Want Gorgeous Interior Colors? Look to the Light
See how to manipulate natural and artificial light — and learn about those baffling new bulbs — to get the exact room colors you want
Kenny Grono
25 January 2013
If you're reading this ideabook, you've probably already looked at hundreds, if not thousands, of photos of beautiful homes. Perhaps you loved the colors in a room and wrote to ask the designer or contractor to ask what those colors are.
It's important to keep something in mind while browsing photos: Many home interior photos are taken using supplemental lighting, which affects how you see the interior colors.
Get inspired by the photos you see, but experiment in your house with the lighting you plan to use before you start painting. With all the new technology on the market that affects how a room is lit, the tips that follow will help you arrive at the perfect color.
It's important to keep something in mind while browsing photos: Many home interior photos are taken using supplemental lighting, which affects how you see the interior colors.
Get inspired by the photos you see, but experiment in your house with the lighting you plan to use before you start painting. With all the new technology on the market that affects how a room is lit, the tips that follow will help you arrive at the perfect color.
How color changes in a room. Every wall in this room is painted the same shade of gray, but look at the differences caused by the angles and placement in the room. Color also looks different under different circumstances: The day progresses and the natural light in the room changes, seasons change, a couple candles at night or all recessed lighting on full blast changes the appearance. It is worth the expense to paint samples on multiple walls before you commit to a color. The lighting in the room should be finalized too — don’t look at samples with temporary bulbs hanging from pigtail lamp holders. And be sure to check the color at different times of day.
A few ways to affect color through lighting:
A few ways to affect color through lighting:
- To warm up a room’s color: Look for a bulb with a temperature close to 2,700 Kelvin. Halogens are a good choice, but all types of bulbs are available in warmer ratings.
- To cool down a room’s color: Look for a bulb with a temperature close to 4,000 Kelvin. Standard fluorescents will generally cool down a room, but check the numbers.
- To most accurately replicate natural daylight: Midday sunlight is around 5,000 to 6,000 Kelvin, but keep in mind that this is very cool light — contrary to what you might expect.
Note that the chandelier in this room is not on. Combine this with the fact that colors look different on different computer monitors, and what you see in the photograph is at best close to what the room looks like in person.
Tips for choosing a lightbulb. You’ve probably noticed that there are a lot of options these days when it comes to shopping for light bulbs. Though most of us have a sense of what to expect from a 40-watt incandescent bulb, watts are no longer a good way to describe a bulb’s light output, now that different technologies use different amounts of power to produce the same light.
Compare lumens to see how bright a bulb is, and if you want to know how warm or cool the light produced will be, look for the kelvin rating. For the warm light traditionally produced by incandescent bulbs, look for close to 2,700 Kelvin. Most of the old fluorescent tubes you’re familiar with are around 4,000 Kelvin. Fluorescents come in many varieties these days, from warm to cool, from traditional tubes to compact fluorescents (CFLs), all in many interesting shapes. Each will have its own effect on the colors in your house.
Compare lumens to see how bright a bulb is, and if you want to know how warm or cool the light produced will be, look for the kelvin rating. For the warm light traditionally produced by incandescent bulbs, look for close to 2,700 Kelvin. Most of the old fluorescent tubes you’re familiar with are around 4,000 Kelvin. Fluorescents come in many varieties these days, from warm to cool, from traditional tubes to compact fluorescents (CFLs), all in many interesting shapes. Each will have its own effect on the colors in your house.
If you’re concerned that the government has outlawed your favorite lightbulbs, plunging you into a confusing world of ugly-looking light bulbs that give off weird light, have no fear. The only thing that has been outlawed is selling light bulbs that heat your house more than light it. The old incandescent bulbs converted only 10 percent of the electricity used into light; the rest became heat. Ever hear of an Easy-Bake Oven?
