The Art of Layered Lighting: A Guide to Lighting Your Home

Ambient Lighting

Often referred to as ‘general lighting’, ambient lighting is the main source of illumination in a room. It provides overall light for the space. Typically, ambient light comes from overhead sources like spotlights, chandeliers, ceiling-mounted fixtures, or, increasingly popular among our clients, 3-phase track lights.

These track lights allow you to create three different lighting combinations on a single track, offering ultimate flexibility without the need for extra wiring. (We have some amazing offers on them—you can check them out here!)

The main deciding factors for picking the right ambient lighting should be:

Size and Structure: Different room dimensions = different lighting requirements. Ambient lighting is not one size fits all for all areas of your home. For rooms with higher ceilings, you’ll typically need brighter light sources, often with higher lumen output. However, that level of brightness might not be ideal for spaces like bedrooms (unless you enjoy being blasted with blinding light first thing in the morning!)

Purpose: The room’s function is key! For kitchens or home offices, go for cooler lighting around 4000 kelvin (or a tad higher), while warmer lighting works best for lounging areas. This principle also applies within the same room! Take open plan kitchen-living areas for example. Do not feel obliged to stick to the same overhead lighting plan for the whole room. You’ll need way fewer downlights over the sofa area than over the kitchen—trust us.

Aesthetic: Whether you opt for a crystal chandelier or minimalist track lighting as your ambient lighting, it’s up to you! All we suggest is to base your decision on the room’s colour scheme and design style to create a cohesive aesthetic that complements the space’s overall mood.

Task Lighting

Ambient lighting – done! Or is it? Not quite.

While ambient lighting provides the basic illumination we need to see, task lighting is the unsung hero that eliminates pesky shadows and annoying glare, making daily tasks easier.

Task lighting focuses on areas used for specific activities like cooking, reading, or working at your desk, helping reduce eyestrain and improving visibility.

Task lighting comes in many forms, including:

While most of these are easy to add to your home, some crucial ones may require more planning. Think under-cabinet lighting in the kitchen for food prep, vanity lights for makeup, or pendant lights over a kitchen island.

These are important considerations to make early on in the planning stages. While they may require a bit more work and thought, they’re definitely worth it.

Accent Lighting

Now that ambient and task lighting are sorted, let’s dive into accent lighting—the secret component to add that designer finish to home. Accent lighting is all about creating impact. It highlights specific areas or features in a room, adding a layer of depth and drawing the eye to what you want to showcase.

Whether it’s a painting, a textured wall, or a beautifully arranged shelf, accent lighting creates a sense of focus and adds that “wow” factor to a space.

Common accent lighting options include but not limited to:

The key to accent lighting is contrast. It’s designed to be brighter than the surrounding light, so it stands out and directs attention to a particular feature. However, it’s not about overwhelming the room with too much light—subtlety is key.

When planning accent lighting, identify the features you want to highlight—like a feature wall or shelves—as early as possible. This ensures accurate placement of electrical points, allowing you to conceal light sources and draw attention to the illuminated area, not the light source itself.