5 Easy DIY Lighting Ideas To Liven Up Your Home

It’s that time of the year again to explore lighting ideas. I used to think July made me restless, but apparently, Feb is no better. It is probably because this is an eventful month and in spite of being the shortest month, a lot gets packed into it.

Even though winter is on its way out, the evenings are still pleasantly cool. And thanks to the allergens in the air, I prefer to finish my walking early in the evening when there’s still sunlight and be back home 6-ish. Neither of us is the sort that likes to go out much, which results in spending a lot of time indoors.  In any case, we do enjoy spending time at home and try to make it as pleasant and cozy as possible.

If there’s one thing we like, it is a lot of lighting. None of that dingy dull ambiance for us. Could be because both of us wear glasses – so it stands to reason that we like a bright place. Nevertheless, we are also conscious about our electricity bills and use different types of lighting ideas.

It is often said that lighting intensity plays a key role in determining your mood. As I am inclined to spend more time reading, I thought I would explore some DIY interior lighting ideas to liven things up a bit.

Here are 5 lighting ideas I am exploring

Vintage lighting

This is the good old filament bulb – takes me right back to my childhood days. Our living room is fairly large and we’ve sectioned it off into two parts.  When we are not spending time there, we like to use this cozy lighting, which creates that vintage atmosphere. A softer glow that looks comfortable and inviting, should we decide to just stretch out on the sofa and listen to some music or watch TV.

I’ve found that white or blue lights in winter can make the place look a little frigid, adding to that cold feeling. Dimmer yellow lights are much nicer for a decorative lighting design – so I switched to those.

Wax on

Oh, nothing beats the good old glow of the wax candle in lighting ideas. I still remember the first time I got a scented candle shaped like a sunflower and wanted to save it for as long as I could!

Candlelight is so radiant, so romantic, so perfect for relaxing! And of course, our electricity provider is kind enough to give us plenty of power cuts so that we may enjoy frequent candlelit moments. Then of course we’ve gone creative and set up tea light holders with candles just to make it a bit stylish. And when there are scented candles or essential oil diffusers where you can place the candle below – total bliss. There’s no shortage of aromas, shapes and fragrances to choose from!

Since candlelight alone is not practical lighting for reading, we also have a couple of table lamps to help us out.

Task Lighting

I remember the first time I saw task lighting. It was in an architect’s house – he had the entire first floor for his office – sort of an open plan with his drawing boards and seating strategically placed around the area. I will never forget walking into that room and flicking on the switch. It was like a million focus lights had come on, giving the place an absolutely beautiful look.

Task lighting involves using bright, directed lights that help with specific tasks. It’s also important that the light source used for task lighting be positioned properly, so that it doesn’t interfere with the contrast, which could result in decreased visibility.

It is worth it to learn a little more about task lighting because overhead lighting alone is sometimes too bleak!

Alternative sources of lighting such as lamps or wall sconces are also pretty, except one has to be really careful about placing them properly, so they highlight the right areas. To illuminate counters, shelving, and other hard-to-reach areas, a plug cover with built-in LED lights may be more useful.

Fairies in the Bedroom

The bedroom is a safe haven where we head at the end of a long day to unwind and let go of any stress that might be playing on your mind. And yes, we also love to read before we go to sleep. The right kind of lighting can bring on that relaxed state more easily, gently ushering us into a good night’s sleep.

While I prefer a good light source that lets me read comfortably, my son happened to see fairy lights at a friend’s place and so we went around looking for those. I must say they look quite pretty. And yes, floor lamps are always better than table lamps to add an ambient glow to the surrounding area without being too stark or too dim. I quite love my son’s dome light projector that creates night sky patterns on the ceiling when it is switched on.

Image source

Window wisdom

Considering all the constructions coming up, we no longer get as much bright sunshine into the house as we’d like. So we have to make the most of whatever light we get into our home. This means keeping the windows free from anything that interferes with the light. No extra fittings or decorations on the window sill.  In fact, I managed to get a set of pretty patterned lace curtains that let the light in.

These are just a few DIY ideas I enjoyed playing with to light up my home.

Oh, another thing I did was paint the walls in a light shade, so any light that comes in reflects off it and keeps the place bright.

The right lighting and lighting fixtures can indeed make all the difference to the atmosphere!

Do you enjoy playing with home decor and lighting? What’s your favorite decor hack?