5 Ways to Use LED Strip Lights for a Safer Home

by admin · Oct 21, 2023

What’s the big deal with LED strip lights anyway? Let’s be honest. Sometimes we can get so caught up in the beauty and aesthetics of our home lighting fixtures that we forget to add into our design the practical purposes of light. Not only does light allow us to see things clearly, but it also provides protection from the dangers hiding in the dark. We want to protect you and your family, so we offer lighting options and tips to help keep you safe.

LED strip turned on and arranged in coil

Here’s what you need to know about LED strip lights:

LED strip lighting is an amazing technology that comes in different variations, but most have the same basic features: a continuous strip of thin and flexible LED lights on a flexible circuit board. They usually come on a reel or roll and can be adhered to almost any surface. Some options come with a fixed color and brightness while others allow for custom variations of both. Their safety comes from their low voltage power requirement and the versatility of adding lighting nearly anywhere that could be dangerous in the dark, offering additional safety for your loved ones at home.

In caring for seniors, ensuring an adequately lit space can go a long way in preventing falls and other accidents. This is best done with motion-detecting lights that make it easy to light the space when someone enters. Falls are the leading cause of fatal injury and the most common cause of nonfatal trauma-related hospital admissions among older adults. Approximately one in four U.S. residents aged 65 years (or older) report falling each year.

Adequate lighting is also important for accident-prone individuals such as infants and young children. When lighting a home for these individuals, it’s important to place the lighting in key locations, as lighting from the ceiling and walls may not reach certain areas.

It’s best to mount them in places where the strip itself can be hidden but the light can provide a nice effect. Many people like mounting them under or behind unique structures to highlight interesting shapes or features of furniture or designs that would otherwise be ignored. But remember, safety is the first priority!

Here are some of our favorite places to use LED strip lights:

Kitchen

With sharp objects and hot surfaces, the kitchen can be a dangerous place for anyone. Having adequate lighting from top to bottom will help prevent accidents and keep you safe. Add LED strips under your kitchen cabinets that meet the floor—this area is known as the toe kick. This kind of lighting looks especially great under a kitchen island and makes those midnight snack runs or middle of the night drinks far less dangerous.

Add safety lights for home kitchen

Bathroom

Much like the kitchen, installing toe kick lights adds a really beautiful effect while illuminating an otherwise pitch black area. This lighting allows for a clear view of the floor and helps prevent toe bumps and even slips and falls on those half asleep trips to the bathroom.

Try these easy-install LED tape strips

Stairs

Accident-prone or not, stairs present a hazard in any home. One misstep can send grandparents, kids, and even the rest of us clumsy folk tumbling, so add LED strip lights to the front, back, or side edge of each step to light the way as you walk. This way, each step is clearly seen and cannot be missed.

Try these affordable LED tape lights for your staircase

Outdoors

With the right outdoor LED strip lights, you and your loved ones can enjoy the evenings with the confidence that you are protected from falls, burglars, and even unwanted pests. Place the lights around a central structure like a grill, or use multiple strips to illuminate the ceiling, posts, and steps of your patio.

Find great deals on outdoor lighting here

Walls and Ceiling

The space where your wall and ceiling meet may not be very hidden per se, but is not immediately noticeable at first glance. By placing LED strip lights around this perimeter, you can essentially light the entirety of the room in a fairly discreet way.

LED strip lights in ceiling and wall of room

Light your home with this LED strip

Staying Safe

LED lighting is a life-changing invention for the vision-impaired. LED lights are bright while still being easy on the eyes and present a lower fire hazard than other lighting options. With such a high risk of falls among the elderly, and dangers lurking in every dark corner, lighting your home for safety and efficiency must be a priority. Quickly add an LED strip anywhere more light is needed and reduce the risk of accident for the people you care about.

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Everything You Need to Know About LED Recessed Lights: Why 4” is the New 6”

by admin · Oct 14, 2023

You may have heard of downlights, pot lights, or can lights. But what are they? Simply put, recessed lights are light fixtures that are installed into your ceiling. They can illuminate the room without hanging down into the space like a chandelier or a pendant fixture.

There’s a lot to know about recessed lights before you install them in your home, and it can be hard to find all of that information, especially if you’re considering something other than the default 6-inch options lining the shelves of hardware stores.

