Ideas To Create A Stylized Ambience With Contemporary Lighting
Contemporary lighting has come a long way from the traditional chandeliers and gas lights. It is now as easy to create your own stylized ambience with just a few budget-friendly purchases. This article will provide 3 ideas you can use to create a great contemporary lighting installation.
Today's interior design trends have gone from traditional to contemporary, and what better way to add some style and sophistication than with contemporary lighting? Even an entry-level decorator can accomplish this difficult task, thanks in part to updated home décor tools such as today's LED lamps and fixtures, which allow for precise controls of color temperature output that help designers customize the mood of their room or office space more easily than ever before. One way to help bring the contemporary decorating look to your space is with contemporary lighting.
First, let's review some of the other lighting fixtures that are commonly used in today's decorating. LEDs are one of the most popular fixtures because they can be controlled by non-technical personnel, and they can last up to 50,000 hours. They also provide a low illuminance that gives you a romantic glow that can be especially useful in displaying art or photos on your walls. The light output from these LEDs won't affect those sitting or working around them, and they're also energy efficient, helping you save money each month on energy costs.
Another fixture that's easy to use and offers lots of flexibility is track lighting. You can use track lighting to place lights around art or other items that you want to highlight in your space. LED track lighting is the best choice for contemporary décor because the low-output LEDs help you get the right lighting for your room or office without wasting energy.
Finally, there are pendants, which come in a variety of styles and colors – just check out Boca do Lobo's latest collection to see what's available these days. The fixture itself typically hangs from the ceiling or is set atop a cabinet, table, floor lamp stand or other structure. As with LEDs, they use low-output LEDs and are energy efficient. The absence of the large reflector found on regular chandeliers gives you a more elegant look, too.
While there are many fixtures out there to choose from, though, some types of fixtures aren't as versatile or energy efficient as others. For instance, in addition to being more expensive than other types of lighting fixtures (and always requiring professional installation), recessed can lights don't have the flexibility that track lighting or pendants do. That's because recessed can lights have a narrow beam angle. As a result, unless you really want to make the installation of your lighting as simple as possible – in other words, if you want to save money on labor costs – and don't plan on moving the fixture around much, you may want to choose another type of light fixture.
If you're trying to achieve a stylized look, instead of something more basic (say, traditional chandeliers or vanity lights), here are three ideas any decorator could try with his or her contemporary lighting fixtures.
1. Position the fixture near an artwork display or above a dining area.
To help draw attention to your art or photos, an easy way to light them is to set a small pendant directly above them. The pendant should be positioned about 3 feet away from the paintings or photos you're trying to highlight, however. Then dim all other lights in the room, and adjust the color temperature of the pendant's LEDs so that they're balanced with your artwork. You can use an app on your smartphone or tablet for this purpose if you like – just search for "Color Temperature" in your favorite app store. Once you've found the right color temperature, just touch the "Save" button on your phone, and you'll be able to use that same color temperature in the future.
2. Use an LED strip to accentuate an architectural feature.
The modular design of LED strips makes it easy to create a lighting installation like this one. Use your smartphone or tablet again (just follow the same steps from above) to find the right color temperature for your lights, then touch your screen again and select "Save. You'll be able to use that same color temperature in the future.
3. Create a light display to illuminate a fireplace or mantel.
(Note: This idea requires some planning and is not for the novice.) In many homes, the floor becomes more of a focal point than any other part of the room – it's often the location for large pieces of furniture, so its lighting needs tend to be quite high-maintenance. What you can do, though, is hide all your lights – both LED strips and pendants – along one side or back wall of your room, then place your fireplace or mantel centrally in that section of space. I like to use RGB LED strips for this type of project, because you can set the color temperature to an appropriate level – in other words, you can set all the color channels on your controller to about the same brightness level. When you dim or brighten one channel, it'll affect all the others as well. This gives you a lot of control over your light display.
If you have a fireplace or mantel that's quite tall and wide, go ahead and place a number of pendants atop it. Set them up so that they're evenly spaced from each other along the entire length of your mantle piece – just remember that LED pendants need only be 3-4 feet away from your art or photos to light them properly.
Designing with lighting involves a lot of experimentation, so don't be afraid to try different approaches if you're not getting the results you want. As long as you follow the suggestions above, though Рmeaning using low-output LEDs in your pendants and LED strips; installing them in ways that allow you to move them around if necessary; and making sure that they're positioned near your art or photos Рyou'll be well on your way to creating a contemporary d̩cor space that everyone will enjoy.
Conclusion
There are a number of ways you can get your home's lighting design to look contemporary. The tips above are a great starting point if you're beginning to plan the overall lighting for your home and need some advice on how best to proceed. But – as with everything else in interior design – don't be afraid to experiment. Even if you try something, and it doesn't work out the way you had originally hoped, you'll still learn something about yourself and your preferences along the way. And that can only help as you continue along your path toward creating a better home or office space for yourself.
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