How to Plan Lighting

Lighting can be one of the trickiest parts of interior design. If it’s not quite right, a spectacular space can look dingy. If the lightbulbs are wrong, it can throw the color balance out of whack. But when it’s done right, it is magical. 

Multiple lighting sources in a dining room lets you set the tone for your evening.

Here’s our 3-step lighting plan that works for any room:

1. Create a lighting plan. 

2. Source your light fixtures. 

3. Determine hanging heights.

1. Create a lighting plan.

First, you’ll decide what type of light sources the room needs. Here’s my general guideline for lighting to consider in modern family homes:

Kitchen: Overhead lighting, under cabinet lighting, pendants over island, specialty sconce, kitchen table light, in-cabinet lighting for glass front cabinets

Living room: table lamp, chandelier or fan, sconce for mantle or bookcases (pro tip: if you want a fan for air flow, skip the light kit and use other sources of ambient lighting instead!)

Bathroom: above vanity mirror, ceiling flush mount, scone on either side of mirror

Bedroom: nightstand lamp or sconces over nightstand, ceiling light or fan (skip the light kit and choose a fan that blends in with the ceiling color)

Hallway: sconces, overhead lighting

Dining room: Chandelier, sconces and lamps on buffet

Matching lamps bring a sense of symmetry

Airy chandeliers give a coastal vibe

Get creative with modern sconces

2. Source your light fixtures.

Next comes the fun part. Browse through lighting stores and catalogs to find inspiration. My three favorite stores are:

Visual Comfort: With a showroom on Roswell Road, Visual Comfort is a great place to see modern lighting options. Their studio collection has beautiful light fixtures at accessible price points. I just ordered pendants from Visual Comfort for an upcoming project. 

Morrison Three Light Lantern

Ziyi Large Chandelier

Precision Small Pendant

Currey and Company: You can find Currey & Company in many Atlanta showrooms. I love the variety of their selections. I recently used the Pepper pendant for a client’s meditation room and it was the perfect piece to bring the entire design together.

Pepper Multi-Drop Pendant

Antibes Natural Chandelier

Delgado Black Chandelier

Regina Andrew: Based in Detroit, Regina Andrew is my go to brand for unique lighting that grabs your attention. The goal of this husband-and-wife led team is “that everything they do should electrify the room.” Here are a few of my favorite pieces from Regina Andrew.

Talbot Ceramic Pendant

Pantry Flush Mount

Happy Pendant

3. Determine hanging heights

Now that you’ve got the right fixtures for the space, it’s time to start hanging! This can take a lot of measuring and a bit of patience so be sure to allow for enough time to hang the fixtures.

Check out the hanging guidelines on Lightology for helpful measurements to get your lighting hung at the right height.

Have specific questions or design challenges? We’d love to help. Send us a note at christa@markeydesignco.com.