How to Make a Room Lighter

Let the light in

Beyond aesthetics, light is vital to human functioning and affects the comfort, health and mood of individuals. By focusing on increasing the daylight and lighting quality within a space, you can create a brighter environment that effectively provokes productivity and well-being. 

Here are some simple and effective ways in which you can bring more light into your room to create a happier, more productive space.

Step 1: Opt for a light colour scheme

When designing your space, keep your colour pallet light as pale, because satin colours will reflect the light and warm, matte colours will absorb it. Incorporating lighter shades of colours on the wall such as eggshell and cream will help to bounce light around the room.

As the largest unused space in a room, the ceiling is also a great place to start when enhancing natural light in an interior. Designing a white ceiling in your space can help boost the perceived illumination by reflecting the bits of natural light that are available. 

The benefits of natural light create beautiful effects that create greater well-being and nurture visual comfort. Using ceiling materials with high light reflection and light diffusion, it can draw 11 % more light into a building.

Step 2: Add skylights

Skylights are a unique and effective way to bring bright, natural light into your room. They can be quickly and easily installed, and allow more light to flood into a room throughout the day when compared to traditional windows.

Step 3: Adjust your artificial lighting

If your room has little or no natural light, don’t settle for a “one size fits all” approach to artificial lighting. Especially at offices, computers and digital screens emit artificial light directly into the eyes and therefore, the right ceiling can provide high-quality ambient light for the visual health.

The right level of light can stimulate us and improve our performance, and by creatively incorporating various levels of artificial light sources in a room, it will feel much warmer as it simulates the feeling of natural light.

The lighting determines how we experience a space, where a ceiling can contribute to a different atmosphere. A high gloss ceiling is often perceived as “hard” and “cold” contributing to a bad and unhealthy acoustic environment. A bright ceiling combined with light walls influence the perception of space, and the light reflection will reinforce the sense of space as it appears brighter, lighter and warmer.

Step 4: Get rid of bulky furniture

A big part of making your space feel lighter is by removing dark and bulky furniture and replacing it with smooth pieces that have clean lines in light colours. By focusing on a minimalist, modern design, you can effectively brighten up your space and enhance its natural character.

Step 5: Install new windows or enlarge existing windows

Adding or enlarging windows that face east, south or west can help to bring more light into space. As well as it can enhance the colour of the walls, the furniture and complement some interior details. The obvious about windows is preserving and admiring the view. Therefore, simply cleaning a room’s windows can have a major effect on its brightness as dirt and dust can block out natural light.

Step 6: Consider light wood flooring

Light coloured floors give a fresher and more contemporary appearance to space. When a room requires additional light, it is best to choose a pale wood flooring option to brighten it up. Attractive, light and neutral colour give a room an open and airy feel so it appears larger whilst it also draw more natural light from the outside. However, some dark flooring can help to make the room appear bigger too as it offers an inviting feel and opens the space. The advantages are many when it comes to expanding the appearance of the room, but remember, the combination of the shades on the ceiling, walls and flooring is what makes a room appear much bigger than it is.

Step 7: Make the room sounds as good as it looks

The sound level also impacts how we experience a room. If a room is noisy and you can’t find a peaceful place, the room will not feel lighter. The quality of sound absorption determine the layout of the room, and to achieve high levels of acoustic comfort it’s important to consider what acoustic measures can be done. By focusing on the acoustic comfort, you can install a variety of acoustic design solution ranging from baffles, wall panels or ceiling tiles.  

Sounds beautiful.