subject: Developing Your Light [print this page] Developing Your Light Developing Your Light
Shades and Shadows in a room are just as important as correct lighting. They give a room warmth and depth and give furnishings their texture and feel all of their own. Stark contrast are difficult on the eyes and a careful balance is required that gives a comfortable and relaxing hue.
Special features within a room can create shadows that can be accentuated with lighting, stair cases and unusual shaped rooms can be given character and uniqueness by selective placement of light sources. These areas can be enhanced by using track lighting and wall washing.
Lighting a single table or chair in a darkened room with a pendant is very dramatic and places the sole emphasis there, this can also be achieved over a dinner table when entertaining guests or for a romantic dinner for two.
Floor standards will bounce light off the ceiling and wall washers will also produce good shadowing effects, with their light in a darkened room diverse and stimulating patterns can be created.
If you have a dining table in a permanent position, do not hang the light fitting over it too high. The ideal height is about 90cm from the surface of the table; this will give you a very intimate light, particularly if the fitting is used with a dimmer. If you use a crystal chandelier the result is even better.
The lampshades primary purpose is to reduce the glare from a light source and provide unobtrusive pools of light in particular areas of a room, whilst supplementing the overall ambient levels.
There are many different styles and finishes of shade with the development of halogen and energy saving lighting over the last few years a whole new range of materials and designs has come to the fore.
Traditional fabric shades concentrate on the use of materials such as silk, satin or cotton are made from stretching the materials over a metal frame leaving a space of around 3cm between the fabric and light source to allow for heat dispersion.
Frames are usually made from steel or copper with finished with nylon or resin coating to prevent rusting. These types of shades can be lined or unlined and are sometimes finished with stitching or gluing beads, ribbons or rope as a trimming.
Hard fabric shades are made essentially from a fabric which has been laminated or backed with a stiff material such as card. This results in a straight sided, coolie or drum shade which are a little more contemporary because of their very clean and finishes. However, hard shades do not last very long as they are difficult to clean but are cheaper than their soft shade counterparts.
Glass shades are also available however they do vary both in style and quality. The glass may have been moulded, blown or cut. The glass may be clear, opal, coloured with traces of metal added to change colour and properties. There are hundreds of different styles of glass shade each having different types of finish, styles, light output and colour rendering.
Paper shades have become very popular in recent years because they are lightweight, cheap and available in a huge amount of colours, shapes and sizes. They offer good diffused light, however they become brittle and the paper discolours after a relatively short period of time.
The inner surfaces of shade may have reflective properties this has two effects, the light that is not transmitted by the shade material will be correctly reflected in the required direction and a reflective surface will not warm up as quickly and the lampshade will retain its shape and colour.
When matching a shade to your lamp there are a few simple guidelines that you should follow. A general rule of thumb is that the diameter of the shade should be the same as the height of the lamp. However if you have a fat short lamp-base the shade should be substantially wider than the base but not to unbalance the lamp. It would also be wise to consider the maximum amount of light required from the lamp so you will not increase the wattage of the lamp above the maximum wattage of the shade.
