Tips when choosing lighting fixtures for living room

Some things may seem obvious when you're furnishing your living room or den, but for others you need to try a little harder. The choice of lighting fixtures is just one of them. Placing the right lamps and chandeliers will help achieve the ambiance you desire. Accordingly, poor choices will spoil your efforts and you will not get the expected results. If you are in the process of furnishing and the time has come for lighting fixtures for the living room and den, then you can browse through our categories with a variety of interior lighting.

A few tips on living room light fixtures to keep in mind

There are some specifics you should pay attention to when choosing lamps for your home. For example, these are:

• The number of bulbs and the amount of light they emit (measured in watts or lumens). You may have a lot of bulbs, but still not enough light;
• The distance from the bulb to significant objects, surfaces or people. This will affect the amount of light that will reach you or a given object;
• The reflectivity of objects and surfaces. Darker surfaces absorb light, lighter walls make better use of your light fittings and scatter more light around the room;
• The type of light bulbs and color temperature. Lower Kelvin "temperature" is more yellow, higher is white or blue;
• How shielded the bulbs are by a shade or cover - they will either block or diffuse the light. You may need direct rather than diffused light.
• "The 'shape' of the light output from the luminaire or lamp, i.e. in what directions the light emits - up, down, sideways;
• The amount of sunlight entering the room. Can you remove furniture that blocks natural daylight, if any. Is there enough lighting at night when there is no sunlight?
• What reflections or shadows might the light create, for example on walls and ceilings, and can you use this as an interior design feature?
• Beware of lighting fixtures with insufficient wattage or brightness. Some decorative fixtures may be designed more to contribute to the interior design, decorative vintage bulbs for example with low wattage, rather than to illuminate the room.

How do you create a comfortable living room, through lighting fixtures?

Every living room should include a combination of ambient lighting and focused task lighting. Accent lighting is optional and put in by choice, while the above two types are necessary rather than optional. Task lighting, for example, is most often ceiling-mounted in the living room. It diffuses light throughout the room and the fixture has a shade. Focused task lighting, on the other hand, is usually confined to table or high lamps.

If you live in an apartment or room where you can't install light fixtures, or don't want to make a permanent modification, a combination of hanging lights or wall lights will do wonders.

What light fixtures to choose for an average sized living room?

The living room should be large enough for 3-4 people to be comfortable in it. You should also be able to put a sofa, a couple of chairs and a TV. When considering the lighting, you need to anticipate the size of the room. For medium sizes, two light fixtures on two opposite walls might be a good idea. Additionally, a large hanging chandelier in a classic style may also be necessary.

Most often, sofas and chairs are placed away from the center of the living room, so if you mount lamps on the walls, for example two sconces, then the light will be enough for you to read, even if they are only lit. Another option is to equip the room with two lamps, spaced far enough apart, in combination with a table lamp

Not a bad option at all is to get a fan chandelier and combine it with a single lamppost and a table lamp. If you position them in different halves of the room and the fan is in the middle of the ceiling, then you will get a good amount of light.