Lighting and Luminaires

Lighting and Luminaires - A Pair of Sisters

The selection of lighting fixtures is often a difficult problem in decoration. Nowadays, there are endless new types of lighting fixtures on the market, including round, square, flat, hanging, embedded, orange, milky white, transparent... which one is suitable for selection

1. Styling

Although there are many changes in the design of modern lighting fixtures, they cannot be separated from three categories: antique, innovative, and practical. Some magnificent and jewelled chandeliers, animal shaped wall lamps, and finely decorated ceiling lamps were all developed after the 18th century palace lamps. This type of lighting fixture is suitable for social occasions with large spaces and can bring a dazzling sense of luxury to the residence. Other modern lighting fixtures with unique designs, such as various spotlights and ox eyes.Lamps, embedded tube lamps, and other innovative lighting fixtures are also a practical category, which includes traditional commonly used lighting fixtures such as fluorescent lamps, three primary color energy-saving lamps, writing desk lamps, floor lamps, and bedside lamps. The design of these three types of lamps should strive for serialization in overall selection. People who like grandeur should choose the first type of flashy and elegant lighting fixtures; Innovators can choose the second type of unique lighting fixtures; Practical lighting fixtures are indispensable, and when selecting them, one must move closer to the top choices, as today's practical lighting fixtures are also differentiating towards antique and innovative styles.

2. Color

The color of the lighting fixtures should comply with the color of the entire room. Because the lamp itself emits light, its color is even more eye-catching. In order not to disrupt the overall color design of the room, it is necessary to pay attention to the coordination of the color of the lamp shade and shell with the color of the wall, furniture, and curtains. Here, it should be noted that there is a difference between the color light emitted by the lamp and the color of the object. The three primary colors of the object, red, blue, and yellow, are mixed into black, while the three primary colors of the color light add up to gray. The object's blue plus yellow is green, and the color light's blue plus yellow is yellow green. Decorators can experiment on their own to accentuate certain indoor colors with colored light, which is a relatively advanced decorative method.

3. Style

Choose lighting fixtures based on your artistic taste and living conditions. Firstly, according to living conditions, families with living rooms can use more fashionable lighting fixtures in the living room, such as three pronged chandeliers, decorative wall lamps, and multi section rotating floor lamps. But families with tight housing should not install overly luxurious and fancy lighting fixtures, as this will increase the feeling of crowding. Rooms with a height of less than 2.8 meters should not be equipped with chandeliers. Only ceiling lights can be installed to make the room appear taller. If ceiling fans are installed in a new residence, one room cannot have two centers. There are two ways to solve this problem for the main light in such rooms: either install a circular fluorescent lamp (with standardized commercial products and dedicated ceiling fans) below the ceiling fan, or install a 30-40 watt fluorescent lamp above the wall curtain frame.

The lighting fixtures used for overall room lighting are called main lights. The main lights can be hung in the center or on one side, but their brightness should be sufficient to illuminate the entire room. The commonly used forms of main lights include chandeliers, ceiling lamps, wall fluorescent lamps, circular fluorescent lamps, etc. The traditional method of installing a fluorescent lamp in a room, although energy-saving, has been phased out due to its unattractive appearance. However, due to the low consumption and high efficiency of fluorescent lamps, they are still the preferred lighting fixture for most families, but can be placed aside when using them for lighting. Generally, in a room of about 15 square meters, the power of the main lamp should be 30-40 watts for fluorescent lamps and 100 watts for incandescent lamps (which can be combined by several powers or played by one lamp). The height of the main light should be close to the roof and not too low. The popular three primary color high-efficiency lamps nowadays include straight tube, U-shaped, double H-shaped, etc. A lamp with a power of over ten watts can be equivalent to 70 watts, and the luminous efficiency is very high. But the light color seems too cold, and the appearance is not beautiful enough, so it can only be placed in secondary areas for lighting and should not be used as the main light in bedrooms, living rooms, and other areas.

 Some families design the main light as a multi pronged chandelier and use a 15 watt candle lamp as the source of the chandelier light. This way, even if the chandelier wall lamp is fully turned on when guests come, the interior is still very dark, with a hint of dance hall or bar flavor. Guests always feel a sense of oppression and cannot be happy because the main light does not provide light to the interior. Local lighting fixtures are generally referred to as auxiliary lights. The auxiliary light, like the main light, should also pay attention to its lighting effect in addition to its aesthetic considerations. There are many forms of auxiliary lights, and more can be set according to indoor conditions. Floor lamps are the companion of sofas and are commonly used in reception areas. The key to this type of lamp lies in the selection of lampshades. There are some very stylish products on the market now, but this still needs to be matched with indoor decoration. Considering that the long pole of floor lamps takes up space, it is now being quietly replaced by a new type of stretching lamp. This type of stretching lamp not only has a beautiful fancy lampshade, but can also stay freely within a certain range. Pushing it up can illuminate the overall situation, while pulling it down can only illuminate one circle. Wall lamps are widely used, but in fact, they mainly provide a weak illumination. Corridors, balconies, living rooms, etc. are useful places for wall lamps, but they should not be installed randomly, and it is not advisable to install several in a room. There are two main types of wall lamps: one is an open type, with several pieces of brown glass covering the front; The other type is enclosed, using a milky white or other colored glass cover to completely enclose the light source. 

The former can be used indoors in corridors and other areas. The latter type can be used in bathrooms and balconies, but when fitting lights, it is important to consider the enclosed lampshade, which will weaken the brightness, so it should be increased by one level. The bedside lamp is also a type of wall lamp, but due to its fixed position, it has become a specialized device. The selection of lampshade is the key to bedside lighting, and this is the most eye-catching place in the bedroom. It is important to choose a style that is consistent with the bedroom style. Table lamps are the most commonly used auxiliary lamps, at least for children's daily homework, so it is necessary to choose a dedicated writing desk lamp. The lampshade is best made of orange transparent plastic, and the bulb can be a 40 watt incandescent lamp.As for non writing desk lamps, they should focus on their aesthetic design. There are vase table lamps, antique bronze table lamps, animal table lamps, etc., which should be chosen as consistent as possible with the decoration style of the place to achieve a mutually reinforcing effect. Recently, many bull eye lights and tube embedded lights on the market are all dark lights. The purpose of the installation is to create an elegant and dim atmosphere. In residential areas, it is only suitable for bars, audio-visual areas, corridors, and other places. It can reduce the oppression of flat roofs and give people a hazy feeling of the beginning of night. Spot lights are used for indoor concentrated illumination of a certain decoration to highlight the decorative effect, and can also be used for kitchen cooking lighting, with unique advantages. As for the festive lights that can flicker, they should only be hung during the Chinese New Year holiday, as they can make the living room appear too noisy.