In today’s “decorative forward” culture the vast design options via houzz, pinterest or other online/social media resources seem to be endless. In commercial and residential applications designers and DIY’rs are on the cutting edge of design being heavily influenced online and/or on TV. Even with all of these resources the few with the gumption to follow through on home projects pay large premiums for these impressive designs and still do not find the look they were intending due to poor lighting.
While there are MANY “tricks of the trade” in our decades of experience we thought we could outline a few ideas, in a series of articles, that gives budding designers the most BANG for the buck while offering an alternative to dull lighting. Our aim is to show the DIY’r a way to really highlight those designs with minimal effort while remaining cost conscience. Be forewarned that we will reference our own products as examples because these products represent how we believe lighting should be done to our very strict standards.
Linear Lighting
Kitchen renovations are easily the most expensive home improvement generally specified by homeowners and usually an investment of tens of thousand of dollars. Often the DIY designer misses the opportunity to maximize the beauty of their design by not using under cabinet lighting. Even the knowledgeable are often only familiar with old halogen puck light style of this application which created a lot of heat and gave a “spotlight” like light coverage to parts of the counter top or shelf.
Modern designers, because of the proliferation of LED strips, now have the opportunity to install beautiful light with consistent coverage across the entire shelf or counter top with 80% less heat and far less electricity for usually far less money. Using Wessel LEDs’ exclusive line of custom extrusions ) our customers find an angled fixture that covers the surface evenly with light while staying cool and hidden so you only see the light.
Customization
Knowing already that lighting brings your designs to life the question now should be… what are my options? Wessel LED Lighting Systems offers many different surface mount or recessed fixtures to fit any budget and design specification and there are even more pre-cut solutions available online. Some of the decisions that would be made during this phase are how the light will mount (Surface Mount, Clips, Recessed), where they will be placed, and how much light is required, which you could easily work out with your designer or by giving us a call. Wessel LED will then take your dimensions and will deliver custom extrusions custom cut to 1/16″ to give you the same design professional look you would see in the finest hotels or most luxurious of residences.
Once you have chosen your fixture based on your project plan needs you will need to determine what light color best suits your design. While kitchens with wood grained cabinets typically look better with a warmer white 3000K, perhaps in your bathroom you might steer towards a 5000K brighter white, these options are all subjective and up to ones personal preference. A nice resource can be found here that outlines what your color options are and how to choose what is best for you.
Installation
Most folks shy away from doing lighting improvements because of the electrical work involved and when there is new wiring involved it is rightly so. All hard wire and new circuit wiring should be done by a competent, licensed, and insured professionals. There are thankfully easy alternatives to either replace your current lighting or to enhance your new design. Wessel LED offers CUSTOM cut linear lighting with PLUG and PLAY transformer options so your installation is as easy as plugging in a lap top. That gives you the ability to give your space a million dollar look with out the cost of expensive contractors.