A Lighting Plan for Quinn

Hi Christine,

I started reading your blog a few months ago when I started looking for a house. I'm now in the process of buying a place and am thinking about what to fill it with. I am in a lucky position of starting from scratch and getting to buy all new things. I know what I want as far as furniture, but this will be the first time I need to think about lighting. The only hardwired lights in my new place are in the kitchen and bathroom, and there isn't a way I could easily add any (e.g. no ceiling fans there already), so I will need lamps or something else that plugs in. I saw your previous post about different types of light bulbs, but I was wondering if you had any more advice on types and styles of lights- floor lamps, wall sconces (would still have to have a cord), hanging lights, etc. I'm including a picture of the main room, one of the kitchen (the walls are actually painted the same color), and the existing light fixture in the kitchen ceiling. The kitchen/eating area opens into the main room.

The only idea I had so far was to maybe try a little art project and attach a small strip of LED lights to the top of a painting, but I am not sure that would be bright enough by itself, and it might look really tacky. I couldn't find a good picture for an example, so I can't tell.

Thanks in advance for your help! I look forward to reading your opinion!

Best,
Quinn

Quinn,

Let me start by saying, "No" to the strip of LED lights on top of a painting.  For a painting, you should have light shining ON the art work, not on the wall above it. 

With that said, you should always be careful when lighting artwork.  If we are talking about a trendy piece you picked up at Home Goods, and won't keep for more than three years- I wouldn't worry about it, if however, this is an expensive piece of original art work, UV rays need to be controlled.  Keep it away from direct sunlight, and only use accent lighting with UV filters.  No fluorescents.  The most important contributing factor of damage is due to overall brightness of light.  If you have accent lighting on art, use UV filtered light sources, limited exposure, and low overall brightness.

That was a bit of a tangent there wasn't it? 

Let me go back to your place.  I cannot give you a good lighting plan without a floorplan.  Start with a floorplan.  I would invest in ceiling light.  I think people think electricians are more expensive than they really are.  In a living room, family room or bedroom, you don't want such bright light from above that you cannot use shadow in your lighting design, but you do need some light from above.  Perimeter can lighting is a common tool that I use.  You need to have furniture placement nailed down to know where to put this exactly. 

(photo from Houzz)

Then you need to plan your wall decor before you can decide on wall fixtures such as sconces or accent lighting for wall decor.  I'm a big sconce fan, personally. While the electrician is there, have him (or her) hardwire some sconces for you.

(photo from interiorinspiration)

Then, you need your furniture in place before you can determine where you will use floor, table, and accent lamps. 

(photo from Homesweethome)

Last but not least, you should add some lighting from the floor, such as a good uplight like I referred to in this post. 

And so, you see in the grand order of things, lighting is best determined after the furniture placement and wall decor. 

For more lighting plan ideas check out this post,

It's a Prize Post, it's a test, it's advice for Cara

Christine,

Good afternoon!  I was thrilled when I stumbled upon your blog.  My husband and I were married 3 months ago and recently moved into our first home.  Because we are in our early twenties, neither of us have much furniture to contribute to the house.  All that to say, we are trying to take it project by project and room by room until our dream house is complete!  :)

Here are a list of design questions I was hoping you could help me with (pictures are coming in separate emails because I had to use my iPhone...sorry!):

• There's a lot of empty space (wall space included) in our family room.  Ideas?
• I don't like the current light fixtures on our fireplace.  I'm not sure if I want to replace them with new fixtures or take advantage of the fact that electricity already runs behind our fireplace and do something altogether different with the light.
• Should I add a mantle to the fireplace?  If so, what do you suggest (height, depth, style, color, etc.)?
• I've seen pictures, online, of people putting candles different sizes and heights in their fireplace during the non-winter months.  Do you like that idea?
• We are planning on selling the current couch and coffee table, but I'm not sure what kind of furniture I want to buy next.  We have the issue of the fireplace and TV competing for the spotlight in the room.  What kind of furniture (placement included) would you suggest?
• Do you like the arrangement of frames, books, and nicknacks on the media stand?  If not, what do you suggest?

Thanks SO much for your ideas and time.  You're a lifesaver!

