of the big problems with having lots of lamps is dealing with all the unsightly power cables. How do you go about hiding them? Well at Pooky we side-stepped that problem by creating designer silk flex in a variety of colours, so that rather than something to hide you can actually show your cables off!