You finally snag the perfect apartment in San Francisco, complete with large windows that allow for plenty of natural light. However, when the sun begins to set even the largest bay windows can't keep your rental bright. To help decorate your apartment and keep it shining all year long, it’s important to invest in beautiful light fixtures. This ApartmentGuide article will help you do just that and more to balance lighting in your home.
Luis Murillo, principal designer for LMD Architecture Studio describes “ambient lighting to play a crucial role in creating the ultimate relaxing experience by providing a soft, diffuse illumination that mimics natural light.” Therefore, whether you add a few additional lamps or get creative with hanging lights, there are plenty of options for upgrading your apartment lighting.
1. Choose light-colored lampshades
Since you probably want to avoid drilling into the ceiling of your apartment in Brooklyn, much of your supplemental lighting will be floor or end table lamps. The good news is that lampshades offer an opportunity to really show off your style, and they help to soften brighter light bulbs for a more comforting glow.
Doreen Le May Madden, president of award-winning Lux Lighting Design and certified architectural lighting designer shares how “light fabric or glass shades will provide room lighting, where metal or dark fabric shades will provide downward direct lighting for concentrated light in one direction.” To keep your apartment as bright as possible, stick to light-colored lampshades. Think white, cream, light gray or similar hues when selecting a lampshade.
If you still need more light once you have lamps set up, consider buying fairy lights. While you may associate this type of lighting with the twinkle lights around a Christmas tree, there are other options available that feel much chicer.
Designers now offer string lights with large bulbs, black or silver string and a sleek modern look. Buy a decorative wooden ladder and string lights around it, set up your pyramid shelves in the corner and adorn the piece with string lights or simply string them around a window.
Alternatively, the team at LED Lighting Supply recommends “integrating LED strip lights under cabinets and along shelves.” They add how this can “provide task lighting and a modern aesthetic.”
Some rentals have a limited number of electrical outlets, and rewiring your home is not an option as a renter. Turn to wireless lighting that operates on battery power and is extremely mobile. Wireless LED candles, for instance, offer ambiance and turn on with the flip of a switch.
Best of all, faux candles don't pose the same fire hazard as an actual candle. Tap lights are also wireless and a good way to illuminate shelves or other small spaces. These lights are typically activated when you apply a small amount of pressure to the top of the light.
Add a few mirrors to your rental space if you don't have a lot of room or money for new lighting. Mirrors propped up against your walls won't damage the drywall and can reflect light from your lamps and other home lighting.
Mirrors create the illusion of more lighting sources and double the amount of light that bounces around your apartment. Place larger mirrors next to a floor lamp and small wall mirrors adjacent to end tables with a light fixture.
Now that your space is outfitted with several floor lamps, a few strands of fairy lights and a handful of large mirrors, take a moment to consider the placement of each piece. Don't put all the lighting in your living room, for instance, while neglecting to consider your dining nook. Instead, space out your lighting fixtures. Put at least one light source near each corner of larger rooms.
Having a rental doesn’t mean you can’t make some changes to make your space feel homey. While you may not want to hang up a chandelier in a place you’ll only be in for a year or two, there are lightweight lighting options that you can hang from the ceiling to help transform a dining room or bedroom.
Look for some artsy bulbs with black or metal hardware to hang from the ceiling. Battery-powered options make it easy to install anywhere, meaning you don’t have to deal with any wiring issues to get this look. Plus, your guests will love this unique and romantic lighting at your next dinner party.
When deciding where to place your lights, consider what areas of your new apartment will be used the most (and could use some brightening). A lamp on your desk or near your favorite reading chair can make work and play a breeze while brightening up your entire home at the same time.
The type of light also makes a difference. While desks and kitchens need bright and direct light, bathrooms and hallways only require soft lighting.
Those floor-to-ceiling windows that made you love your current apartment can sometimes be overwhelming, especially if you don’t have any blinds or curtains to control the amount of light that enters your home at any given time.
White, wooden blinds allow control over the amount of light seeping through your windows without darkening up your walls. While see-through or lightly-colored curtains can help to soften the sun’s rays. And as a bonus, these items can often be packed up and used again in your next home, making the investment well worth it.
If there are pieces of art, furniture or tech that you want to call attention to in your home, consider highlighting those items with light. Angled from above or below, spotlights on the most beautiful items in your home can help your apartment look polished without much work.
Backlighting is another great way to call attention to important pieces of art (or even an entertainment system). By installing smaller light fixtures behind the item you want to see, the light then illuminates the outline from behind, drawing in the eye in a pleasant way. And with backlighting, you don’t have to shell out for the most beautiful hardware since no one will see it anyways.
Add some depth to each room by lighting up dark corners. This will help draw the eye across the room and help it feel larger. Make sure that the fixture fits well in the space to avoid throwing off the flow of your other decor.
Light placed in corners should be soft and warm. Harsher light, while great for busier areas, has no utility in a corner and can draw too much attention to a section of the home that isn’t meant to be highlighted.
Lighting your new apartment should be at the top of your move-in to-do list. If you neglect to properly light your apartment, you will soon realize that it's not possible to enjoy all of your lovely decor in the dark.
Want to show off your ingenious apartment lighting solutions? We always love to see how renters solve their lighting issues. Comment your ideas for home lighting below.
Marcello Kline is a content marketer for Redfin. With over a year of experience writing for Redfin and a background as a former real estate agent and home flipper, he brings valuable insights to the real estate community. Based in Los Angeles, Marcello enjoys the serene beaches of Malibu, playing tennis, and hiking on a moody overcast day. His ideal home is a Regency house in London, reflecting his appreciation for classic architecture and design.