3 Tips for Brilliant Home Lighting Design

Unless you’re an interior designer, you probably don’t think much about the lighting in your home beyond its purpose to help you see. But there’s a lot more to lighting than your standard overhead lights and lamps.

When thoughtfully designed, lighting can highlight your artwork, accent architectural features, and add life to your hallways and staircases. What’s more, today’s smart lighting solutions make adjusting and controlling each fixture in your home a breeze.

Kick your home lighting design up a notch in St. Augustine, FL with these three tips from our smart lighting control experts at Alpha Dog.

SEE ALSO: 4 Ways Smart Lighting Significantly Improves Your Lifestyle

Tip #1. Consider the Purpose of Your Spaces

Before selecting or renovating the lighting throughout your home, first think about the function of your spaces. Because the purpose of your dining room is different than the purpose of your entryways, each space may need a unique lighting installation to optimize their uses.

For example, you may want to install both overhead lights and a low-hanging centerpiece fixture in your dining room to highlight the focal point of the space: the dining room set. The concentration of light over the table will capture attention to the center of the room and lure your friends and family to congregate for meals.

Your entryways, however, may require lights along the walls or floors for safe passage. Because entryways typically have a coat closet, mudroom, or storage space, you may decide to install lighting for functionality rather than decoration.

SEE MORE: The Future of Your Smart Lighting Solution Is Bright—And Healthier, Too

Tip #2. Layer Your Lighting

Well-designed home lighting typically balances three elements: ambient lighting, task lighting, and accent lighting. Ambient lighting includes overhead lights and natural daylighting while task lighting includes concentrated sources like table lamps. Accent lighting functions mostly as decoration, seen popularly as sconces, strip lights, backlighting, and more.

By adding all three elements to your spaces, you successfully create interest and ambiance in every room. While overhead lights help make a space feel larger, low-hung pendant lighting creates the illusion of depth. Table and floor lamps create focal points and enhance relaxation; accent lighting adds warmth and elegance to your home spaces.

Tip #3. Create Dynamic Scenes

Because many of the rooms in your home serve more than one purpose, you may find that the intensity of your lighting doesn’t work well for every occasion. For example, bright, even light is necessary for cooking in the kitchen, but you might want dimmer, more focal light when you’re making your morning coffee.

Smart lighting control allows you to adjust the brightness of any light in your home—whether it’s one fixture or every fixture—from an in-wall keypad or even your mobile phone. Program lighting scenes that complement different routines and events throughout your day, and even set them on a timer to adjust on their own. Whether you set your lights for movie night, family dinner, or afternoon reading, your overhead lights, lamps, sconces, pendants, and more will change to your liking in just a tap.

Our Alpha Dog team can help you transform the lighting in your home, from planning and design to setting up dynamic scenes that complement your interior décor and add ambiance to every moment. Get started today by calling us at (904) 257-4295.