How To Layer Lighting in Your Home

Layered lighting is the key to creating versatile and comfortable living spaces. By combining ambient, task, accent, and decorative lighting, you can enhance the functionality of your home. Employing various light layers also allows you to seamlessly shift between the day and evening use of a room while eliminating unwanted shadows. In this guide, we'll explore the principles and benefits of layered lighting to help craft a well-lit environment.

There are four main types of lighting: ambient, task, accent, and decorative. 

• Ambient lighting is the primary source of illumination for a space. Ambient light will serve as the base or main layer when layering lights. Common light fixtures include recessed downlights, ceiling lights, and wall-mounted fittings. 
• Task lighting provides focused light for specific jobs and helps soften shadows from general ambient light. Task lighting is the most common light type to be layered with ambient lighting. Use desk lamps or under-cabinet lights for task lighting. 
• Accent lighting highlights features within a room to create depth and dimension. Strip lights and track lights are popular accent lights. 
• Decorative lighting is any lighting or light fixture that serves as a statement piece, such as strip lights, string lights, chandeliers, and wall sconces.

Vertical layering arranges light sources at varying heights within a room to draw the eye upward or downward to create dimension. This technique is particularly effective in rooms with high ceilings or vertical architectural features. Use ceiling, pendant, and recessed downlights for overhead lighting to provide your base layer of ambient light. To add depth to the medium layer, incorporate wall-mounted sconces, floor lamps, torchieres, table lamps, or accent lights that highlight various parts of the room at eye level. Certain spaces can also benefit from bottom-layer lighting in the form of plug-in motion sensor lights, toe-kick lights, or uplights to increase accessibility in low light.

Horizontal light layering involves distributing light sources evenly across the horizontal plane of a room to create focal points and areas of interest. This technique also helps to create a sense of width within a space. Across long wall stretches, draw attention to hanging wall art or picture frames by employing track lighting. Or, use above-cabinet and under-cabinet strip lights in kitchens to create a long, horizontal task-light layer.

Depth light layering creates areas of interest between the foreground and background of a room to emphasize spatial depth and dimension. Carefully position light fixtures throughout the space and experiment with different fixture heights and distances to see what works best for your home. Utilize backlighting by placing lights behind furniture or objects to give depth between the object and the wall behind it. Install track or strip lights along stretches of a wall to guide the eye through the space and create a sense of movement. Survey your space from different angles to ensure dimension is noticeable from all vantage points.

While planning your light layering design, keep in mind how natural light will play into your space. Remember that you can use wide-open windows and skylights as ambient light during the day. Observe how the lighting in your home changes throughout the day and identify any areas that may need additional lighting.

Your ceiling height and room size may affect how you create your layering design. High ceilings may require more vertical light layers spread evenly from top to bottom to provide sufficient lighting, whereas smaller rooms with low ceilings may use depth lighting to make the space appear larger. View our list of other characteristics to keep in mind when lighting your home here.

1. Start with a base light layer. This will typically be a general ambient light. If you are having trouble figuring out how bright to make your ambient light, refer to our residential recommended lighting levels guide.
2. Work in vertical, horizontal, or depth layering techniques to create interest and dimension within a space. Begin by assessing your needs for each of the main lighting types.
1. Firstly, think about how the room will be used to understand what task lighting is required. Identify areas for reading, meal preparation, or hobbies. This ensures there is sufficient layering to support whatever tasks occur without making the overall lighting too overpowering.
2. Secondly, find features of the room you wish to accentuate and highlight. This could be photo frames, decor, architectural details, or mirrors. Use track lights, spotlight bulbs, and wall sconces for accent lighting.
3. Finally, if the vertical, horizontal, or depth layering design feels unexciting or there are spaces that are missing illumination, incorporate decorative lighting fixtures.
3. Make sure the correlated color temperature (CCT) and brightness are what you desire. 
1. In multipurpose rooms, you can layer various color temperatures to optimize different spaces for specific tasks and add dimension to a room. Warm CCTs are ideal for areas of your home where you relax and lounge. Cool CCTs are better for task-oriented areas since the cooler, bluer tones help make you more focused and alert. 
2. Make sure the brightness of certain fixtures does not overpower the overall design. Each light layer should flow seamlessly into the next.
4. Before finalizing your design, go top to bottom and see what is missing. Ask yourself, where are areas that lack depth? How can I control the way this space is perceived? What mood does the current lighting evoke? Add in additional lights if needed.
5. Once all lighting fixtures are installed, test the lighting to make sure it meets your needs for functionality and visual appeal. Adjust fixture placement, color temperature, or brightness to achieve the desired lighting effect.

To continue your lighting design journey, read our interior lighting design guide here.