How to position a wall light?

Looking for experts advice on how to position wall lights?  Here's Light Trend's Guide on how and where to place them.

Wall lights are a flexible addition to add to your home interior and lighting scheme. As well as providing beautiful ambient and accent lighting the wall lights are also a design statement for the home interior. In this blog we are going to look at the most common wall light, where to place/position your wall lights and a few top tips for choosing the best wall lights for certain spaces and areas. Here we go.. 

 

What is the most common type of wall light? 

Wall lights come in all different shapes and sizes and have a different purpose for each customer and area. They can be used to as a statement piece in the living room if the ceiling light isn't feasible; used to complement ceiling light or even used to add additional ambience to a darkened corner. 

Wall lights hold a lot of responsibility in allowing you to layer the lighting within a room. They are a great source of ambient lighting and are ideal in creating a certain feel to a room, whether that be coziness in the living room, or to enhance a romantic feel in the bedroom or even light certain areas for entertainment purposes when hosting in the dining room. They can also be used to highlight key areas in a room such as a spectacular painting or the fireplace which adds focus and drama. 

Before we indulge any deeper lets answer the most commonly asked question, What is the best height for wall lights?

When positioning a wall light it will all be dependant on a few key features such as:

• The size of the wall light (length and width)
• The height of the ceiling in the area they are being fitted
• The design of wall light 
• The lighting design your trying to create

As a general rule, wall lights are usually placed around 152cm-170cm (approx 5-5.5ft) and they should be 250cm-300cm (approx 8-10ft) apart. To avoid glare from an exposed bulb you should aim for the top of the wall light to aim for eye level. 

However, like stated above this is a 'general' rule therefore off you are placing them  bedside, in a bathroom, or particularly a room that has high ceilings 10ft+,  the measurements will change accordingly.

For example, if your using wall lights for the bedside it would be practical to have them around shoulder height therefore this allows you to be able to turn them on and off easily without having to get out of bed :)

Up lights or Down lights?

Up lights are designed to cast light upwards and towards the ceiling which gives a more open feel to an area as it helps create an illusion of more space, these are commonly used in a hallway or a living room. 

Down Lights are used to cast light downwards and towards the floor which gives a more cosy and relaxing feel to an area as it alludes to the idea of seclusion, these are commonly used in a larger area eg. if you have a large lounge 

Wall Sconces 

Wall scores are traditionally associated with oil lamps and candles and is an old type of decorative fitting mounted to the wall. 

These are famously used to bring a sense of intimacy and warmth into a bedroom or bathroom or even in the hallway 

Bedside Lights 

Wall lights are an excellent alternative to the traditional bedside lamp and some are even adjustable for extra flexibility when wanting to read in bed or in the living room in the cosy corner. Some wall lights are specially designed as reading lights which can be placed in the living room with your favourite chair or sofa to create a cozy and stylish reading corner. 

Using wall lights in the bedroom

In the bedroom, wall lights can be used to soothe the harshness of the ceiling light to create a more intimate feel to the room along with adding an interior design to the room. Adding a wall light will give the room a warm ambient glow, therefore creating a soothing and relaxed  atmosphere, to enhance this further we advise investing in a dimmable wall light for the bedroom therefore allowing you to determine the right level pf illumination any time you fancy.