Happy Monday y'all. Did everyone have some rest and relaxation over the past 48 hours? I did it up right and feel like I've had several days off rather than just two. Summer is slipping away, you've gotta fit it in while you can people!
So today I've got light planning on the brain. I had a conversation with a friend not long ago who said she hates to walk into a her living room without being able to just flip the switch. She doesn't want to walk halfway across the room to turn on a lamp.
I get what she's saying, but especially in older homes it is common to have to walk into a room and turning on a lamp for a little bit of light.
Without being able to see the entire room, it looks as though the overhead light is used most in this space as there is only one library light in the whole room.
Where this room has plenty of both - a textbook example of light planning - overhead lighting, sconces and table and floor lamps spread through out the room at varying heights and sizes. The ideal is always the best of both worlds.
So which do you prefer? The ease of overhead lighting or the 'character' of a room full of lamps? How much light do you need in a space to feel comfortable? Just promise me you aren't using a bulb over 40 watts.
Glad you had a great weekend! I have to say that I'm with your friend on this one - even though overhead can lighting isn't the best from a design perspective, I love it and wish I had it in every room. But I also try to make sure that every room has at least two other sources of light - you can't beat lamp lighting for creating ambiance!
ReplyDeleteI love a mixture of the two. My last house was built in '63 and some outlets were switched so you could plug in a lamp and turn it on with a switch that was conveniently located. I miss that it my new house.
ReplyDeleteI like a mix. I also love overheads on dimmers. I asked that every switch at our next house be a dimmer and my husband AND the electrician both looked at me like I was crazy. I also like when outlets are on switches so lamps can be switched on and off. This topic has been rather hot in our house, as Micah doesn't see the need for any of this. :)
ReplyDeleteI like to be able to just flip a switch and it turns on a lamp on the table. Not really a fan of overhead lights unless they are canned lights.
ReplyDeletewe currently have no lighting in our living room- i mean we have one lamp. it gets tons fo daylight so it's not an issue and at night we turn on our one lamp and it's cozy. but i would love to have an overhead option in there! a chandelier or something fabulous, of course.
ReplyDeleteWe have a combination of both, but thanks to my thrifting addiction a much wider choice of lamps! I'm always switching them out for styling, but never put light bulbs in, makes my husband crazy! :)
ReplyDeleteLuckily I have both, but for daily use, I like flicking the switch and having all the lamps turned on, it just feels cozier than overhead. :-)
ReplyDeleteBoth! I have an older home but it's set up for a least one outlet to turn on with a switch as you enter the room. I use an extension cord so that two lamps turn on and off with the flip of a switch. We have virtually no overhead lighting in our downstairs. I'd like to add can lights at some point but it's such an expense and I prefer lamp lighting so we've pushed it to the bottom of the list.
ReplyDeleteOur living room has no overhead lighting but there are a couple of lamps wired to come on when we flip the switch. I prefer a mix of both so I can control the mood for different occasions. Generally I like it pretty lit up though! I am allergic to dark. :) I use my living room in the day when there is natural light but not often in the evening because it is hard to get enough light from just lamps I feel. Our family room has a mix and I prefer that. I also like dimmers everywhere!
ReplyDeleteI love the mixture of three for living rooms -- 1. Recessed Lighting (in our living room) 2. Center Ceiling Overhead lighting (in our living room) and Lamps! We just added to two new lamps in our living room and I love all the balanced lighting we have, in bedrooms I like mix of 2 -- one overhead and 2-3 lamps...which reminds me, time to add a little lamp in my toddlers room! :)
ReplyDeleteI love how (pretty!) overhead lighting can look, but I have to say that I haaaaate it. I had having artificial light on during the day, and as soon as it gets dark, I would much rather turn on a lamp and nothing else. I would willingly walk across the dark living room and sacrifice a stubbed toe for some lamp light as opposed to an overhead light :)
ReplyDeleteOverhead light gives me panic attacks. I have some beauties but I rarely turn them on b/c I much prefer lamp lighting unless of course the overhead is on a dimmer then I use them with abandon.
ReplyDeleteI won't let my husband turn on the overhead light in our living room. It drives me nuts. And now that it's going to start getting darker earlier, I've got to find a way to put some more lamps in our dining room (with one outlet!) since it will also drive me crazy to have the overhead light while we eat dinner. What you said about 40 watts is right though. We haven't changed the bulbs in the overhead lights since we bought the house, and I'd be willing to bet they're at least 60 or more. Good tip!!
ReplyDeleteEvery room in my house has a centred ceiling lamp (just the way these old houses were built) so I suppose I'm used to 'flipping a switch' but I've installed dimmers on every single one of them so that I'm not greeted with blaring light (in fact, I don't think any of them are ever on 'full'). Saying that, I do like lamps as well although I don't have loads of them. Really need to sort that out I think! I will say however that I despise inbuilt spot lights, not sure where the hatred comes from but they are in all the "new build" homes here and they are just garish! ;) xxx
ReplyDeleteI use both. Depends on the function of the space/room, and on all my overhead lighting I have dimmers.
ReplyDeleteI love the softness of lamp lighting, but I'm so obsessed with statement lighting right now, so I just put them on dimmers…adore the chandelier from Living Pink Studio - so fun!!
ReplyDeleteI'm like the group, I need both too.
ReplyDeleteIn my house all ceilings are centred and I like that. With interesting chandelier looks great how the light goes on walls in different shapes.
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I'm a lamp gal myself. Overhead lighting just seems jarring to me, like I need to wear a visor ;-) My husband on the other hand would like overhead spot lights in every room. It's a battle in our home to say the least!
ReplyDeleteLove the look of lamps, but honestly don't use them as much as I should. Struggling with my son's room right now b/c he has no overhead light and I want to do a dark moody men's den thing. But I know a lazy 12 yr. old will just live in the dark as opposed to walking around turning lights on. Maybe I'll get him the clapper! :)
ReplyDeleteTop and Bottom! Top and Bottom! I need options!
ReplyDeleteSuch a good question! I like being able to flip a switch but also like lamps, which are especially good for task lighting like reading on the sofa. I had a house where one outlet was controlled by a switch so you could leave the lamp on and just flip the switch to get it on. BEST of both worlds!!
ReplyDeleteI am a lighting hog- I have to have both!
ReplyDeleteBoth! I love the ease of flipping on a switch, but loooove the ambiance of pretty lamps.
ReplyDeleteIdeally you have both....I love being able to flip a switch at first....and hate having to go to a lamp in a dark room to get some light....so ideally you can have both to set different moods....
ReplyDeleteI definitely like a mix of both because I like a room to be able to be really bright when I want it to be. I don't mind having to walk across the room to switch my lamps on, although it would be nice if they were connected to the wall switch.
ReplyDeleteI detest can lights in any room. I love lamps and chandeliers and believe that the person who invented dimmers deserves a Nobel prize. I prefer more lamps with lower wattage bulbs than a few lamps with high octane wattage. I love the look of small lamps in bookcases and lamps with shades in kitchens. I think the lighting plan for my evolving kitchen, morning room/pantry and library/dining room is one of the most complicated and frustrating things I have ever done.
ReplyDeleteI'm your new follower/fan...you are funny but you are darn good at what you do! love everything so far!
ReplyDeleteI am really loving that stencil on the wall... wow! That's a great print, too... :)luxury home builders in Los Angeles
ReplyDeleteI like a combination. But there is "something" about physically turning on a lamp for me... a sense of really changing the mood in that moment. Kind of ritualistic - whereas flipping a switch on the wall is just practical and not momentous.
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