1.   First you need to start with your furniture arrangement.  This split focal point of the TV and fireplace is such a disease in homes these days. I would start by walking around the home and looking at every room with fresh eyes- can you move the TV to an entirely different room?   That would be my first suggestion.  An ideal arrangement would have no TV in there at all.   Now is when I am starting to feel like I have addressed this before- which I have- check out this post.  My advice for you is the same.

2.  I saw this photo on pintrist and thought of you.  I especially liked it because it showed the look with sconces.

Now to address the question- "Should I add a mantle to the fireplace?  If so, what do you suggest (height, depth, style, color, etc.)?"   

Let me list some considerations.

1.  Height- well- if you are going to use the area over the fireplace for a television- you are going to want to make sure you are not too high.  You also don't want it to be awkwardly low in an effort to give you a comfortable television height.  Determine what your comfortable height is, and decide if you should have one from there.

2.  Height if there is no television to consider.  I would then select my art work first, decide the optimum height to hang it, centering the sconces as best as I could, and that would determine your height.

3.  Depth.  Now- if you are hanging a television- keep your depth minimal.  If not- consider how you intend to decorate the mantle.  If your mantle is not deep enough, you won't be able to do a lot of layering with your accessories. It will be more simplistic.  I have seen many times people who have a shallow mantle, try to put a lot of accessories on it, but if it is too shallow- they end up in a little row, instead of nice layered arrangement. 

Long time readers of my blog have read my addressing this before- so instead of regurgitating, I thought I would give you all a little test.  I will post some different fireplace photos.  I want you to determine which are poor examples, and which are good examples.  See- I am turning you all into interior designers.  Don't be fooled- just because the photo is clearly from House Beautiful- doesn't mean it is a good example.  When you have learned all I have to share with you- you will be better designers than those being photographed in popular magazines. 

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So- I have fourteen photos- seven bad and seven good.  To study up- you can look at these posts for guidance.  Is this too much work?  Is anyone going to take my test?  Someone out there humor me and take the test!  Forget your plans for the day and spend it picking apart fireplace mantle arrangements.  Tell me that's not more fun than what you had planned!  For a little encouragement- I will send the winner the latest copy of Elegant Homes magazine.  It is full of fabulous examples of great design.  (FYI- the number of each photo is ABOVE the photo.)

Townhouse Kitchen Make-Over

Hi Christine,

I discovered your site last night before bed while frantically searching for a paint color for my kitchen. My husband finally forced me to go to bed at 1 am. I woke up at 7 and got right back on! I realize now I should have waited to paint until I chose window treatments but I discovered your site too late for that!

We just spent thousands of dollars remodeling our townhouse. We bought new cabinets, put in new flooring, new lighting, beadboard and invested a small fortune in paint. I have no idea what to do now. I love my dining room beadboard and the farmhouse look it is inspired by. I hate the red paint my husband picked out for the kitchen. Yes- let's ditch the red! It's jarring to see from the dining room. The look is more coffeehouse than farmhouse. The cabinets going up are Ikea Stat

Most of the kitchen is going to be covered by cabinets, but the wall above the sink (an apron front, farmhouse style one) I love farmhouse sinks! will be bare with the exception of a 15" wide, 88" tall pull out pantry and two long white shelves.

My questions are:

1) What color should I paint my kitchen (or should I paper the whole thing?) I always love the idea of papering the whole thing! Very little of the walls are going to show. Basically the wall with the window and above and below the wall cabinets. (A 15" deep butcher block counter will go between the pass through to make a bar in the kitchen.) The color in the living and dining room (above the beadboard) is Sherwin Williams lemongrass. If I tell my husband he has to repaint that he will divorce me. I hate it when husbands get in the way of good design... I will try to work with the lemongrass ;)

2) What color counter should we go with? We can't afford to put in anything expensive like granite. We can't even afford a solid countertop like silestone or Corian. We've pretty much exhausted our budget so it will have to be laminate. Not my favorite, but I can't go over budget much more than I already have. Your order of questions is off- select your counters after you have selected your fabric and wall decor. I would look around and compare pricing on dark wood counters- wood is not as expensive as other surfaces and really is the perfect look for a farmhouse feel.

