How to illuminate a dining room

The lighting in a dining room must be carefully studied to bring direct and clear light to the table, while maintaining a certain warmth and ambient friendliness in the rest of the room. This is all the subtle art of lighting, which plays on several aspects to modulate a light that is both functional and ambient: the lights themselves of course, whose technical characteristics will influence the rendering lighting, but also the choice of bulbs and any accessories allowing to modulate or play on the luminous nuances. But that shouldn't make us forget daytime lighting, namely the entrances of natural light in the form of windows or bay windows, which also have their role to play in the lighting of a dining room.

 

Functional lighting above the table

A dining room, as its name suggests, is above all the place where you eat. Whether it is used for this function on an occasional basis, when receiving guests, or on a daily basis because the kitchen is too cramped to install a table, it is essential to have direct lighting just above the table to ensure very good visibility. There are several options for this.

 

Suspension lights, chandeliers, arched floor lamps

A big favorite of contemporary interiors, the pendant lights installed just below the dining room table provide targeted light to illuminate the dining area as well as the guests and allow very good visual comfort. They come in an infinity of styles and materials and are alternately exuberant and spectacular or discreet (and refined) to match the style of your interior and enhance it.

Already used by Louis XIV to illuminate his interiors, the chandelier has been able to modernize with constantly renewed designs and if contemporary suspensions compete with it, it retains a place of choice in interior lighting, especially when it brings a real touch of originality and gives character to the room, as is the case with the model below, the SCREEN XXL by Market Set, a spectacular and a real centerpiece of the decoration of this contemporary dining room.

A contemporary style light for the dining room, the VERTIGO NOVA floor lamp offers an indisputable visual appeal and direct lighting on the table and its guests that meets both functional use and aesthetic criteria. Soaring like an arm above the table, topped with a flower like lampshade, it combines purity and design for an elegant result that can be adapted to any type of interior decoration.

The choice of bulbs for functional lighting

To obtain the direct lighting essential for good visual comfort at the table, it is also necessary to know how to play with the intensity and the color of the light of the bulbs used. For functional lighting, we recommend compact fluorescent bulbs around 100-300 lumens and to favor white light reminiscent of natural light.

If you like more subdued atmospheres, it is possible to choose a bulb with warmer tones or even vintage Edison style filament bulbs for their decorative vintage effect, as in the photo below, but it will be necessary to work more on the light of the rest of the room. the room to ensure sufficient lighting.

 

 

Mood lights, wall sconces and table lamps.

The lighting of the dining room is not limited to the dining area and it is essential to provide one or more secondary lights to illuminate the rest of the room and balance the light diffusion. There are a multitude of options, from the most classic to the most original.

Classic yet timeless, wall sconces are a great way to bring mood lighting to a dining room without taking up floor space. We love their discretion, which contrasts with the exuberance of a designer chandelier or pendant lamp. We love the frosted glass ABALLS A wall light from Panzeri in black which takes up current decorating trends and brings subtle accent lighting to a dining room.

If you have a chest of drawers or sideboard in your dining room, why not show it off by placing a lamp and some decorative objects on it to create a charming scene that will bring a soft and warm atmosphere to the room.

 

The choice of bulbs for functional lighting and natural lighting

Here again, it is important to choose the right bulbs to create an atmosphere that contributes to relaxation. We preferably choose light bulbs with a light intensity of 100 lumens and in a warm light color, or we equip ourselves with dimmers, devices making it possible to modulate the light intensity according to needs.

The work on the lights should not make us forget the other star of lighting: natural light! On its own, and free of charge, it allows us to bathe our interiors in the lighting essential to our lives. How to make sure to attract it in our rooms, and in particular our dining room? Some tracks…

 

Decompartmentalize to share the light

The watchword of the contemporary house? Decompartmentalize, open up spaces and perspectives to free volumes and circulate light ! Depending on the technical characteristics of your house, see if you can knock down the partition between the kitchen and the dining room, or between the dining room and the living room, to replace it with a canopy or a simple trellis that will allow light to circulate more freely in the space created. This is without counting on the reflective power of the glazing which also contributes to illuminating the room!

 

Bay windows and skylights to let in light

Another very nice way to let light into your dining room is to install large bay windows or even, if possible, a roof window allowing direct natural lighting, as in the magnificent example below. Whatever type of opening you choose to increase the natural light in your dining room, favor maximum exposure, especially if you live in a region with little sunlight where the slightest ray is worth gold!

Lighting your dining room is ultimately a subtle game involving functional and atmospheric lighting and openings letting in natural light. It is then up to you to play on the nuances and the light intensities by choosing equipment allowing you to modulate the lighting so that it corresponds to your needs and your desires of the moment.