So why go with 4-inch LED recessed lights? Here are some reasons:

Traditional vs LED Recessed Lights

Before LED technology came around there were only two types of recessed lights: Incandescent and compact fluorescent lamps (CFL). While both produce heat, CFLs use less energy but also contain mercury. Around 2010, LEDs started hitting the market and they’ve only gotten more popular since. Energy-efficiency is one of the main reasons; LEDs cost way less to run so you get massive savings on your energy bill. They use only a fraction of the electricity compared to traditional bulbs, and can last up to 50 times longer. Most run for years without any problems, product little heat and are mercury-free.

Light

LED technology is so efficient that even tiny bulbs can produce a very bright light (if you’ve ever tried to go to sleep in the dark with an LED indicator light on your laptop or tv, you’ll know what we mean). A standard 60W incandescent bulb can produce about 800 lumens, whereas a 9W LED bulb produces the same. Yeah…LEDs pack a powerful punch.

It’s always worth installing LED recessed lights with a dimmer switch so you can adjust the brightness levels as you see fit throughout the day.

Cost

It’s no secret that LED lights cost more upfront than traditional lights, including recessed lights. The good news is they’re worth it! LED lights need fewer watts to produce the same amount of energy, so costs are significantly less throughout the year. They also last over 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs, so you’ll only be replacing them every decade or so.

Ease of Installation

Recessed lights usually have a large housing, which means they need to be installed in between the framing lumber in your ceiling. In new builds, this isn’t a problem because the spacing of your lights can be planned out during construction.

If you decide to install recessed lights after the fact, creating an evenly spaced grid of lights becomes a lot more difficult.

Some (but not all) recessed lights can be installed in exactly the same place as your existing recessed lights. To do this, you’ll need to find a recessed light that can be “retrofitted,” meaning it has been specifically designed to work with the wiring already in place – keep in mind that some modifications may still be necessary. If you’re having trouble finding clear spaces in your ceiling and you don’t like where your current light is, don’t worry; LED technology has allowed manufacturers to slim down the housing for certain types of LED recessed lights (sometimes called “ultra-thin” or “canless” lights), creating fixtures that are only as thick as your ceiling drywall. These slimmed down lights can be installed anywhere in the ceiling, even if it’s halfway under a beam, so they’re a great choice for renovations.

4” vs 6” LED Recessed Lights

Recessed lights come in a lot of different sizes, typically from 3 – 6 inches. 6-inch recessed lights are most commonly used and have a wide variety of trim options, but their smaller 4-inch counterparts pack a pretty big punch, and may end up being a better fit for your space.

Light

Larger recessed lights can cast a wider beam of light across an area, but there’s more to it than that. The trim you choose will affect how wide or narrow the beam of light is, and how diffused the light will appear.

You also need to consider the height of your ceilings. The taller our ceilings, the more diffused the light will be across your space. When it comes to actual lumen output, both 4-inch and 6-inch LED lights are capable of producing plenty of illumination. There’s no need to buy larger (possibly overpowered) fixtures for your space when 4-inch recessed options can produce as many lumens or more.

Cost

Going with 4-inch recessed lights instead of the more popular 6-inch will cut your costs even more in a couple of ways. Because they’re smaller, they cost less than their bigger 6-inch counterparts. They also need less power to run, which translates to smaller utility bills.

4” is the New 6”

6-inch recessed lights are by far the most popular size on the shelves, although— as with every aspect of home design— popularity changes over time. For years now, home owners have been ditching ceiling lights in favor of a grid of 6-inch recessed lights, but the lack of visual interest is starting to sway designers back towards beautiful statement ceiling light fixtures like chandeliers and pendants. With these modern fixtures providing most of the ambient light for a space, larger recessed lights aren’t really necessary in the home. Smaller 4-inch lights are a much better option for creating beautiful layers of light without over-lighting your space.

4-inch lights also fit very well with modern decor styles, while 6-inch lights are most commonly found with traditional decor, giving some designers and homeowners the impression that they are outdated. Honestly speaking, they are.

Uses for 4” Recessed Lights

Multi-Purpose

While it’s possible to use 4-inch lights anywhere, they’re most commonly used in smaller spaces like the kitchen or office. They’re perfect for lighting a reading or craft area where you want to see what you’re doing. It’s a great size for highlighting artwork or architectural features without washing them out.

Create Balanced Light

4-inch recessed lights create the perfect “extra” light a room needs to feel just right. Your home rooms don’t need an equal amount of light in every square inch. Your room will actually feel much better if the lighting is tailored to the way you use it. One bright light in the center of a room will create shadows and dark corners, so you need several light sources to keep the lighting balanced.

