6 Pro Tips for Using Recessed Lighting

Most modern homes include some form of recessed lighting. All too often, however, it's recessed “can” lights for basic ambient illumination. While it serves the intended purpose, these recessed lighting installations don’t take advantage of everything you can do with it.

The best lighting design incorporates a layered approach. The three layers are ambient, task, and accent lighting. These layers range from the functional to the aesthetic, but lighting—especially recessed fixtures—can serve multiple purposes in the same space in your Watercolor, FL, home. Read on to learn six ways professional lighting designers use recessed lighting.

SEE ALSO: Elevate Your Home’s Illumination with Upgraded Recessed Lighting

1. Use More than Recessed Lighting

While recessed lighting is highly versatile, don't make it your only source of illumination for a space. It might create a lighting scene that is too harsh at full brightness. Designers typically add layers closer to eye level, like sconces and table and floor lamps. Sconces can function as accents, and lamps can offer task lighting and pure ambiance when all the lighting intensity is set up correctly. 

2. Vary the Pattern

While there are guidelines for placing recessed lighting at specific distances based on the room size, fixture brightness, and other factors, lighting designers know to be flexible with the patterns. Your home is not a commercial space, and you don't want everything to look as symmetrical as an airport runway at night. Recessed lights can be used for wall washing, highlighting artwork, and other purposes in the same room.

3. Task Lighting

Recessed lighting is excellent for task lighting, such as over a kitchen island or a bathroom vanity. But there are some things to avoid. Careful positioning should be used to prevent shadowing. You don't want recessed lights above where you will stand; instead, they should be placed to either side or in front of you. When using recessed lights above a polished surface like a granite countertop, the brightness of the light should be considered to avoid high reflection. 

4. Brighten a Hallway

Recessed lighting is commonly used in hallways, but here's a trick for narrower ones. Directional fixtures can be aimed slightly at the walls to make the hallway appear more expansive than it really is. If the light was aimed only straight down, you might be narrowing the space by the light's focus.

5. Highlight Artwork or Walls

Adjustable recessed lighting works well for accent lighting, particularly with artwork or wall-washing techniques. Draw attention to a hallway with photographs or artwork by highlighting specific pieces or areas. The latest modular recessed lighting systems have fixtures that can be aimed to create the desired effect. Wall washing similarly uses several recessed lights to highlight a wall with a different finish or material, such as stone. 

6. Use Lighting Control

The best way to create the ideal lighting effects using layered lighting is with a lighting control system. Lighting control lets you set the precise levels for every type of illumination in the room to set the scene for any activity or occasion. Your kitchen can be set up brightly for cooking and toned down for cocktails and dinner with guests with the touch of a button. Lighting control gives you simplified control of many lights without fussing with many switches or dimmers. 

Want to learn more ways to use recessed lighting to enhance your living spaces? Contact us here or click the chat box below to quickly connect with one of our experts. We look forward to working with you!