Install modern lighting
No home decorating project would be complete without new modern lighting and as one of the most important design elements, lighting sets the tone for every room in a home.
Three different types of lighting establish the feel of a room, from romantic to practical.
- Ambient lighting fills a room with bright light or a mellow glow.
- Task lighting focuses a beam of light on a work area.
- Accent lighting highlights art or an architectural feature.
A variety of ceiling lighting styles are available at your local Builders Warehouse, from sleek chrome and steel fixtures to period-specific antiques or reproductions, often part of lighting collections with coordinating wall sconces and lamps, to complement and complete the decor in every room in your home.
Once thought of as fancy fixtures for stately homes or mansions, today's chandeliers are suitable for any room in a home and are available in various styles and materials to fit any budget or decorating scheme. Chandeliers provide ambient or atmosphere lighting and are not intended for use as the main source of light, but rather as additional lighting to set the mood and enhance a particular design style.
Most homes are fitted standard with ceiling - or flush-mounted lights - but if you want to add your own personal style, try adding some extraordinary elements. Make a statement by installing a trendy chandelier. Generally, try avoiding designs that are too extravagant and look for a design that will complement the space.
A gentle touch of breeze on the skin, a simple relief from the heat of summer, and an ingenious ventilation idea that does not take floor space – these are just some of the finest qualities that ceiling fans are known for. They are popular in classic home décor and just as useful in contemporary interior design.
A ceiling fan is the ultimate solution to cooling and heating efficiency in just about any room. By circulating air around the room a ceiling fan helps to raise or lower ambient temperatures of the room, thereby decreasing the need for the air conditioner or heater. But a ceiling fan without a light fixture is only taking advantage of half of what a fan can offer any room.
As an energy-efficient alternative to air conditioning, a ceiling fan will gently cool down a room and provide ambient light in a small area. Select a ceiling fan that offers variable speed settings in a design that fits in with the style of a home. A single light fitting will provide low-level illumination that can be increased by adding wall lights or sconces.
When installing a ceiling fan, check the room height before you choose a ceiling fan and compare with that recommended by the manufacturer. For a more modern feel, many people also love the idea of getting ceiling fans that come with a remote control. Remote ceiling fans are not only decorative, but they also provide the kind of comfort and ease of living that is the characteristic of modern life.
Ceiling mounted fixtures hang flat against the ceiling and are useful in a home with low ceilings to provide ambient lighting for any room in a home. These types of fixtures are available in styles that range from inconspicuous to ornate, for illuminating bedrooms, dining rooms and more. Models with energy-saving fluorescent bulbs provide sufficient ambient light, while saving you money on energy costs. When shopping for lights for a particular room, especially one with a high ceiling, bear in mind that changing light bulbs in ceiling mounted fixtures can be a challenge.
A vintage style chandelier is the perfect lighting accessory for a dining room. Choosing the right light fitting for a dining room is as important as choosing how you dress the table. Ambient lighting is used to set the mood and atmosphere, whether a family meal or inviting dinner guests. The lighting should feel welcoming and enhance the decor of the room, whether you choose a glittering crystal or wrought iron chandelier.
Where price is an issue, stay away from crystal or glass beaded chandeliers. Opt instead for plastic refracting beads. They still give you the same classic look as glass and crystal but are a much cheaper alternative. And because they don’t weigh much, they are easier to install, shortening labour time and costs.
Pendant Lights
Ideal for task lighting in a kitchen, pendant lights hang from the ceiling and have a single light source. There are two basic types of pendant lights; an inverted pendant shines light up to provide ambient light, while a
standard down-facing pendant is typically used for task lighting or illuminating a workspace such as a kitchen island.
Having a lighted kitchen island or countertop allows you to have a lot more space to work with, especially when the lights are placed above your head. Just remember not to place the light too closely above you unless you want to keep bumping into it every now and then.
Kitchens require task lighting for preparation, cleaning and cooking areas. Undercounter lighting is easily installed in LED strips, while downlighters and pendant lights can be focussed over preparation and cleaning work stations.
LED pendants make for a very interesting design and are very energy efficient. They are cheap to buy, easy to install and cost effective to run making them a great choice for budget friendly lighting in any room.
Use accent lighting in any room in a home to accent home decor features. In this laundry room, accent lighting serves to light up the work area, providing plenty of light for activities and also highlights the wall cladding.
When giving your home a makeover you're going to be updating furniture, painting walls and adding new decor accesories, but no makeover is complete without modern lighting. Add shine and luster to a room with well-placed lighting.
There is one room in the home that truly benefits from all three lighting elements... a bathroom. Accent lighting in the form of a flush-mounted ceiling fixture provides general lighting, while task lighting is essential for everyday grooming, and finally, ambient lighting sets the mood and can be anything from wall-mounted sconces to an elegant chandelier.
Visit your local Builders Warehouse to see the full range of affordable lighting options available for your home.
arcadian lighting