Bedrooms can play an important role within the home. Aside from sleeping, it is the place for relaxing, either before bed or when you wake in the morning before you start your day. Lighting can make a significant difference to your circadian rhythm, the internal process that regulates the sleep-wake cycle. So it is important to ensure your lighting supports your body’s natural way of determining when we should sleep and when we should rise.
Here’s Truly Lighting’s advice for lighting your bedroom.
Ensure a mix of ambient and task lighting
Ambient lighting in a bedroom can be useful during the day, as you will no doubt need to complete tasks such as getting dressed, cleaning or putting clothes away. An overhead light can provide this, as well as natural light through windows or a skylight. Try not to block out natural light with heavy blinds, and instead use blinds that can be partially closed to stop glare but still allow the room to be usable.
As you move towards the evening, ensure you have options other than just the overhead light. You need to dim the lights as you approach the time for bed, to help your body get ready for sleeping. Bedside lamps are ideal for gently illuminating the room, as well as providing light for relaxing. Avoid lights over your bed as this can be harsh on the eyes when you lie down. Soft lighting from the side is preferable.
Other lamps around the room may also provide a warm glow, without being too bright or stark. Lamps can also add to the décor of a room, so consider a piece that adds to your interior design.
Consider accent lighting
If you have a particular piece of artwork in your bedroom, or a unique architectural feature, you can highlight this with accent lighting. It may not be lighting that you use very often, but when relaxing in your room it can be an impressive addition to illuminate something notable in the space.
Lighting for shelves
If you have an open shelf in your room, which are ideal for keeping books and décor, they can be used to support your lighting scheme. A lamp or a strip light will introduce some warmth to your room, creating an inviting atmosphere and adding to the layering effect of the lighting in the room.
Truly Lighting have a wealth of experience in creating unique lighting designs for residential properties including bedrooms. Contact us today to discuss your needs.