In the dining room, compliment a pendant light over the table with recessed lights around the edges. This gives your table plenty of light, while giving the rest of the room an even glow.

Make Your Room Look Bigger

Properly placed recessed lights can make your rooms feel bigger if you employ a technique called Wall Washing. Wrapping your room in 4-inch recessed lights will evenly coat the wall with light, making things feel more spacious. This is a great trick for smaller areas like hallways and narrow rooms, and it helps to hide imperfections in the wall finish. Placement is important here; if your recessed lights are installed too closely to the wall they’ll create a cone of light (called wall grazing) which will not have the same space-creating effect.

	4-inch	6-inch
Cost	Cheaper to purchase and to power, although you might need more of them to light an entire room	More expensive to purchase and to power
Uses	Lighting smaller spaces; task lighting like reading, crafting, cooking; highlighting artwork and/or architectural features; wall washing	Ambient lighting for a large room like a bedroom or living room
Decor	Fits well into modern decor styles	More commonly found in traditional decor

Other Things to Consider

The size you choose matters, but there are other things you need to consider before purchasing. LED recessed lighting has come a long way in the past few years, and new features are regularly being added to the lineup.

Color

LED lights come in a wide variety of colors, measured in Kelvins (K). Warm light (up to 3000K) appears orange or yellow, like the light from traditional incandescent bulbs. It feels soft and cozy, and is a great choice for places where you want to wind down and relax, like a bedroom or a living room. Light between 3000K – 4000K is similar to midday daylight. It feels bright and white, and is a great choice for most rooms in the house. Cool light, above 4000K, starts to appear more and more blue as the Kelvins increase. Blue light feels crisp and energetic, and is often used in offices and hospitals to help keep people alert. Be careful with blue light in your home – it can play around with melatonin and make it harder to sleep well at night.

The color you choose for your lights will change how the paint on your walls looks, so it’s a good idea to experiment with it first before you commit. Some LED lights are color changing, meaning they can be set to emit warm or cool light, which takes the stress out of worrying which temperature to choose. Some, like this one, can be changed with a switch in the housing. This is great for homeowners that want to choose what they like, set it, and forget about it. Others can be changed via a remote control or a smart hub, making the lighting in your house truly customizable to any activity.

Dimmable

We recommend installing LED lights on a dimmer switch whenever possible! Because they are so bright, it’s nice to be able to dim the lights to a level you’re comfortable with throughout the day. Most LED lights are already dimmable but some aren’t, so you’ll need to double check before purchasing if this is a feature you want in your home!

Comfort Dim is one of the best dimmable technologies available in LED lighting. Traditional LEDs just become less bright as they are dimmed. Comfort Dim LEDs actually change the temperature of the light as they dim, gradually curving from a bright 2700K to a soft and comfortable 1800K. Add benefits here.

Smart Technology

Smart LED recessed lights come with the ability to communicate with other technologies in your home, like a smart hub. Depending on the features, this means you could set your lights on a schedule or even turn them on with a voice command instead of a switch.

Final Thoughts

There are a lot of things to consider when you’re installing recessed lights. Our lighting experts know all of the ins and outs and would love to share their knowledge with you to help get you started. Give us a call or stop by our showroom and see for yourself how recessed lighting can completely transform your home.

How Office Light Color Can Build or Break Your Business

by admin · Oct 7, 2023

Have you ever noticed how certain lights make things look different? Take a hair salon, for example. The stylist dyes your hair and it looks great in the salon, but when you go outside, it’s a completely different color! That isn’t bad styling— but it might be caused by bad lighting. Here’s an in-depth review of the Color Rendering Index and how it might affect your business.

Visible Color and Light Color: The Basics

You may remember this from school-age science classes, but what we perceive as white light is actually all the visible colors of light mixed together. Natural light sources, like the sun, produce all these colors, as shown through any prism, while artificial light sources often emit only a few colors. The color we perceive in objects depends on the colors absorbed and reflected by the object, so objects unable to absorb the usual spectrum of light will appear a different color than usual.

Keeping Track of Color: The Color Rendering Index

The Color Rendering Index is a measurement of light’s effect on colors. It measures how many of the usual colors emitted by white light are emitted by a given light source. Light sources that are very similar to full-spectrum natural light have a high CRI rating, up to 100. Lights that lack certain colors and aren’t full-spectrum have a low CRI rating, somewhere below 70.

