Bring on the Light

This quarter I'm taking a Lighting Design class.  It's the hardest class in our major, so I'm trying to focus on not making it harder than it should be! One of my favorite elements in a room is the lighting sources, fixtures and coloring the light brings to a space.  It's the light that truly highlights and brings to life the architecture and design of any room. Without it, you wouldn't be able to see and appreciate it! It's all that technical stuff like lumens, wattage, foot candles, A-lamp, R-lamp, that is the not-so-fun-but-still-important-part. Lost you yet?!


Because I don't want to bore you with that stuff {and because I'm no expert myself, yet!} today I'm showing off some of my favorite rooms with great lighting.  When adding lighting to a space, always remember that it sets the mood and to include 3-4 of the 4 types of light:


1. General {the overhead lighting that generally lights up the room}
2. Task {light that helps you perform specific tasks, like reading or cooking}
3. Accent {sconces, pendants, or recessed lighting that are used to highlight artwork, sculptures, fabric, or architectural details}
4. Decorative {primarily the ornamental chandelier lighting, wall sconces, candles, entry fixtures, etc.}


Now that you're an expert on types of lighting, let's indulge in some prettiness...


This room features a skylight, allowing natural light in, as well as the beautiful pendant lantern and wall sconces for general and accent lighting:

This kitchen is an example of great general lighting seen in the recessed cans. The pendants above the island can act a general or task lighting! Love the yellow light:

This is perfection on so many levels. I love the use of unity found in the light fixtures- all classic drum shades. Lighting at different levels is key in making a space interesting and functional:

If I could create my dream kitchen right here and right now, this would be it. All the upper cabinets are lit and the arches are highlighted with under-mount lighting. The pretty and fresh white cabinets paired with the rustic lanterns are just enough juxtaposition for this eclectic girl's taste:

Rooms with high ceilings are challenging, but are so important to light well! The natural daylight helps this room stay nice and bright, but the stunning over-sized chandeliers were the right choice for this tall room. Not only do they highlight the pitched roof, but also make a statement and light the space {which is the real function, after all!} The warm yellow glow is beautiful and inviting:

Again with the lovely lantern look and decorative wall sconces:

I think we can all agree that the combination of this natural daylight and decorative lighting sets the perfect mood for this stunning wedding. Sometimes when you're trying to create a mood, you don't need to use all 4 types of lighting. Of course there's always an exception to the rules :)
All images via my Pinterest


I know sometimes it's hard to actually notice good lighting, {and that's really what we should go for! Normally we want light to be so natural & awesome that it's not talked about. We tend to notice poor lighting very quickly!}, but what spaces have you seen lately that draw you in because of the light? What about poor lit rooms...{see: dressing rooms}? Do share!


Thank you for all the sweet comments about our new family pup! She's loving her new home :)
Happy Tuesday!
Love,
Photobucket


PS. Welcome to my sponsor Claudia, of Casa de Berry!
Claudia is a DIY wife and mom who loves decorating, creating, cooking, organizing, and making her house a home for her husband and 2 boys! She's also from my home town which automatically makes her awesome :) Stop by and check out her latest DIY- her craft tower!

24 comments

  1. Great post Michaela! This is something I would like to work on in our home. We have a couple rooms that I struggle with the lighting, either A)there is NO overhead (and would be costly to add) and B)space (for instance my office has overhead but the outlets for task lighting are in not so great places).

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  2. this is a really helpful post. i recently recognized a need for lighting at different levels, but i need to start adding some more types of light. lovely inspiration photos too.

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  3. This is really awesome. The room, in the house I'm renting with soem friends, has some really awful lighting. I know the course will be difficult, but it'll also be really challenging and rewarding. I know you're going to do great, even though it's going to be a very difficult class.

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  4. Thanks for sharing the lighting photos. I think so many people don't consider lighting in a space. Please continue to share what you learn in your lighting class!

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  5. Such a great post! I think we have really poor lighting in our dining and living area. I would love to eventually change it. Your pictures in this post are all ah-mazing!! I love every one of them - so my style!

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  6. Such a great post! I think we have really poor lighting in our dining and living area. I would love to eventually change it. Your pictures in this post are all ah-mazing!! I love every one of them - so my style!

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  7. Great post, M! Thanks for the good tips (and taking the class for us!) :) My LR is the hardest for lighting bc none of my furniture is against the wall, and my foundation is slab so I can't have outlets in it...in order to have lamps, I have to have cords! (something you never see in magazine photos!)

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  8. I am in L.O.V.E. with all of these images. One of our next projects will be to add can lights in our living room. I hate our current fixtures in there. Pinning that top kitchen for when we're ready to knock out the wall. Our floors are a similar dark wood. Thanks!

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  9. I love these kind of posts!! I love all those rooms :D

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  10. The second kitchen is pretty much my dream kitchen!! And I love a room with great lighting. Candice Olsen always nails this element on her show!

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  11. I love this, great post! I never knew any of this about lighting. When looking at a room I loved, I would only notice a pendant or chandelier type light. Now I know to look for all four!

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  12. My favorite type of lighting is definitely natural light! I love the first picture so much!

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  13. I learned a lot from this! There's a grocery store I used to avoid because of the harshest fluorescent light and abundance of mirrors...bad combination! :P

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  14. Wow. Take me there, to any one of those photos! I definitely don't have talent for home design, but wish I did!

    XO,
    Erin
    http://erinscurrentlycoveting.blogspot.com/

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  15. Great post, Michaela! Thanks for sharing the insight you get from class with us! I love all the pictures you shared too! So much inspiration for future projects!

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  16. This is SO what our house needs! We have horrible horrible lighting!!

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  17. fantastic~ lighting is something i always look at in a room--these are stunning picts!

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  18. Yeah, I'm a little terrified for our first lighting exam. But not going to freak out quite yet. PS: What is the source for that 2nd to last picture (of the foyer)?? It just says from your Pinterest but since that's not the actual source, if you looked up the true source I'd love to know!!

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  19. umm... swooning over that white kitchen. That is sooo my dream kitchen! Perfect mix of modern and vintage. Beautiful! Have a good Tuesday Michaela!

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  20. thanks for the shout-out!!!

    lighting is a huge issue in our home. there were expansion rooms made that make the inside rooms super dark, so we're considering some options this year :D

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  21. I agree with Natasha, Candace Olsen does always nail the lighting department. I LOVE your dream kitchen as well. All of it. Lighting is so key. . .big lover of uplighting and beautiful tasks lights.

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  22. I agree...Lighting is SO important!

    xoxo
    Aarean

    p.s. come check out my THEIT camera bag giveaway! I think you'd really like it! colorissue.blogspot.com

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  23. This is a great post. Lighting is complex! Which makes sense because it's just so important. I wish I could get a professional to come into my apartment and do the lighting, it is SO not up to par! Way beyond my skill level.

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Thank you for stopping by! If you have a specific question, please email me at hello@michaelanoelledesigns.com. I always reply to emails! Have a blessed day! xoxo

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