Tired of plain ceiling lights? Indirect lighting brings a warm, inviting ambience to your living room. If you like, you can even integrate it into your smart home. Here are some inspiring examples of effective living room lighting.
Your living room is beautifully decorated, yet it still feels like something is missing? Often, the secret to a cosy space lies in the lighting. Thoughtful lighting can transform any room into a true comfort zone. A popular idea for the living room is to complement ceiling lights, table lamps, and reading lamps with indirect lighting, which is easy to implement thanks to LED technology.
The difference between direct and indirect lighting
The living room is the heart of the home. It’s a place for work, reading, dining, or simply relaxing. The challenge? Different activities call for different lighting. Experts recommend combining both direct and indirect light sources to achieve the ideal lighting.
Direct lighting
Direct lighting is ideal when you need brightness and eye support. Overhead lights, spotlights, or ceiling fixtures provide the base layer of illumination, filling the room with light. Zone lights, such as table lamps, reading lights, or pendant lamps, provide focused light for specific areas, like a reading nook, the sofa, or the coffee table.
Indirect lighting
Indirect lighting, on the other hand, creates ambience. Here, the light is first reflected off a ceiling or wall before diffusing into the room. This reduces harsh shadows, softens contrasts between light and dark, and prevents glare, all while maintaining good visibility and comfort.
Indirect LED lighting for the living room
LEDs are the top choice for indirect lighting today, available in strips, spotlights, or large panels. Their compact size and low heat emission make LEDs ideal for placement behind ceilings, walls, in niches, shelves, or even along baseboards. Self-adhesive LED strips are narrow enough to be practically invisible. Powered by a small power supply, they can be dimmed or even change colour, creating exciting lighting concepts for furniture as well. LED strips or spots highlight glass cabinets, reduce the bulky look of large wardrobe walls, or accentuate areas around your TV or multimedia setup.
Indirect lighting on furniture
Furnishings can be easily retrofitted with LED strips. For example, on a sideboard, you can place the narrow strips underneath the top shelf, keeping them out of sight.
To install: First, clean the surface where you plan to attach the strip. Then measure and trim the LED strip to the right length (many strips can be cut at specific points, but check your model’s guidelines). Need longer strips? Look for models with connectors that allow you to extend them. Attach the self-adhesive strips to the desired surface, then connect the ends to the power source and transformer.
Tip: LED strips work well on other furniture, such as shelves, tabletops, or even sofas. Mounted under floating furniture, they create an especially striking effect.
Glass-edge lighting for cabinets
Indirect lighting can add a striking touch to glass cabinets. Glass-edge lighting, for instance, involves attaching LED lights to metal clips that fit along the sides or back edges of glass shelves. Simply clip them on, run the wiring discreetly behind the glass, and connect them to the transformer.
Indirect lighting for wardrobes
Wardrobes often lack interior lighting, making it hard to see inside. LED strips cut to size and attached to the inside walls of the wardrobe can solve this problem. You can also install LED spotlights on the inside ceiling of the wardrobe with screws. Models with motion sensors are especially convenient for wardrobes and are available from lighting specialists.
Indirect lighting for stairs
Indirect lighting around stairways not only creates atmosphere but also enhances safety. LED strips are easy to install here—either under the stair nosing, along the side panels, or beneath the handrail. These LED strips can be activated with a simple switch connected to a power supply.
For added convenience, combine them with motion sensors at the top and bottom of the stairs and a smart server. The lights will activate when someone is near, with customizable colours and brightness settings. A specialist can help you plan a safe and stylish stair lighting setup.
Smart solutions for living room lighting with Gira
As you can see, a smart lighting plan in the living room today often involves a blend of different light sources. Wondering how to manage all these options? Gira's smart lighting control systems offer a solution. If you have a KNX system, you can use the Smart Home app for Gira One and KNX to dim lights, turn on floor lamps, or match multimedia lighting to music—right from your sofa. With the Gira System 3000, you can even control lighting schedules and scenes from your phone or tablet with a Bluetooth app, no switches required.
Tips for living room lighting: your checklist
Use this checklist to answer key questions before implementing your indirect lighting design:
Which areas are in my living room, and how do I want to use them?
Where should lights be placed?
Where do I need direct light, and where is indirect lighting more appropriate?
Are power outlets available, or how can I ensure power access?
What light colour suits my taste? (LEDs between 2800 and 3300 Kelvin emit a warm, inviting glow. Higher Kelvin values create cooler light.)
Should my lights be dimmable?
Do I need illuminated outlets or switches?
Once it gets dark outside, living room lighting shines brightest. A clever tip: Automate your blind control and smart lighting with Gira to save energy as you enjoy your home’s ambience.
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