How CRI Affects Business

Having high CRI lights in your place of business can be extremely important, especially when perception and image is at stake. Businesses such as hair or nail salons, art galleries, car dealerships, and photography studios must be especially careful to install high CRI lights. If a customer invests in a product, hair color, car, or anything else color-dependent, only to find out that it isn’t what they originally saw… That unhappy customer poses a risk to your reputation and future business.

Low CRI lights aren’t defective or universally undesirable, but they do have specific uses. You may see low CRI lights in street lamps, light posts, or stadium lights.

Another Note: Color Rendering Index vs Kelvin Scale

Because color and light have a huge impact on our perceptions and opinions, CRI isn’t the only way to rank a light’s quality. While the CRI measures how a light affects an object’s color, the Kelvin scale measures the color of the light itself, providing the correlated color temperature (CCT) of the light source. Oftentimes CCT and CRI get confused with one another, but they’re just different measurements of light quality that are relevant to different situations.

Don’t Stress- Just Check the Package

Now that we’ve learned what CRI and CCT are, let’s imagine you’re picking out a lightbulb. Each package should tell you the CRI and CCT ratings for the bulb, and you may see some common trends. Typically, high CRI lights are also fairly high in CCT. For example, a light bulb that emits light at 2700K (warm light) usually has a lower CRI (less true color) than that of a 4000K light bulb (blueish light) with a higher CRI (truer object color). This is not always the case, but it is common.

If you have doubts about selecting the right bulbs for your business, or any other questions, our lighting experts at Hobrecht Lighting are here to help. Reach out to us and we’ll make sure your business puts its best foot, and best color-quality lighting, forward!

Channel Your Inner Designer With These Modern Ceiling Fans

by admin · Sep 30, 2023

Does your home decor style say modern? Maybe it says transitional. Or, maybe you’re wanting to abandon a former you, do a complete 180, and create a modern look. To give your home a modern finish, there are some fundamental elements you’ll want to consider. Yes, the right kind of pillows and picture frames will come into play, but let’s start with more of a central piece – a statement piece – something you can design around. No we’re not talking about a couch or table. Believe it or not, we’re talking ceiling fans.

The right kind of ceiling fan can introduce your style with some serious flare and help tie a room together, so why not start with it? Convinced? Let’s walk through some of the different types and maybe, just maybe, one of these modern ceiling fans will spark an interest in you.

Our 3 Favorite Types of Modern Ceiling Fans in 2019

All modern, contemporary ceiling fans will offer sleek lines, smooth finishes, and little to no adornment. Now you might be wondering how modern ceiling fans differ. Well, our goal is to inspire your whole space – how the fan you select will complement your furniture, paintings, and color schemes. Let’s get to it.

Mid-Century Modern

This type of style dates back to the 1950s (hence, mid-century style) and focuses on simple features and naturally integrated materials. Take lots of natural wood and mix it with different metals, large glass windows, natural and warm hues, and asymmetric detailing, and you have yourself a mid-century style home.

This style has remained just as popular since it was first developed. Homeowners like the idea of linking the inside of their home to the outside just through the use of specific materials. Mid-century modern style has also gained wide popularity for its sleek and simple design principles.

To complement this type of living, you’ll want a mid-century modern ceiling fan combined with different materials. We suggest finding a fan that combines natural wood with a brassy metal for some intentional contrast. For inspiration, you could go with dark walnut wood blades and an antique bronze for the mounting device and motor. Or, play around with mixing a dark cherry wood with polished nickel.

Whichever pairing you choose, know that you can create that desired medley of wood and metal with just one piece – yes, that one piece can be a ceiling fan and it can play a significant role in the aesthetic of a room. For a sleek, contemporary look, check out our Amherst ceiling fan.

Modern Farmhouse

A neutral-colored bedroom with different textures and natural light seeping through

The modern farmhouse feel has risen in popularity over the last few years, but don’t confuse it with a rustic look. Modern farmhouse style takes the relaxed feel of a farmhouse and dresses it up with modern accents – modern accents being fine lines, glossy finishes, and neutral color schemes that say ‘sophisticated’, rather than ‘rustic’.

To get the full effect of a modern farmhouse, modern contemporary ceiling fans will subtly tie everything together. Similar to mid-century modern, modern farmhouse ceiling fans should also play on natural textures and materials, like wood and steel. But to incorporate that farmhouse vibe, your pieces should also look “well-used” – this doesn’t mean damaged, but rather, intentionally distressed.

