We live in an older home and most of the rooms do not have overhead lighting. This makes choosing the right lighting crucial for function, in addition to it simply being beautiful. That is why I wanted to share my go-to tips for choosing the right lighting. I recently chose some of my favorite lighting from Kirklands to help illuminate our spaces and am going to share them here. Along with my list of the things to look for when choosing functional lighting that is also beautiful.
Let’s take a peek at those Kirkland goodies I brought into our home first, and then talk about what you should consider when choosing your own lighting.
I am also starting to deck the halls around here and chose some incredible holiday decor and lighting pieces from Kirklands to help with that! I know this isn’t functional decor related but it’s just so pretty! Those foiled gold hurricane’s on the stairs, obsessed!
Okay… back to the tips! I know it is easy to look at lighting and see that it’s pretty. But how do you choose something that will be beautiful, and do the work. Let’s talk about it.
First question to ask yourself: What is the lights job? Sounds silly right? Ummm it needs to light the space, duh! But it’s more than that. Is the light going to act as a reading lamp and therefore needs to be more focused light? Will it be the only lamp in the room? Is it a bedside table lamp that needs to be soft enough light to sit beside comfortably, but bright enough to illuminate the space? The job the light has is often more detailed than- provide light.
Choosing the right light for the job. When I need a light for a desk, reading chair, or to illuminate art. I look at task lighting and library lamps. These usually have a closed top. No light escapes out of the upper portion of shade thus directing all of its light at the space you need to brighten. These are not ideal for brightening a room but perfect for brightening a dedicated work space or object. Like this stunning gold steel task lamp from Kirkland’s.
Next, when I need the lighting to perform many functions- like a chandelier in a dining room. Or table lamps behind a sofa. I need that lighting to be super bright when we are using the space at night but also need the light to be less aggressive in the late afternoon and dusk. This is when I look for dimmable options! Dimmers are the best. They make one light function different ways and are ideal for the- one light many jobs, lighting. This Amelia chandelier from Kirkland’s has been ideal for the dining room. Tons of light but also dimmable when we need the light to be subtle.
Another thing to absolutely consider is the style shade of the lighting, *when a shade applies. If you are choosing functional lighting keep in mind that metal and ceramic shades or darker patterned shades are beautiful but do not let light penetrate through the shade. Making the only light flow come from the top and bottom of the shade. Which is gorgeous and moody but less functional. Make sure to only utilize these lighting options when they’re a secondary light source. The better route to opt for when the lamp needs to be function first, form second, is lamps with light colored shades (tan, white, cream). This will allow the most filtered light as possible to escape though the shade. These Cairo table lamp from Kirklands are wonderful functional lamps. High style meets high function.
My last tip, scale! Scale matters. Make sure to consider both the scale of the lamp and the scale of space it will live in. Take Tallula’s room for example, she has a single dresser as a tabletop surface to play on. Previously I placed a large scale lamp with an empire shade on it as her lighting source. Not only was it not enough light to brighten the room effectively at night but it also occupied too much of the surface space, aka play area. By swapping out that single oversized lamp for two tall and narrow options, we got much more functional light and much more functional play space. Scale matters These round marble base table lamps from Kirkland’s were a game changer.
I hope my go-to tips tips for choosing the right lighting are helpful! Hopefully they make picking the right option for your needs a little easier so that you can choose the perfect functional and beautiful lighting for your homes. Head to Kirklands to check out all of my picks and keep your eyes peeled for the Kirklands Golden Hour and Midnight Elegance collections! Make sure to use code KISMET30 to take 30% off!!
*this post contains sponsored content
