LIVE24SEVEN // Property & Interiors INT E R IOR CONSULTANT - JOHN B IDDE L L Lighten our darkness . . .


This month I’d like to talk about lighting. More often than not lighting is just about the last element of a room that people think about, almost an afterthought, and this really is a mistake.


Lighting should be as much a part of a room scheme as choosing the curtain fabric or the carpet, and for very practical reasons should be done at pretty much the same time – the development stage. I say this because it’s no good falling in love with a pair of fabulous wall lights to go on a wall where previously there were none, and having to tell a very disgruntled decorator he’ll have to re-paper the wall after the electrician has channelled in the cables!


By the same token, don’t just automatically put a new fitting where there has always been one. Take a step back and think about your own vision for your new room. Add or subtract at the design stage, when the upheaval is minimal and planned. You may want to move the position of a ceiling fitting, especially in bedrooms in older houses, where they used to put ceiling lights in some very strange places.


It may be that you will be having a sofa in the middle of a living room, with a lamp table next to it, so why not have a floor socket fitted underneath the table before the carpet is laid, thus avoiding unsightly trailing cables.


For me lighting falls broadly into three categories, which are functional, mood and creative. Most rooms should be a combination of at least two of these, the priorities of which depend on the room in question. For example, function is of prime importance in rooms such as kitchens and studies, whilst mood takes precedence in living rooms and bedrooms. Before deciding on exactly how to light your room, consider what you need from the finished scheme. Does the room need to be bright enough to read in comfort, or soft and atmospheric to create a romantic ambience? Even in rooms where function is the prime concern such as kitchens, mood lighting can greatly enhance the look and feel. As well as the ubiquitous downlighters in the ceiling you can add soft lights under or inside cabinets, or LED strips under the plinths to give a wash of light to the floor.


Creative lighting is where light is used as an accent or a statement, without necessarily adding to the overall brightness of a room. This could be a well placed but hidden spot trained on a picture or wall sculpture, or a cube light used under the staircase to give a pool of warm light in a hallway.


For me, the key to a successfully lit room is in multi-level lighting, and I mean this in a number of ways. Not only should sources of light come from diverse areas of a room


/ 112


John Biddell - John Charles Interiors


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