3) What type of window treatments should I use in the dining and kitchen? I was looking at some antique exterior shutters to use in the dining room, but I couldn't put them in the kitchen because there won't be enough space around the window and I think it may be best to keep the window treatments the same. I would do some fabric Roman shades. At the bottom of the post I selected a fabric for you- however- since your paint is already up- and I am just looking at a computer monitor- I don't really know if it will work- but this can give you an idea- and then you can find a fabric that matches your paint. Know this everyone!!! It is much easier to match paint to fabric than fabric to paint!!!! I selected a fabric that had a little bit of white in it. With all of your white cabinets- don't ignore white as a color in your decor- invite it in- and it will all flow together better.

4) Artwork! I have no idea what to put in the dining room. I bought a beautiful painting, but it is too small for the space and will be going in the living room. I found some cool pears for you - you can see them below. This was actually the first thing I found- then the fabric. From the fabric I would pull out colors for counters and paint. The wainscoting makes for a long narrow area for wall decor. Add two sconces on either side of your art work to better fill the space. Notice how I kept the wall decor horizontal- a vertical arrangement would fight with your space. Even the sconces are horizontal in shape.

5) I can't change the lighting fixtures, but I was wondering if I should spray paint them black or white...or should I just leave them the oiled bronze color they are? I will buy some new globes for the fixture in the dining room. Should I just buy white to match the pendants and the fixture (which is also oil rubbed bronze) we will put on the kitchen ceiling? I would keep the oil rubbed bronze. It is not bad- and not worth the risk that the paint job won't look perfect. Go with neutral globes. Your light over the table is hung way too high- I would drop it down to about 36 inches over the table.

6) I have no idea what to do for a backsplash behind my stove. I have considered those faux-tin backsplashes but our contractor said they look cheap. I've also considered tile, beadboard and nothing at all. Whatever it is, it has to be easy to install because I've never done any "handyman" type stuff and my husband is "handyman" challenged. I selected a multi-color travertine and put it at the top of the post. I don't install tile- but I have heard that glass requires some real expertise- and I assumed that the smaller pieces were such that perhaps you could install it without a lot of cuts that you would more likely have with large pieces. Beadboard is inexpensive- but with all of the beadboard in your cabinets- I think it would be too much.

7) I have a dark cherry buffet I was going to put back under the dining window (I was going to stain the tabletop to match) but now I wonder if it will be too crowded with it. Are there any other options that would work under that window? I'm not married to the buffet since it was given to us. Don't overcrowd your space- from what I can see- it looks like a good space plan right now- without it. I would add a great plant to the corner and leave out more furniture.

I appreciate any advice!

Kim

Good luck Kim! I hope you can see my vision for your space- Notice how there is a touch of blue in the art work and fabric- if paint were selected last- I would have gone blue on the walls. Yellow makes you eat more. :)

Thanks for writing in-

Christine

The fabric in today's post is from Robert Allen- and the art and sconces are from Uttermost.

Erin from Kentucky's Dining Room

Christine,

So excited to be reading through your blog! I am also a mother of four great kids (oldest a girl and three little boys, all ages 2-10), a fan of baking sugary treats (like cupcakes), a fan of American Idol (though this year I'm not so into it), and married to a wonderful DIY guy who says, "Decide what you'd like and I'll do my best to make it happen." What more could I ask for?

Maybe ... some decorating talent would be nice! I just don't have it! Check out Erin's room here.

A year ago I jumped into redoing my dining room full force. We've been redoing this old house from end to end in just the past 2 1/2 years, including a complete kitchen redo (I love my maple glazed cabinets and black trim), knocking down walls, and a fireplace makeover. So I found an inspiration room on HGTV's Rate My Space and couldn't wait to get started on the dining room, but then as I miserably failed practicing the glazing technique on a piece of scrap drywall, I halted the whole project. The room's been a storage space and sometimes dining area for almost a year now.

