Lighting is an essential element of interior design, and choosing the right light can be a daunting and difficult task for many. Fortunately, you don’t need to be an expert interior designer to understand and appreciate the art of lighting and design. By considering some basic factors you can make smart decisions and select the right light for your next project.
Understanding Different Lighting Categories and Styles
Before beginning, it’s essential to understand the five different categories of lighting, based on intensity or purpose. These categories are: general, ambient, mood, task, and accent lighting. Depending on placement, brightness, and use, some of these lights can fit into multiple categories.
Additionally, there are different styles of lights based on structure or form, function or type, and requirements or needs. Some common styles of lights are:
- Free-standing lights and floor lamps
- Wall-mounted light fixtures and sconces
- Hanging lights, track lights and recessed lights
- Ceiling-mounted fixtures and chandeliers
- Table and desk lamps
- Nightstand and side table lights
Also keep in mind the bulb that best fits the light and its effect on the environment. There are the traditional bulbs, incandescent and halogen as well as the more popular vintage-style Edison bulbs (which cast off a softer, subtle ambient design effect, depending on the brand and wattage it can be more of a yellow light). Then there are the newer, energy-saving LEDs, which cast off a brighter, cleaner white light, however it’s important to note that dimmer loads need to be factored in with LEDs and certain lights.
Key Considerations for Selecting the Right Light
Having a general understanding of the different categories and styles can be helpful in finding the best light for your design or theme. However, several other aspects are important to consider to achieve the perfect fit. For example, the size and space of the room, ceiling height, traffic patterns, existing lights, and electrical setups are all things that come into consideration. Other problems to think through include the points of interest, highlight areas, shadows, reflections, and light distribution and brightness, which can vary significantly between different lights. Lastly, color is everything when it comes to design. Colors have a significant impact on the overall mood and personality of a room, and lighting can change how we perceive colors. That’s why it’s essential to think through the existing colors of the walls and furniture and how they might change, depending on the lighting selections.
When done intentionally and effectively, lighting can be nothing short of magical. A simple adjustment like dimming a lamp can transform an entire room and create a calming, peaceful, or even romantic environment. Selecting the proper light is the key to this, and one that adjusts as needed can be more than just a little helpful – it can be wonderful.
Our Most Popular Light: The Wright-Light™
Our most popular light is the Wright-Light™, which is a vintage-industrial aviation chandelier. It’s an exquisite handcrafted wooden truss design, and a tribute to two of our first and most famous aviators. The beautiful side-profile showcases the structural design of a plane fuselage, and is from an original, early-era aircraft. Although designed to be an accent piece that supports a vintage industrial design theme, it has become the central design piece and focal point of many designs. This light takes two months to hand-build and is an ideal product for any aviation aficionado! It has lived up to its name in every way and is now a cherished piece in many establishments, gracing some of the finest homes in the country.
Our Selection of Vintage-Industrial Lighting
In addition to the Wright-Light™, we have a wide variety of other styles to choose from at Get Back Inc., including free-standing lights and floor lamps, wall-mounted lights, fixtures, and sconces, hanging, track, and recessed lights, ceiling-mounted fixtures, and chandeliers, and so much more. Come and visit our showroom to see, try out, and choose the perfect light for your next interior design project!
