Category / Lighting Guides

by sherwoodlights

Lighting Guide: Exterior

When designing your house, it is important to consider how to light the outside just as much as the inside, and there are several different options to consider when deciding the best for your home. Some options are garden spike lights, flood lights, wall lights, security lights and post lights to name a few that are available to you. Like bathroom lighting there is an IP chart to consider, with the lights being outside and exposed to rain they will need to be waterproof. As well as this there are lights which are splash proof and fully submersible if you are looking at buying lighting for a pool.

Lighting your exterior is vital especially when you are coming home at night, it keeps your pathways lit up and makes it able to see what you are doing in the morning. Security lights are also useful for this as they turn on based on proximity due to an internal sensor. Floodlights can also come outside, and certain models are included with PIR units to light up a large section of your exterior space when activated. Spike lights, however, allow you to light up specific areas of your garden if you wanted to highlight a certain feature in your garden. Pedestals are ideal for general lighting and letting people visiting know where they are going.

PIR and dusk to dawn motion sensors are usually available separately though can be found built on in some fittings. A PIR triggers by heat movement, which will then activate the light for an allotted time which can be set on the PIR unit. Dusk to dawn sensors work differentl, turning on at night and turning off in daytime.

Exterior lighting is great to have in summer especially for those who host a lot of barbeques or parties to allow the party to go on late at night. If you want to turn on your outdoor lights from inside waterproof sockets available with remote control to allow you to activate them remotely.

by sherwoodlights

Lighting Guide: Bathroom

 Hi Light readers! Next for our lighting guide series, we are moving onto the Bathroom!

It is not uncommon for anyone to face a few obstacles when choosing lighting for the bathroom, being the wettest room in the house safety is essential and therefore strict guidelines are best to keep to. Making sure the lights stick to an IP rating is the best way to find a suitable fitting that can handle the moisture that will inevitably build up within the room.

Do not be turned away by the regulations however, as there is a lot of different lights to choose from that meet them and not just your usual flush lights! Spotlights, bulkheads, wall lights and chandeliers also come in IP ratings with certain ranges to give a nice selection for you to browse through. Within the above IP ratings chart there is also many different zones that will determine which light you are able to select. Once you have worked out which of these you want, you can then ensure the fitting will provide enough light for its everyday usage such as brushing your teeth, showing and such whilst keeping a relaxing level of light.

Apart from your ceiling lighting you should also take in mind whether there is any wall feature such as a cabinet or a mirror that you wish to light up. When turning on your bathroom lighting it is appropriate to use a pull cord switch for optimal safety, and to ensure the circuits are protected by RCD. As well as this you should make sure the lighting you order is in line with current IP regulations otherwise the electrician will not be able to fit them.

Please like and share this guide this helped you, and we shall see you soon with our next guide!

by sherwoodlights

Lighting Guide: Bedroom

When organising the best lights for the bedroom, you need to make sure that you don’t choose any options that contain a strong or harsh light as it will often be the same from when you wake up till when you go to sleep in the evening. You want a more ambient light to provide a more relaxing tone whilst in the bedroom. The best part about picking bedroom lights is that you don’t need to conform to one type of light, the choice is yours! Whether you want a larger very flashy piece, a simple flush fitting or a wall light there are many options to choose from. You do need to bear in mind however that the choice needs to be something that can fit everyday use.

Table or wall lights can be used to supplement your ceiling lights, allowing an ambient light with reliance on the main ceiling fixture, which you can also save electricity with by using task lights. You can also put your main lights on a dimmer switch if you want the lighting levels to be adapted. Make sure to also take in mind the general colour of your room such as the bed sheets, the metals and the sockets so you can match your fixtures to compliment the rest of your setting, and what light would suit where such as a bedside lamp while reading.

The setting of a room and the way you go about lighting it also depends on the family member you are decorating for, if you are decorating for your child we recommend focusing on bright lighting and if they are in school a good table lamp for homework and other activities. When doing this however, you must also focus on the materials used on the light, we would not suggest a fixture with a glass shade as this can cause damage when broken, having a light that is a bit more sturdier to damage is what should be focused on.

Below we have included some lights we think would suit the bedroom, please like and share with your friends!

by sherwoodlights

Lighting Guide: Kitchen

Great lighting is an essential piece of crafting that vision of your dream kitchen. There are, however, several types of kitchen lighting to think of! Whether recessed spotlights, under cabinet strips or a nice bar pendant it is paramount that you choose something that is perfect for you. The kitchen is an important space in the house for cooking, working or even general socialising so you want to make sure you have the correct light level and style whilst keeping the energy cost at a minimum.

We would recommend using LED lamps in this setting to prevent high energy usage, with the kitchen being used frequently this will lower your usual energy cost by a dramatic amount and stay cool compared to your usual halogen or incandescent alternatives. As mentioned in our previous guide, LED Lamps have a much longer lifespan and come with longer guarantees, as well as offering options for which colourway you wish to adopt as well as options for dimming. For example, for a more modern setting a cool white look would compliment it, with the warm white variant being more apt for traditional settings.