To achieve this look, check out our Nomad ceiling fan.

The Boho Look

Indoor tropical ceiling fan with palm leaf blades

Boho or Bohemian, style lends itself to more of a relaxed, carefree vibe. Yet, it’s still considered modern because of its recent trendiness. In a mission to embrace the unusual, boho-inspired homeowners will decorate their space with eclectic items and features, bold colors, and whichever patterns and textures they like. That being said, it’s not all random.

You can still deliberately pull fun, unique items and colors together to give your space a cohesive, boho vibe you desire. But to achieve the full contemporary, boho look, you’ll need a modern ceiling fan – and not only for aesthetic. Imagine a light breeze swirling around you as you snuggle up to your tassel pillows. To create that carefree space, an interesting ceiling fan will give you both the aesthetic and function your boho heart needs.

Consider unique ceiling fans that might even look unconventional. If you truly want a boho space, you don’t have to worry about lines coming together in uniformity. It’s all about picking up unique pieces along your journey and making them fit. As there’s no formula to boho style, we urge you to look for interesting ceiling fans – maybe it’s asymmetrical or carved from mismatched wood. Whatever it is, let it speak to your inner designer.

Get Inspired and SAVE

And that’s what really makes a modern space, well, modern. But don’t feel limited to these styles of ceiling fans; at the end of the day, it’s your space and you should create it how you want to. Remember, modern ceiling fans can bring a complete look together just by acting as a centerpiece.

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Timeless VS. Trendy: Which Works Best In Your Home?

by admin · Sep 23, 2023

Keeping up with trends, whether commercially or only as an observer, can be a fun hobby! There’s so much variety, beauty, and class in this world. However, trends in fashion, décor, and even lighting, revolve quickly. If you’re thinking of replacing a more permanent part of your home, such as the flooring, plumbing, or lighting, it’s tricky to be trendy and timeless at the same time.

So how do you decide? Should you choose the latest look, with all the “Ooh”s and “Ahhh”s it’ll bring? Or should you be conservative and avoid something you’ll regret in 5 years? After all, tiny details can date a home. You know, wallpaper from the 70’s, pink tile in the 80’s, burgundy and forest green from the 90’s, bronze and faux finishes from the early 2000’s…

There isn’t one right way to go about this, nor is there one easy answer to the “trendy vs. timeless” debate. However, here are a few things to consider.

It’s Not All or Nothing

You may love some of the styles that have withstood the test of time: subway tile, herringbone (fabric and flooring), or wood floors. That’s great! On the other hand, that doesn’t mean that you can’t also incorporate this year’s hot paint colors and some trendy macramé hangings into your décor as well. Don’t try to decide everything at once, and don’t base all your decisions off of one piece of your home.

Consider Your Resale Plans

There are some cases when it’s better to choose trendy décor and finishes, even if the current trend is not your personal favorite. If you’re building a new home, remodeling, or flipping a home with any intention to sell soon, go trendy. Homes that are on trend show well and sell faster.

Avoid Over-Decorating

Though you could argue that “minimalism” is a trend in itself, we’re convinced that good use of space is timeless. Though it can be tempting to fill every shelf or cover every wall with your latest finds, an over-decorated, crowded space diminishes the artistic effect of any style. In addition, it’ll be easier to update your look later if you have few, carefully chosen accent pieces that can rotate with the next trend.

Be Smart About Trendy

If you’re like most people, you probably don’t have unlimited time and funds to remodel the kitchen or buy a new couch every time popular trend takes a new direction. However, there are plenty of simple, cost-effective ways to make your space trendy and new. Here’s a list of our favorite ideas!

1. Change an indoor paint color. Indoor paint runs its course in about 5 years, so it makes sense. You could even start with a small room… less time, big reward!

2. Rotate your rug or change it altogether. Rugs have a natural knap to them depending on how they are woven. A quick rotation may surprise you with a significant difference.

3. Update your throw pillows on the bed and couches. It’s a quick, cost-effective change!

4. Especially during the winter, add a plant or some kind of earthy décor element to bring a natural, refreshing feel to your space.

5. Switch out some art. Frames may be pricey, but prints usually aren’t! Buy a new family photo, modern print, or custom piece of art to freshen up your frames

6. Replace a key lighting fixture. In addition to updating your look, switching to new bulbs will save you money on your utility bill. Check out our catalog for some good recommendations!

