We spend many hours a week in the bathroom, perhaps not as many in front of stoplights, but certainly enough to warrant careful planning for the type of bathroom lighting that we will need. We perform many intricate tasks in the bathroom like applying makeup, shaving, styling hair and many other daily hygiene tasks. So we need to be practical and make we sure we have enough of the right kind of light to accomplish these tasks without having to spend too much time in front of the mirror or having to start over again because we mis-applied the mascara. We must take into consideration what we have to work with in our bathroom that would affect our bathroom lighting situation.
The first thing to look at is the kind of natural light that is available in the bathroom. To what extent do we need to augment the natural light? Should we put a window, a skylight or can we get away with some nice vanity lighting? What kind of surfaces and colors do we have in our bathroom? are there a lot of light colors and reflective surfaces? if so then we may not need as much artificial light as we think. the best and most effective lighting for your bathroom is natural daylight. you can create a large window, a bay, or a bank of smaller window units next to the bathtub to add luxurious natural light to the bathroom. Nevertheless, no matter how much natural light you have in the bathroom you will need to use some electric lighting for night time and to fill out the bathroom corners. all corners of the bathroom need to be well lit. Dark corners makes a bathroom look smaller. So we must take into account the overall lighting situation in the bathroom in order to create balanced, strategic artificial light for all our important bathroom tasks.
The bathroom vanity is where lighting needs to be the most strategic. We want to minimize unwanted shadows and be able to have full frontal illumination while looking at ourselves in the mirror. We should be able to see clearly what we’re trying to tweeze and crimp while up against the mirror. Lighting coming in from the side from a wall sconce coupled with modern bathroom vanity lighting totaling at least 150 to 250 watts is usually adequate. with lighting mounted directly above the mirror, there should be some additional reflected light from the mirror that will even out the light. It’s always good to start the day off feeling positive about the way we look and balanced, reasonably strong bathroom lighting goes a long way in helping us achieve this.
The shower or bath area is another critical place that needs to have the appropriate amount of light. usually bathrooms come equipped with two main light switches, one for above the shower which may also power the vent fan and the other for the commode and vanity area. the bathroom lighting fixture above the shower area should be made brighter with a higher powered bulb in case the shower curtain is of a dark color. the person showering should also be able to see the floor clearly. In many instances people can slip and fall in the shower because they cannot make out the position of the friction strips or they failed to see the soap bar that fell. Shaving nicks can also occur in the shower if the lighting is poor. Shower lighting can be just as critical as your vanity lighting.
For the amount of time the average person spends in the bathroom, it is always more than worth it to have the best illumination possible to get us looking our best. Good lighting makes our bathroom tasks seem more like fun than a chore. Powerful, balanced lighting for our vanity is easily accomplished and shower stall lighting can be a pretty simple chore.When we’re not in a rush and can clearly see what we’re doing when trying to look our best can get our day off to a glowing start.
Bathroom Lighting – Practical Ideas on Lighting Your Bathroom