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20 Living Room Lighting Ideas That Are Stylish And Beautiful
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A living room is the multi-tasker of your home; from being a rendezvous point for friends and family, a mini movie theater, to being a cozy corner for your reading sessions — it gives you endless pleasures. It’s important to keep this place comfortable, beautiful, and well-lit. If you’re planning a living room remodeling or designing a new home — get awesome living room lighting ideas for this haven beforehand and choose the perfect light fixtures according to your style and decor.
In this article, we have 20 such wonderful ideas, each of which can positively impact how your living room looks and feels. The correct lighting — whether for relaxing or reading – makes spending time in the living space enjoyable and practical.
The focus is to illuminate the space as much as possible, accentuate the best features of the room, and eliminate shadows from the corners.
A living room essentially has three kinds of lighting:
- Ambient lighting: It gives a room its overall illumination. It could refer to the natural light that is already present in a room, or additional lighting such as normal room lights. These overhead lights give the room a brightness that defines its functionality and ambiance.
- Task lighting: This kind of light is used to direct light to a specific area, especially a work zone. Floor lamps, arc lights, table lamps, pendant lights, or floodlights are some examples. It offers focused illumination for reading, working, or seating area.
- Accent lighting: It throws light on a particular area or even an artifact. These may include wall sconces, recessed lights, ceiling, or even built-in lights. The floor lights you see in movie theaters, airplanes, staircases are accent lights.
The brighter the lights, the more visual interest they create for that room. All the above light sources give instant style and function to a living room.
So, what color light is best for the living room?
Soft, warm white lights which are around 2700 Kelvin are best for living rooms. And, there’s good reason. These provide a traditional, cozy vibe to the living space, and make them welcoming.
Now that we have understood how lighting forms an important part of a house’s interior design, let’s look at 20 living room lighting ideas that are stylish and beautiful.
One big lighting design trend at the moment is pendant lighting.
1. A Radiant Assortment Of Lights
Great lighting can single-handedly uplift the ambiance of your living room. Here, an eye-catching contemporary chandelier light fixture is combined with tiny recessed lights on the ceiling. Together, they create a layered and robust lighting scheme. Notice how the room is free of any shadows. It helps that a huge window lets in natural light to add to the brightness of the space. The rule of thumb is: keep all your lighting options open. Switch them on as and when required.
2. A Contemporary Look With Brass Fixtures
Sometimes, a good light fixture not only illuminates the whole room, it also sets the tone of the vibe of that room. Here, the focal point of the area are the brass lights. They seem to accentuate the contemporary, simplistic decor of the room. The fact that they are hanging from the ceiling, gives a neat, uncluttered look to the space. The customized wooden wall unit — with a black steel fireplace, TV, and sound system — and the comfortable, neutral furniture further brighten the modern living room space.
3. Beautiful Accent Light That Makes A Statement
When you have a light fixture as stunning as this, you don’t need much else. Here, the color-coordinated room has a very clean-cut vibe. The furniture, light curtains, artwork, and the accessories have been kept without frills. And, there’s a reason. The overhead modern light fixture does the talking. Notice how the sconces on the metallic structure give off light in all directions equally. Perfect solution for a house owner who loves to host intimate get-togethers.
4. Stylish Luxury With Recessed Lights
Always envied hotel lobbies that were well-lit and as bright as sunshine? You can create the same ambience at home too. Here, the pot lights against a gold ceiling spell luxury and style. These recessed lights are flush — making them perfect for rooms with low ceilings. Sometimes called can lights or downlights, these fixtures can be of various types — housing, trim, and bulb or lamp. Do note that such recessed lighting will require extensive ceiling wiring. But, the final effect is worth every effort.
5. Standout Chandelier For Grandeur
A chandelier adds elegance and class to any space. Period. From classic, ornate, modern to industrial, and rustic — it easily becomes a showstopper for your living room. Here, the crystal chandelier, along with a timeless brown-hued decor, injects style and uplifts the dynamics of the room. Sophistication at its best!
6. Nature-inspired Lighting
If you are a lover of all things natural, there’s no reason why your home lighting shouldn’t be as natural. Here, an antler chandelier on the ceiling gives a rugged look to the decor, along with centralized lighting. It goes well with a pair of matching table lamps that are ornate and eco-friendly. Notice how each one of them is made of recycled glass and handcrafted using wooden weave. The comfortable furniture and open windows giving a glimpse of the outdoors — add to the homely setting.
7. The French Connection
Want to give a 20th century French country feel to your living room? Invest in a metallic overhead light fixture with multiple, layered bulbs. The ornate and antique-looking chandelier seems to be the perfect partner to a stone fireplace, neat wooden staircase, and light-colored couch. Did we forget to mention the white window shutters? Well, they add to the charm too.
8. Decorative Diffused Lamps
Great lighting is everything. The kind of fixtures you use, has the power to transport you to an era, a faraway place, or a culture. If you love to give a regional vibe to your living room, go ahead and match the lighting to the idea you have in mind. Here, diffused lighting in the form of decorative lanterns gives the space a Mediterranean touch. Place the metallic, electric lanterns in a corner and watch their magic unfold. Add a lot of bright artifacts, colored walls, floor rugs, cushions — and your very own Moroccan kasbah is ready.
