Lighting falls into three categories: ambient, task and accent lighting. Well-lit rooms feature a combination of the three, allowing you to be comfortable without squinting or straining your eyes. The number and types of fixtures will vary with your room sizes, décor and personal preferences. Ambient Lighting Determining how much ambient light you need in each room is really just a matter of balancing the amount of natural light available with enough additional overhead illumination to provide adequate safety. The goal with ambient lighting should be to have enough so no one trips over furniture, but not so much that it's hard to relax. Dimmer switches are an excellent way to help you adjust the level of ambient light to suite your needs and moods. Don't try to rely on ambient light alone. You will need some additional light sources, such as accent lamps, in each room to achieve the best overall lighting scheme. Task Lighting Effective task lighting needs to be both bright and focused on a particular area. Sometimes it's also important for the light to be easily adjustable, so lamps that are easily moved or have adjustable arms are a good choice. Dimmer switches can also be very useful for permanent fixtures. Accent Lighting Because accent lighting usually comes from small lamps or fixtures, it is very versatile and often nearly hidden. Recessed lights, under-cabinet lamps and picture lights are all examples where the light itself is the eye-catching element, not the source that it comes from. Track lighting is another very common method for introducing accent light to a room, and it works best when you have a high ceiling. Sconces have also become very popular in recent years for adding a little extra light to hallways, stairs and just about any other area where space is limited. Sconces also look great when they are mounted in pairs around artwork, cabinets and mantels. Perhaps the easiest and most pleasing way to add accent light to a room is with small decorative lamps. A tiny 15-watt incandescent bulb can provide a huge amount of romance to a room.
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