7. Buy new dish towels or dinnerware. An extra pop of color can change the atmosphere in the kitchen or add some extra fun at dinner.

Make Your Home Your Own

Trends will come and go… And traditional styles? Even there, there’s a ton of variation! Contemporary. Transitional. Rustic. Vintage. Urban. Eclectic… no matter the style, take the time to create a home environment that speaks to you. If it suits your needs and appeals to your unique style, it’ll be timeless. Best of luck from Hobrecht Lighting in your decorating adventures!

The Easiest Way to Boost Productivity (that you’ve never heard of)

by admin · Sep 16, 2023

We promise that we can show you a super-easy way to boost your productivity. Hang with us as we lay a little bit of background, but don’t worry. It’ll be worth it (an much easier than you think).

Sooo… have you ever heard of the Kelvin scale? Vaguely familiar? Blank? Well, not to worry…most of us retain don’t retain a lot from science classes, but believe it or not, it is an integral part of our daily experience. In fact, even a very basic understanding of the Kelvin scale, and applying it in your home lighting can improve your mood, productivity, and even long-term health. Yes! All from lighting. Read on for some applicable science and a few trivia-friendly facts from your friends here.

1. What It Is

Let’s start with the very basics. What is the Kelvin scale? Most used as a temperature measurement that ranges from absolute zero to the heat of the sun, Kelvin also measures the color temperature of light, both artificial and natural. Its applications are widespread, stretching from astrology to photography to biology.

There is plenty of in-depth science to explain how one scale can measure the temperature of celestial bodies and also classify light bulbs… But for now, let’s just keep it super simple to understand the basic concept. Just imagine an experiment where a metal is subjected to various levels of heat.

Depending on the Kelvin temperature (amount of heat that it absorbs), the metal glows in colors such as amber, yellow or blue. So, a certain temperature of heated metal = certain color of light emitted. So even though light bulbs don’t usually function at those exact temperatures, we use Kelvin because it’s an exact way to classify the color of light emitted by different light sources. Kelvin then is the color of light…and as it turns out…it matters a lot.

2. Why It Matters

Moving on from the background science… Why worry about the Kelvin and color of light? First, check out the scale itself. (The higher the number, the cooler/bluer the light. The lower the number, the warmer/redder the light.) Color temperatures of the Kelvin scale range from 1,000K-10,000K.

1000K-1900K is candle light hue
2000K-2900K is a warm, yellowish white.
3000K-4500K is a cool white.
4600K-6500K is comparable to daylight.
Above 6500K the light has increasingly more blue tones.
10,000K is the color of the blue sky.

Imagine if your home was lit only by candles, or if it was constantly filled with bright daylight. Because our bodies are programmed to react to different light temperatures in different ways, it makes a huge difference in your mood, energy, daily tasks, ambiance, ability to concentrate, and even your sleep. This is not to say that any one type of light is better than another—simply that the color temperature impacts us…. the functionality and atmosphere of our homes and workplaces.

Different light bulbs emit different colors. Not all light bulbs are created equal. And the color of light emitted by your light bulbs is making its impact right now, though it may go unnoticed. Excessively cool tones, insufficient quantity of light, or excessive artificial light before sleep can impact mood, productivity, and even increase chances of disease. Fortunately, your new knowledge of the Kelvin scale can help you fine tune your home lighting.

3. How to Use It

Thanks to a little help from science, you can use the Kelvin scale to choose lighting that maximizes your health and productivity at home. Consider your daily activities and form a home lighting plan that suits your family’s needs—which rooms are meant for productivity, and which for relaxing?

In residential lighting, the most common color temperatures that people use and prefer are 2700K to 3000K. Why? Warmer colors create an atmosphere of coziness, calm, and comfort. Consider warm lighting for your bedrooms, family room, and other rooms for social gathering. For an office, garage, or workspace, cool lighting can create a more clean, precise atmosphere to facilitate productivity.

As for the kitchen, bathrooms, laundry ad hobby rooms where you need most productive so it’s a good choice to mimic natural light around noon with warmer light around 3000-4000K.

Here is an easy rule to follow:

In areas where you need higher degrees of concentration and productivity, you need a higher Kelvin (up to 3500-4000k), where you need lower levels of concentration and productivity, use a lower Kelvin (1500k – 3000k).

