Some decent lighting at home is not only a mood enhancer but a necessity. Brighter rooms washed with light naturally make us feel better, while a poorly lit house makes up for an unpleasant space indoors and even makes the house less desirable. Natural light always has an edge over artificial lighting and is excellent for daytime hours, while being a huge energy saver.
Natural light is irreplaceable by artificial light, as the former provides a rich spectrum that cannot be met by artificial lighting and also increases the body serotonin levels and is a natural mood enhancer. Often natural light is trapped by a door or a window. Arranging your luxury furniture in India or the way your imported cupboards, European wardrobes, Italian sofas and closets in a certain way does make a huge difference in the way natural light is reflected in a room.
Here are a few ways to light up your room naturally:
- Windows:
Having a lot of windows is the most common way of letting in a lot of light inside the room. It is better for every room in the house to have natural light coming in during the day such that there is no need for artificial lighting.
There are a variety of window designs that can be adopted that adds to the house décor. One can opt for the conventional windows or the clerestory windows which are windows that are placed at a higher level on the wall. Again skylights are windows on the roof that illuminate the room.
- The right curtains:
With a lot of windows, choosing the right curtains is the key because drapes make all the difference on how much light the windows give off. While, thick window coverings and curtains often absorb the natural light, lighter colored and light fabrics in curtains actually help preserve it.
- Paint it right:
The color on your walls and ceiling greatly determines the natural light coming into your house. Interior color is the definite way wherein light is reflected back into the room. White is actually the brightest color and painting your ceiling white is the best bet in light reflection. White adds instant and extra light to space. Darker colors other than shades of white degrade the light bounce!
- Mirror:
Using mirrors in home décor helps in transformation of a room. A large statement mirror not only adds glamour to the room but also reflects light brilliantly. If a mirror was placed opposite or next to a window, it actually creates the illusion of more light in the room.
- Gloss it up:
Giving a gloss finishing to the furniture and flooring is a brilliant way of bouncing light around the room. It not only reflects the light but brightens up the room of its own accord, in turn, giving the illusion that there is more light than it there actually is. In fact the higher the gloss levels in the house, higher the light reflection, i.e, light bounces more off a surface painted with high gloss. A glossier look actually gives off a mirror-like effect.
- Reflective tiles:
Reflective glass tiles are interesting light reflectors in a room. Almost 100 % of the light that hit them is reflected back. Highly glossy ceramic tiles also create a nearly equal reflective effect in terms of reflection and to notch up a bit installing metallic backsplash tiles turns up the light a bit higher.
These few home hacks are sure to efficiently let in natural light into the rooms in your house. Furthermore, a few décor tips can actually make a lot of difference to how light is reflected in the interiors. Read about the same in the follow-up blog.
The next time you are setting up your house you can choose from the efficiently designed Italian sofas from Pianca India and Bonaldo Furniture India, and imported cupboards, Italian cupboards and modern wardrobes in India. Pairing the right luxury furniture in Delhi, Mumbai etc, with lighter curtains and the right wall paint, or using the mirror enables more natural light into the room.