Architects and designers alike understand the impact natural lighting can have on a home and the people who live in it. Natural lighting not only brightens up a space, but it also enhances the design, making an area feel larger and less compact, and boosting the overall energy level of its occupants. Therefore, natural light is a desirable design element when carefully integrated into homes during new builds and renovations alike.
Natural Lighting: A Healthy Dose of Vitamin D
Daylight affects our health in multiple ways and incorporating natural light is a wonderful way of sustaining those effects. Here are some ways that daylight helps us keep healthy: Serotonin levels, regulating the body’s internal clock, and engaging our visual senses.
Bringing Natural Light Indoors
Homeowners and designers have used tricks to bring natural lighting into structures for years. Painting walls white and other bright colors encourages natural light to bounce off them, reflecting the light throughout the space. These natural light rays also illuminate other colors, textures, and materials in the home, making them crisp and helping them to stand out. Not to mention, natural lighting is FREE and the more you have of it, the less money you are spending.
So, if you are living in a home that has low natural lighting and you are looking to introduce more, how do you do it? Here are some tips and trends we see and implement in our clients’ homes to bring that beautiful natural light ambiance to life.
- Installing “view-framing” large floor to ceiling window walls to let in even amounts of natural light, brightening up the space.
- Adding Skylights to your current design brings in the light from the brightest part of the sky that cannot be accessed by windows on the perimeter of the home.
- Incorporating glass walls and light-colored surfaces play with the natural light rays and distribute the light throughout a room.
- If floor to ceiling windows do not work in your space, consider clerestory windows as an alternative. These windows are above eye level and are in a row, letting in less harsh light and more ambient light.
- If the natural light is too harsh, using light shelves helps to curb that by reducing window glare with an overhang or shelf. A mix of interior and exterior shelves works well in creating even and consistent lighting.
- In rooms with no windows, consider a sun tube or sun tunnel to bring the natural light indoors.
- Add on a sunroom! These rooms tend to be the most loved room in a home. It is completely enclosed, framed by glass letting in all the sunlight throughout the day provides a space designed specifically for rejuvenation and wellness within the home.
If you are looking to create more natural light within your home, NJW Renovations Unlimited are here to help. We partner with experienced and talented designers and architects that understand all the factors involved in creating a beautiful naturally lit home. We work closely with our clients and our partners to implement changes to your home to visually brighten up your mood, increase your energy, and create stunning spaces. Contact us to see how we can help brighten up your space today!