Now I've got the momentum back. I'm attempting to put together my dining room and trying to look at it again, abandoning the glazing plan altogether. I found your blog because I'm questioning the existing crown molding I don't see the crown molding??? and how to handle the walls now that I've scrapped the glaze and diamond pattern (on top) that was part of my original vision. From what I've read on your blog, it seems the chair rail is a little too high in my room. Should I remove it? Move it? Add crown? Do a finishing of some kind on the bottom like faux wainscoting or beadboard? The height is OK- yes- I would add wainscoting or beadboard.
I just want the room to come together and me be happy with it, so I'm trying to plan everything! I'm not very confident about putting things together. How big a light fixture to I need for the large scale dining table? Is 24" round big enough? Would the rectangular 36" chandelier be better? With a rectangular table- an oblong or rectangular chandelier is ideal. Yes- 36 inch is a good size. Do I worry about putting all rectangles in the room (chandelier, table, buffet, art?) or do I need to vary it with some circles and squares? No- don't worry about that. In certain categories repetition can be boring- but with a rectangular shape- it is not a concern.

Another thing ... I tend to like things that match, but I realize it often looks better when they coordinate instead. So, if I have pillar candles on the chandelier, I'd like pillar candles as sconces. Does it matter if their finish amongst the sconces and chandelier is different (one more bronze, one black)? I would not do pillar candle sconces and a pillar candle chandelier- now that is where the repetition thing is bad. If you love that look- use it on the chandelier- as it is larger and makes more of an impact- but then choose something entirely different for the sconce- but something that still coordinates- like the sconce below from Bellacor - only $97.

I'd like to bring out red in the artwork and then with some accessories, are there rules other than to repeat the same color three times in the room? What you really need to make your room look more like the inspiration room (which I put at the top of the post) is some pattern. Don't use solid drapes-- use a pattern- same with the rug. The patterned fabric above is from Beacon Hill. The rug is from Dash and Albert. Add more color in the art work and centerpiece. The poppy print is from House in the Country- and is available in different sizes- framed or just canvas wrapped.

Then, is the table too big for this room? I've measured and staged the area with the furniture I already have and I'm thinking I'll like it fine, but I have a lingering doubt. Your table is not too large. My overall vision for this room is to be a casual dining area that we use almost daily for our family. Kid-friendly and durable is a must and we want to have guests and not have to say "let's put the leaf in." The only furniture will be the table and chairs and a buffet on the wall parallel (black or bronze mirror above). The sconces will be installed on the far end of the table (opposite the doorway to the kitchen), with the focal artwork in between. Simple window treatments on either side of the French doors, likely on swing away arm rods. We NEVER use these French doors, but I want the option kept there with the swing rods. No rug planned because it will just get ruined by my wonderful but messy boys.

Here are several photos, especially of things I've picked out online. I can't spend a ton on light fixtures, so that's unfortunately limiting. I love the pillar chandeliers at Restoration Hardware but $1,000? Not in our house!

In case it matters, I love traditional and tend toward cottage and Tuscan looks. My whole house is in the green family you see above including the kitchen adjoining the dining area, or a caramel/gold family. Housewide white trim. Black accents just seem classic to me right now.

I've asked a ton, I know. Please know that I am soooooooooooo grateful for any input at all. I'm so glad I found your blog. I'm decorating-challenged and usually just end up with nothing on the wall for years because I'm so scared of deciding, hating it, regretting it and thinking of the expense! It's a debilitating fear.

Thanks a million again. Wish you and yours all the best!!!

Erin

Southeastern KY

You are very organized- which is a great way to make good decisions- I hope my answers to your questions were helpful- thanks for writing in! Closely imitating an inspiration room is really a very good way to decorate when you have limited experience and are low on decorating confidence.

You are off to a great start!

Christine

We Need More Sconces In this World

Any House fans out there? I really love Wilson's new place. Of course- I liked his old place- but this one is even better. (however, I did think that his wainscot in his old place ended at an awkward level- a little too close to the middle of his wall- it should have been about a foot higher.) I love the woodwork, the combination of traditional architecture with the more modern kitchen- and mostly- I love the abundant sconces. I need more sconces. I think most of us need more sconces. Builders here in California seem to just hardly use them at all. We need more sconces in this world.

Interior Design throughout the show is great- Cutty's apartment is wonderful- even the hospital is fantastic. Look at those walls- look at the ceiling- very well done. My local hospital isn't nearly this cool.

Homework:- go walk around your house and see where you should have sconces but don't have them. Electicians are not as expensivce as you might think. Go get some sconces! Anyone watch the show? What do you think of Wilson's new place?