Home

A common decorating dilemma is how to lift the spirit of a room. There are several ways, but the best solution is lighting. It's easy, it's affordable, it adds dramatic design elements and it even upgrades the value of a home.

Besides doing its duty, lighting creates atmosphere that can make or break a room. It also expresses personal style -- a glittering chandelier vs. a rustic metal candelabrum; eye-catching uplights outside or subdued path lights; a chunky modern table lamp vs. a traditional brass urn.

Our homes are a sanctuary from the daily grind and troubled world, and good lighting sets a comforting tone. Here are some of my "bright" ideas for lighting:

First, illuminate a room in proportion to the space. To calculate proper illumination, multiply the square footage of the room by 1.5. For example, a 15-by-20-foot room is 300 square feet. Now multiply 300 by 1.5 to find that 450 watts of lighting is needed. For concentrated task areas such as workspaces, multiply by 2.5.

For a great accent, install mood-making wall sconces about 60 inches above the floor. Spread them 8 to 10 feet apart in hallways.

For an elegant flow, place two 20-inch tall candelabra lamp sticks with dark shades on your fireplace mantel (one on each side), and a console behind the couch and in the hallway, too, if room permits. The dark shades will add a sense of masculinity to the space. The wattage from these can be included in the total needed to illuminate the room.

How big should a chandelier be? For the correct size, add the room's dimensions, but substitute inches for feet. Example: For a 12-by-16-foot room, add 12 and 16 to figure that a 28-inch-diameter chandelier would be ideal.

To determine the diameter of an existing chandelier over an dining table, just divide the table width in half. For example, a table width of 48 inches would accommodate a 24-inch chandelier.

As for height, with a chandelier in a dining room with 8-foot-high ceilings, the bottom of the chandelier should be 30 inches above the table. Add 3 inches for each additional foot of ceiling height.

When staging your home for resale or just a big party, new inexpensive lighting from a home improvement store will work wonders. If that's not possible, simply clean and polish the existing lighting with ammonia, and add high-watt bulbs.

Here's my very favorite idea, which worked wonderfully in a recent room-overhaul at my sister's house: Buy small silk shades in alternating colors with beaded trim on the bottom or top openings. You can find these for very little cost at discount stores. Use these to replace the old glass light covers commonly found on the ubiquitous 1970s brass chandeliers. The shades simply snap right onto the small bulb. Another trick: Paint the brass finish in a flat black so it looks like wrought iron.

Turned out, light fixtures and lamps should be design elements that complement the decor. But when switched on, the light should be functional and dramatically affect the look and feel of the room.