Longer nights, maximise your lights: A guide to lighting

Longer nights, maximise your lights: A guide to lighting

With daylight saving coming to an end and the cost of living rising, now may be the time to think about the lighting in your home.

We’ve put together a guide for lighting and how you can benefit from lower energy usage with some of our lighting and bulbs.

It’s worth noting that different rooms require different kinds of lighting. Brighter lighting is needed in kitchens and bathrooms, but living rooms should be flexible so that it can reflect the atmosphere you wish to convey, such as cosy in the evening time.

The same can also be said for dining areas, where these can be bright for everyday use but dialleddown to set a more intimate atmosphere for entertaining.

Esben Table Lamp

These effects can be achieved by layering your lighting by using ceiling lights, wall lights and table or floor lamps.

Living areas need layered lighting to cater for different uses at each time of the day, with bright overhead lights for tasks and soft indirect lighting for eating, socialising, and relaxing.

Table lamps are essential for the latter and create a warm and inviting atmosphere in the evening.

Place lamps in dark corners of a room to highlight and enlarge your space and also consider locating them near windows, which can become dark spots once the curtains are drawn at night.

Tasker style desk lamps

Essential 3 things you need to know before choosing any light:

1. Size of the Light

Knowing the dimensions of the room or space the light will illuminate will help decide the size of the light you need and how much light it provides.

2. How Much Light

What is it that you want the light to do? – For example; do you want your lighting to be bright enough to illuminate a whole room? Add light for dark corners or spaces? Be bright enough for working or reading? To create an ambience? To add a feature to your interior? – This will determine the design and functionality of your light.

3. What Colour of Light?

There are different shades of white, like paint, it can be warmer or colder, affecting the feel of a room. Lighting is just the same, where there are many different shades of white. In general we talk of Warm white being more yellow and giving a cosier feel, or Cool white being more blue giving a feeling of clarity.

What colour light do you want will help determine what type of lamp or LED you may want.

They may cost a little more to buy, but LEDs will save you money not only by using far less electricity, but also by lasting much longer before they need replacing.

An old-school fluorescent bulb will lose 95% of electrical energy as heat, with just 5% becoming light. The LED flips this statistic on its head, converting 95% electrical energy into light and losing just 5% as heat. As a result, LEDs require far less electricity; a 60W bulb can be replaced by an LED equivalent of just 6-8W.

Zancara Pendant Light

Lifespan depends on the type of light and how it is used, but you can expect an LED bulb to last up to twenty-five times longer than other types.

But LED lighting is not only good news for our homes; it will revolutionise our impact on the environment. In addition, LED lights contain no toxic elements and their long lifespan means fewer will be used, dramatically reducing their carbon footprint.

We are proud to champion LED products through our ceiling and wall lights as well as bulbs and filaments, of which we carry stock of in our stores. So, even if you buy a ceiling, table or wall lamp with a standard screw cap or a halogen, you can still benefit from LEDs.

Shades are great for adding style and interest, providing flexibility to lighting levels and creating atmosphere.

A tip for deciding the size of shade for your favourite base is that the bottom diameter of the shade should be at least twice the width of the widest part of the lamp base (usually the base itself).

Styles change however and shades provide an easy way to change a look and style and add a splash of a new favourite colour, so do not be afraid of breaking the rules and creating your own unique look.

Consider coordinating with your sofa or nearby textiles such as curtains, throws and cushions.

White and cream shades usually cast a cool light, while darker colours create a moody atmospheric glow.

Remember though – the thicker the material of the shade, such as velvet, the less light will come through, possibly meaning you will require more lighting, should you wish for the room to be brighter.

The pools of light at the top and bottom of the shade will be brighter in contrast to a darker shade than a lighter one.

Oki EasyFit Shade

For ceiling lights, easy fit pendants (as their name implies) can be easily attached onto suspended light bulbs without the need for an electrician, making them the ideal low-cost update and perfect for rental properties.

With pendant lighting, it is important there is enough room underneath the light for whatever activity will take place.

That may be walking underneath, or be over a dining table, work area, breakfast bar, in a stairwell, by a bedside, or in a corner.

For kitchen breakfast bars, over tables or in stairwells, pendant lights are often used on a longer drop to direct light and create a feature. The shorter the drop, the more surface area the light will cover.

Our flagship Shrewsbury store includes a destination lighting department, featuring an extensive choice of pendants, chandeliers, wall lights, table and floor lamps.

Further ranges of lighting can be found throughout all of our stores in our inspirational room settings. Visit one of our stores today to discover our lighting collections.