Remember, that a kitchen is a practical space, lighting is key. You need to make sure that there is sufficient lighting within the room so you may work. Sadly, one of the best options are down-lights, dotting a few down-lights around the kitchen will give you a nice even spread of light across the room. Flush Lights will also work well in this setting, these lights will hug the ceiling and will generally give a good spread of light across the kitchen.

Personally, I believe that if you have a larger kitchen area, you should stay clear of spotlights. This is mainly due to shadowing issues; spotlights will provide a cone/beam of light to one area but will not provide light anywhere outside of that set area. If you have a kitchen island/breakfast bar, utilise this space by using pendants. Since this is dead space meaning no one will run into it, you can get away with having something a bit more extravagant. Whether you are having single pendants or a bar pendant, we suggest having an odd number of them, to help provide the spacing across the island.

Another area that is worth looking at is task lighting, these are usually under-cabinet lights and are used for decoration or to generally light the worktop. There is a lot of variety when it comes to this style of light including LED and fluorescent strips, tape or discs just to name a few.

Top Tips for Choosing the best Lighting for your Kitchen:

  • Match your metals in the room, if your room features one particular metal colour match those with ceiling lights.
  • Match the colourway of your pendant to other metals that are in the kitchen. I.E Door handles, plug sockets and decorative features.
  • Make sure all the bulb is in the exact same colour to prevent any clashing in light output.
  • Know your measurements, the key is balance; Not too big and not too small.
  • Layer the lights you have in your kitchen, have a set of lights that are used for function and have a set of lights that are used for decoration and/or mood lighting.

Choosing the perfect light for the kitchen can always be a daunting task due to the amount of choices open to you, although see below for some options we think could start you off! We hope this guide proved helpful! Please like and share these guides to all your friends! And see you next week light-readers!

Flush Lighting

Pendant Lighting

by sherwoodlights

Lighting Guide: Living Room

Considered to be one of the most used rooms in your household, the lounge/living room is the ideal first step on the journey to fabulous lighting. The key to mastering the living room lies within balance and layering. Ensure that your light is of perfect size to balance with the room, a light that is too big will hog the room space and draw too much attention away from the rest of the décor. Additionally, a light too small will not bring enough attention to the room, you need something that is just right to perfectly compliment the effect you wish to bring to your setting.

Second step is to consider layering, once you have got a good ceiling light think about layering up with matching wall lights, table lamps and/or floor lamps to not only add to the rooms décor but to add to the versatility of the lights in your room.

Make sure to look for ranges that have matching table and floor lamps in their ranges.

Consider any existing metal that is in the room already; such as door handles, wall sockets or fireplaces, if you are not planning on changing them, then match with the lighting. Don’t worry about matching too closely to any existing metal colours as quite often a two-tone metal colour works very well anyway (I.E Polished chrome and satin chrome).

Make a relaxing tone by using soft coloured metals and implementing opal glass and/or silks and fabrics. This will help diffuse the light meaning a softer tone throughout the room which isn’t as harsh and piercing on your eyes. Ultimately this gives a much softer and relaxed tone to the living space.

Match Ceiling Lights to table and floor lamps.

Consider the natural light that is coming into the room, anything like windows, doors or conservatories can provide an abundance of natural light and will play a key role in selecting how much light you want from your fittings. A final point to consider, if your using this light frequently it is worth investing in LED bulbs, with up to 90% energy saving and lasting up to 25 times longer than your usual incandescent or halogen light bulb these will maximise the efficiency of the lights.

I hope you enjoyed our first lighting guide! Please make sure to comment, like and share as well as telling us if there is any specific room you want us to touch upon next!

by sherwoodlights

Lighting Guide: An introduction

All too often a stunning interior is left lacking in one department; the answer is lighting.

But why? Well, lighting is often one of the last things that people think of when decorating, and it’s a shame because it can really make or break the room. The key is balance, whether the light is too bright, too dark, big, small or even matching to the room’s décor; this can negatively impact the statement that people try to make in their room.

There are three main types of lighting within a domestic setting; ambient, task and accent. Applying all three (known as layering) to a room will not only give you, the user/owner more versatility but may even boost the décor of the room. So, lets breakdown what these various terms mean:

Ambient- also known as general lighting, this form of lighting will provide you with your main source of light throughout the room, most commonly seen as your ceiling light and in certain environments, even wall lights.

Task- yes you have guessed it, task lighting is to provide much needed light to a task. Intended to assist in completing a task such as reading and writing, crafts and hobbies and cooking. Effectively using this form can help prevent eye strain and glare, so make sure to use one of our high output led bulbs. Not only will these provide plenty of light but will have a low wattage and will last many years.

Accent- otherwise known as mood lighting, highlight key objects or features to further bring attention to them; examples such as, artwork, cabinets, sculptures or architectural feature.

Master the lighting in each room by installing separate switches or dimmers and ‘layer’ your lights.

Make sure to keep up to date with our lighting guide posts and we shall expertly go over from room to room, function to function and explain the do’s and don’ts and give helpful tips and tricks to make even the most basic rooms a quality setting by the time we are done.