Brighter spaces appear to be cleaner and more spacious than their darker counterparts, making for a more positive living environment. The words ‘big and bright’ have been rendered synonymous by the real estate industry; these seem to be two of the most sought-after attributes in a property today. From optimising your lighting to creating spacious knock-throughs, here are the best ways in which to make your home brighter.
Upgrade Your Windows
The ultimate key to letting light into your house is through your windows. Whilst many modern houses now have giant windows or even whole-wall windows, a glass-house is not the right aesthetic for all homes, even if it is a sure-fire way to let in natural light. As an alternative, you might consider extending your windows slightly or adding windows to your home in the areas that catch the light the most. Velux windows are a popular means by which to brighten-up the home, bringing in heaps of light upon your home through the roof. Add windows to the roof as part of your light-altering loft conversion, or to the roof of your home extension.
Paint to Perfection
The colour of your interior plays a huge part in the brightness of your home. As expected, lighter colours tend to create brighter homes. White walls are a surefire way to optimise brightness, but you do not necessarily have to jeopardise your colour preferences in the name of brightness. As a rule of thumb, paler shades tend to maximise both natural and superficial light because of their light-reflecting properties.
If you want to brighten your home but are a fan of less-subdued colours, consider adding a feature wall. Feature walls are also a brilliant way of deciphering the colour-scheme of a room when it comes to furniture and accessories and can add a modern touch to the home.
De-Clutter Your Home
Oftentimes the architectural structure of our home, when taken alone, is brilliant at letting in natural light, but we prohibit it from doing so by over-filling spaces with our belongings. This is an inevitable scenario for many, who in the wake of one of our most troubling housing crises in history, have very little space to work with, particularly in London and other southern cities. There are, however, many ways in which we can create newfound space in our homes and thereby let some more light in.
- Kick the hoarding habit
- Throw out or sell unwanted items
- Invest in better storage methods
- Re-shuffle your furniture
Learning how to throw away unwanted or unused items is a fundamental aspect of having a tidier, brighter home. If you haven’t used an item in more than six months’ time, it usually means it is time to be rid of it (unless it is a seasonal item such as a fan heater or a garden chair set). Finding new and inventive ways to store items (such as with drawers that go under large furniture items) is a great way to de-clutter your home. After all, a spacious home is a brighter home. It may be the case that the way your furniture is currently arranged is blocking-out potentially light-emitting areas, such as floor lamps and windows. Re-shuffle your items such that windows are fully visible and any superficial light is able to be carried throughout the home.
Create a Knock-Through
Removing a wall in the home can do wonders to create a brighter space. By creating a knock-through, you are enlargening the area as well as consequently adding further windows to the room (if the space you knock through to has windows of its own).
Open-plan or semi open-plan homes tend to be brighter as they bring in light from more than one direction.If a room has windows that are both east and west facing, for example, the room will be able to see the rays of the morning and the evening sun.
Light It Up
The better the lighting, the brighter the home. If you don’t have the resources to create more natural lighting in your house, then a quick-fix is to optmise your artificial light. Overhead lighting is most effective, but can sometimes be rather glaring or clinical. Opt for overhead lighting with a dimmer switch and invest in standing lamps that will simultaneously add style to your rooms. Fairy lights can also be a beautiful way of banishing the blackness and creating a certain ambiance in a room. Remember to get energy saving light bulbs to avoid putting the environment at risk as a part of your endeavour towards a brighter home.
