The modern bathroom is a far cry from the bathrooms of old. In the good ol’ days, the bathroom was just that – a room for your bath, to bathe. Soon enough, we added toilets and sinks, and vanity mirrors to the space. Others have gotten even more exotic, with b-days becoming an in-vogue option for those that like that sort of thing.
As a result of all of these changes, the modern bathroom has changed entirely from an aesthetic point of view. Whereas older bathrooms often reflect utilitarian, modern bathrooms feel more like small spas or retreats and places to recharge. The marketing for bathrooms usually supports the “retreat” perspective, with different styles and fixtures seemingly made to imitate coastal hotels and saunas.
Now, if you’ve been reading our blogs for a bit, then you’ll know how we feel about aesthetics in the home. How a home, or any space for that matter, looks is essentially dependent on the lights you choose to employ. Lighting is the ultimate dictator of how a room is perceived, so it stands to reason that having the correct lighting setup will go a long way towards creating the perfect vibe.
In this blog, we’re going to dive into the finer points of bathroom lighting techniques and how steel barn-style lights can work perfectly to achieve a dream aesthetic. Read on!
Layering For Aesthetic
Layering your lighting is a tried and true tactic for making the most of the lighting options available to any room. The need to layer your lights is no different for the bathroom, and having a variety of options to layer your light sources is crucial to maximizing your bathroom experience.
But it’s not just about letting people know where you are from within eyesight; store signage plays a massive part in the impact and effectiveness of your business to communicate its message to customers. Signs help customers navigate your business and answer multiple basic questions about your business simultaneously.
In lighting design, there are three distinct layers of light applied to any room. These are:
Ambient Lighting, which provides a base layer of visible light to any area.
Accent Lighting, which provides light meant to enhance a space thematically or artistically.
Task Lighting, is a focused form of lighting designed to simplify complex tasks by providing a better vision of the job.
If you’re looking to nail a sense of serenity and calm with your bathroom, then working on your accent lighting is crucial. Your ambient lighting will always be there, and your task lighting will usually be focused on your vanity mirror, so it’s essential to think about adding something to the space that’s purely for accentuating a sense of coziness for those nights in the bath.
Private Light Shows
One of the biggest problems facing bathrooms is that so many designers and architects will eschew putting large windows in the room. Obviously, this is for privacy, so your neighbors don’t accidentally see something that will make the next pot-luck super awkward. However, the lack of windows makes it difficult to light your bathroom naturally, thus forcing you to rely more on fixed light sources. If you’re relying on fixed light sources as a way to brighten your laundry room, then we have a good tip – change your bulbs.
Ideally, you want bulbs that can mimic daylight as much as possible. While that might sound obvious yet somewhat confusing, then don’t worry because the solution to this is far easier than it sounds.
As mentioned before, daylight is a “bluer” form of light than conventional electric sources. The reason for this comes down to the idea of color temperature. Color temperature simply refers to the measure of the light intensity of a light source. The brighter and more brilliant the source, the higher the temperature.
Higher temperature light sources are often seen as brighter and “bluer,” which show colors as they seem and without any tinge in the shade. On the other hand, lower temperature light is perceived as “warmer” and more orange in color.
Ideally, you want a higher temperature light for task-heavy spaces, like kitchens and laundry rooms. Conversely, lower temperature lighting closely mimics dusk-like conditions, making it more appropriate for bedrooms and living rooms where the goal is to relax.
The easiest way to mimic daylight is by using a Light Emitting Diode or < a href="/product/led-light-bulb/">LED bulb. Unlike conventional filament bulbs, LED bulbs emit a much higher light temperature and can easily mimic daylight conditions. In addition, LED bulbs are less costly to run and have a nearly non-existent chance of creating a dangerous environment from exploding or shorting.
Vanity Fair
The vanity mirror is arguably the most essential part of the bathroom when making sure you’ve got good lighting. This comes down to the simple fact that vanity mirrors are the most dependent on you being able to see as well as possible.
Thankfully, the solution to this is straightforward and mostly comes down to positioning. Ideally, the best place to situate your lights for your vanity mirror of choice is going to be either right above or, ideally, on either side of the panel.
This technique provides the immediate benefit of allowing you to have the most light sources possible situated close to your mirror while allowing the least amount of shadows to form simultaneously. This creates a space around your vanity mirror that’s pleasing to the eye and is ideal for seeing everything as clearly as possible.
Wall-mounted lights are ideal for this sort of task-orientated lighting, with our steel lights being outstanding options. So, our Hawthorne wall-mounted light is a fantastic option for those who like lights with a small profile, while our Westchester and Venice options are also hugely popular.
You can even take this a step further and enhance each of our lights styles by choosing straight-arm or gooseneck mounting styles.
If you’d like to know more about how steel lighting can improve your bathroom experience, then contact our team at Steel Lighting Co., our friendly group of experts would be more than happy to give some advice and recommendations on what kind of steel barn light can best suit your needs.