9. Illumination For Every Corner
No area in your living room should be left in shadows. Every space deserves to be illuminated and well-styled. Notice how the above design takes care of every nook and corner in terms of lighting. There’s a central accent light, matching table lamps, and backlighting on the false ceiling. Even the sideboard is well-lit with backlighting. No wonder the ambience has a warm and welcoming feel.
10.Mirrored Brightness
A great way to brighten up your living room is to place your lamps against mirrors. Yes, you must have realized the simple science behind it. The light is bounced off the reflectors and the whole space just perks up instantly. The soft light gives a cozy look to the room and tons of style.
11. Symmetrical Pairing
A typical English living room is characterized by warm colors, sometimes an all-white decor, and identical light fixtures. Here the two table lamps right behind the sofa — and a third one next to the staircase — is all the ornamentation the room needs. The decor is kept simple, comfortable, and coordinated. Notice how the wing chair at the foot of the staircase is perfectly matched too.
12. Eclectic Mix Of Fixtures
For those who steer away from the ordinary, this design is absolutely refreshing. There are two sets of dark metallic pendant lights that are simple in design yet effective in illuminating the area. The matching floor lamp next to the couch is arched to provide perfect task lighting. Not just utilitarian, this lamp is great for the decor too. Its streamlined shape gives a clean-cut look to the space. Right from the floor-to-ceiling windows to the chessboard on the center table — everything here seems to be different from the mainstream.
13.Pops Of Colors On The Wall Moulding
Colored lighting around the moulding can provide accent light as well as detailing, not common to most living rooms. It allows light to flow evenly throughout a room while enhancing the clean details of the moulding. It also adds an aura of mystique (or sometimes fun) to the space. When it comes to living room lighting ideas, you can experiment as much as you want. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box.
14. LED Lighting For An Energetic Room
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If you want your lighting to be cost-effective, energy-saving, and as bright as the sun — you must invest in good LED fixtures. They are designed in such a way that the light provides uninterrupted illumination that is brighter than a yellow or white bulb.
Here, an accent fixture on the ceiling, within a backlit background, gives off a soft glow on the seating area below. The wall accents add their bit to brighten up the space and give an optical illusion of height. Together, the lights add an energy to the room — making it look bright and bigger. The good news is this kind of lighting typically lasts for many years, sometimes a decade or more.
15. Pendant Lights To Add Focus On The Furniture
If you want to accentuate a certain object in your living room, the couch in this case, you should invest in pendant lights. Here, the three matching fixtures throw light evenly on the best feature of your room. A white floor lamp and a matching metallic table lamp add to the brightness of the space. Neat and well-put-together. The simple lighting is stylish enough to take a guest’s breath away.
16. Table-top Crystal Lamps
Sometimes, all it takes is some ingenuity to come up with lucid yet classy ideas. Here, there are six matching crystal table lamps organized in such a way that the corresponding one — on the opposite side of the room — is a mirror image. A perfect lighting solution for those who like to keep it simple.
17. Minimalistic Yet Remarkable Lighting
A statement light fixture needn’t be ornate to be effective. Go for a streamlined design, a nice metallic finish, with a unique structure. It will elevate any living room and make a statement in its own out-of-the-box way. Here, the black, gray, and white decor adds to the minimalistic vibe.
18. Floor Lamps For Perfect Task Lighting
A cozy look is achieved effortlessly by strategically placing floor lamps. Here, there are two ornate fixtures that focus on their respective areas. The larger orb one is decorative enough to suit the living room and the simple floral lamp is perfect for the dining space. Notice the lack of any other kind of lighting. With such beautiful pieces, you do not need anything else.
19. Unique Lighting For A Rustic Touch
Some ideas are so simple, that they are mind-blowing. Here, three naked bulbs hang by a rope that camouflages its wiring beautifully. The structure hangs from the ceiling in a neat manner. The three overhead lights give off a cozy and rustic vibe that is quite unique.
20. Ceiling Fan Lights
An innovative design for small living rooms is having a ceiling fan with fitted lights. The fixture is perfect because it combines both the features in a modern, utilitarian way. You don’t need much separate lighting for illumination. However, you may invest in recessed pot lights if you need more brightness in the room.
Conclusion
There are amazing living room lighting ideas that you can choose from. This article lists out 20 of them. Go ahead and select the style that suits the decor of your home, and of course your sensibilities. Keep in mind that lighting is an essential part of a house’s interior design; it effectively raises the overall ambience. It helps accentuate the best features of your living room, be it your decor, furniture, or a beautiful piece of art. In fact the kind of light you use, can itself make a statement through its style and design. Choose well.
Written by Ramona Sinha. March 18, 2019
Ramona is a content writer for Kukun. This experienced blogger uses simple and succinct words to decipher the complex phenomenon called life. An avid traveler, she’s a digital nomad at heart and an animal lover from the depths of her soul.
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