Choosing The Right Lighting Fixture

Believe it or not, lighting has a major effect on the mood and design of your home. It can make your home bright and cheery or dark and romantic. It can make you feel relaxed, comfortable or inspired to complete a task. You can help your home reach its full aesthetic potential by choosing the correct lighting fixtures. Choosing the right home lighting for your home starts with knowing the basics.

Ceiling mount lighting fixtures are ideal for use in foyers, hallways, bedrooms, task areas, stairways and many other locations. They work well in entry foyers to welcome guests to your home. Flush mount are preferred on lower ceilings and semi-flush lights are ideal on medium to high ceilings. These fixtures are also great in hallways as a substitute for recessed lighting. In hallways, light fixtures should be used every 8 to 10 feet to ensure adequate illumination.

Chandeliers add sparkle and style to your dining room while giving you the general lighting you need for dining and entertaining. Chandeliers are also used in bedrooms, foyers and great rooms. Some chandeliers are designed with down lights to provide task lighting or as accent for table settings. Chandeliers are available in both incandescent and ENERGY STAR® fluorescent light sources. Adding a dimmer control, chandelier shades and chandelier glass lets you alter the intensity of light to suit the mood and activity.

Wall-mounted fixtures typically take the form of sconces that match a chandelier, ceiling fixture or pendant. They can deliver general, task or accent lighting and transform a functional room or hallway into a cozy retreat or dramatic passageway.

Pendant lighting can provide both task and general lighting. Equipped with shades or globes to avoid glare, they are typically suspended from the ceiling over dining room tables, game tables, countertops or other work areas. The use of dimmers gives you the flexibility to vary the light to suit the occasion and task.

Recessed ceiling fixtures or can lights, consist of housing installed within the ceiling, a lamp and a small bit of trim to cover the hardware. If you want your lighting to be unobtrusive rather than decorative, this is the way to go. Recessed lighting can easily provide general, task or accent lighting for large areas.

Track Lighting is versatile and adaptable and allows you to configure a custom lighting scheme to meet your unique, individual needs. Track lighting is perfect for highlighting artwork, collections or architectural details and it can also provide general or task illumination for an entire room.