Brilliant Idea: Getting Creative with Lighting
I once read that there should be at least three sources of lighting serving different purposes in every room. That’s general/overhead lighting, task lighting, and ambient/decorative lighting. With the new layout of one of our rooms, we didn’t have space for those three types of lighting, so I had to think of a creative lighting solution.
With the kitchen renovation came the mixing up of other rooms downstairs. We moved the TV from the front room to the middle room, which already had a ceiling fan light fixture. This serves as our overhead lighting but, in truth, I really don’t like it. It’s abrasively bright. It serves a purpose but I wanted to add more lighting that wouldn’t take up surface area and would be more appealing to use.
With the sofa taking up one wall, the TV and console taking up another, one wall with windows and the fourth wall serving as the pass through from the front to the back of the house, there really isn’t much space to add a table or floor lamp.
I was inspired by all the fun DIYer and artist Liz Kamarul has been having with lighting in her home (I interviewed her a few years back in the Designer Spotlight series).
I found an LED system that’s affordable (this outdoor lightstrip from Philips Hue). I attached it using the brackets and screws provided in a swoop that threads around and through our gallery wall.
And the light is certainly ambient! It gives us what we need when we plug it in and nearly disappears when we don’t need it (see top photo), and doesn’t take up any space.
If you’re facing a similar conundrum and are looking for attractive and easy creative lighting solutions that don’t take up precious surface area, here are a couple other options to consider:
Brilliant!
And for more lighting inspiration and creative lighting options, check out my Pinterest page here.