Incandescent light is still available but in a more efficient package. Look for a halogen bulb like the one lighting this chandelier. These bulbs look the same as traditional bulbs, but with the filament encased in gas, they are able to produce light like a 100-watt incandescent bulb with only 72 watts.
Incandescent light is still available but in a more efficient package. Look for a halogen bulb like the one lighting this chandelier. These bulbs look the same as traditional bulbs, but with the filament encased in gas, they are able to produce light like a 100-watt incandescent bulb with only 72 watts.
Use light to your advantage. The light source you choose affects how colors appear in a room, but so does the way you use the light. On this project, the gold leaf wall is washed with light from a bright LED strip. This combination gives off a warm glow. Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are the longest-lasting bulbs out there, and they cost the least to operate. They have a greater up-front cost, though. Don’t be surprised to pay $20 for an LED. Though the lifetime savings are worth the investment, if you don’t like the quality of the light, it’s all for naught.
Go to a lighting showroom where you can see different bulbs in action, or buy one and use it in the basement or garage if you don’t like the color. If you like the yellowish light cast by a traditional incandescent, try the Philips Ambient LED. At 8 watts, it uses 80 percent less electricity than an incandescent 40-watt bulb.
Go to a lighting showroom where you can see different bulbs in action, or buy one and use it in the basement or garage if you don’t like the color. If you like the yellowish light cast by a traditional incandescent, try the Philips Ambient LED. At 8 watts, it uses 80 percent less electricity than an incandescent 40-watt bulb.
Adjust bulb color with fixtures. If the color of light produced by a bulb isn't quite to your liking, you can tweak it by picking a fixture shade that changes the light, like this glass shade from Schoolhouse Electric. But know that an enclosed shade on a fixture that hangs upside down like this has limited bulb options. LED bulbs will not last as long if they're exposed to the heat buildup in an enclosed shade. CFLs don't like to hang upside down — they will work and still generally last longer than an incandescent, but you won't get the full predicted life out of them.
This cool modern chandelier has exposed bulbs that would look great with some of the interesting-looking LED bulbs that are out there now. If your fixture is on a dimmer, keep in mind that while the color produced by the LED at full strength will match that of its equivalent incandescent, when dimmed the incandescent will get much warmer in tone, while the LED will just dim and the color will stay pretty consistent.
Get help figuring out a lighting plan. Due to all of these factors, it can really pay off to have a designer help you with a lighting plan. Someone with knowledge about the lighting options will be able to maxmize energy efficiency and help you get the color in the room just right.
Fluorescent tubes are placed behind the mirrors in this room. Incandescent recessed lighting and LED accents make for an interesting mix.
Fluorescent tubes are placed behind the mirrors in this room. Incandescent recessed lighting and LED accents make for an interesting mix.
Using natural light. We've spent a lot of time talking about artificial light, but controlling and monitoring the natural light a room gets is also critical to selecting the right colors. Large windows are expensive and require blinds or curtains for privacy. For diffusing light on a large scale, consider Kalwall panels. These fiberglass panels are gaining in popularity in residential projects and can flood a room with light without the glare. Of course, just as with any source of natural light, colors will look different throughout the day, so don't pick a color you love at 10 in the morning, only to find it looks drab and dreary when you come home from work.
Light from a skylight can be harsh, creating a spotlight effect and bringing as much heat into the house as light. Skylights also often require structural alterations to roof framing, and structural changes are never cheap. Instead of a skylight, consider a tubular daylighting device, shown here in cross section. Like Kalwall panels, the device fills a room with diffuse natural light. Though a 5,000- to 6,000-Kelvin bulb will supposedly reproduce natural light, there's nothing like the real thing. Even though the new bulbs out there use a lot less power than those Edison bulbs, there's no beating free light.
More:
How to Match Color in Photos to Real Life
Get Your Light Right for a Healthy House
More:
How to Match Color in Photos to Real Life
Get Your Light Right for a Healthy House
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Thanks for sharing. Great article!