Need advice? Feel free to discuss your ideas with one of our lighting experts. We’re here to help you build a home atmosphere that’s best for you.

Nature-Inspired Lighting for Indoor Spaces

by admin · Sep 9, 2023

Eco-friendly. Plant-inspired. Natural colors. These well-loved decor trends are giving homes across the world a breath of fresh air by inviting the outside in.

Whether you take care of an army of plant babies or, if your green thumb skipped a generation, you prefer to use nature-inspired shapes, colors, and materials in your design, you’re sure to get some ideas from these beautiful nature-inspired interiors!

Use Your Houseplants

What better way to make your space feel alive than bringing in something that’s actually alive? If you’re willing to get creative, your indoor lighting and your house plants can work together in tandem to make a design statement that will literally bring life to your space.

These minimalist bulb lights illuminate plant displays while blending in with the scenery. These industrial lights feel elegant and natural hanging alongside leafy plants and mini terrariums.

Hanging lights can be combined with natural light from outside as well. This beautiful, open space is accented with simple hanging bulbs. The bulb pendants are long enough to reach eye level, but the cords blend nicely with other lines in the room.

These industrial-feeling pendants show a creative adaptation of a plant and light combination. Vines hanging from the ceiling are an unexpected accent to a warehouse-style ceiling. The vintage pendant lamps tie everything together.

You don’t have to have a lot of surface area to add life to your space. This light fixture doubles as a plant stand, creating a natural, rustic, multi-purpose conversation starter.

Find Nature-Inspired Lights

If the thought of keeping a bunch of house plants alive gives you hives, not to worry! Instead of tucking your lights amongst your plants, find light fixtures that echo the shapes and textures of the natural world. They’ll give you a great conversation piece and require zero watering.

Here’s a natural take on a pendant light. A string of white bulb lights wrapped around a tree branch adds a little fairy magic to a simple, gray room. It’s suspended from a cable in the ceiling to create a “floating” effect.

This chandelier is a modern take on the tree-branch concept. The multi-directional placement of the bulbs, along with its earthy copper color tones, gives off natural, modern vibes.

You can find some creative, colorful lights patterned after plants. This vibrant LED wall light makes a statement on a plain white wall. Not only are they a fun pop of color, but LEDs are also energy-efficient — it’s a green double-win.

Emphasize Natural Colors

What better way to bring the outside in than with a natural color palette? Greens, browns, and blues are staples in the interior design industry for a reason! But – any natural color palette works here. Snap some pictures of the world outside your door, or find a picture of your dream destination, and then head to a lighting showroom to find fixtures that match!

Natural colors with accents of dark blues and greens are a great way to create an outdoorsy feel. This black and gold pendant light creates a perfect balance of color in front of a forest green wall.

These pendant spheres are also a great example. The gold and cream lights are soft, neutral, and subtle, which lets the room’s natural wood textures shine.

Lampshades are also easy to find in natural colors. They add a beautiful, polished touch without being too busy or elaborate. This hanging lamp shade shows how beige can accent a room full of plants, wood, and other natural elements.

These are some classic, basic lamp designs. Next to other, more eccentric lamp styles, they might not be noticeable. Next to a deep blue wall, however, they stand out.

A green pendant lamp with a green wall and green furniture might seem like a lot, but it works. Having various shades of the same color adds a fun pop of personality.

Include Natural Materials

Your light fixtures don’t have to be synthetic and industrial just because they’re connected to the grid. Natural materials such as rattan have come back in a big way.

This cozy living room is filled with soft, natural materials. The wood lamp brings a natural warmth, and a bit of balanced structure, to this comfy space.

Some other popular materials include woven straw, wicker, or bamboo. This woven shade is a gorgeous shape and color. It also lets enough light through to illuminate all the other natural features of the room.

Woven shades are a great way to bring nature into your lighting. They illustrate that the size, shape, and color can vary based on the design of the room they’re going in. They can also be paired up to add another layer of design.

Ceramic is a beautiful natural material for a light fixture. These two domed ceramic pendants give off a warm glow that’s perfect for a cozy dinner.

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Drawing inspiration from nature to decorate our homes isn’t a new idea. It’s lasted for centuries because it works – we love to bring the outside in! There’s no right or wrong way to make it work for you, so find something you love and get started!

If you’d like an extra hand finding just the right natural touch for your next lighting project, our lighting experts would love to help!. Give us a call, or stop by our showroom for the breath of fresh air that comes with a lighting update.

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