How lighting can enhance different spaces within a home

Homes flooded with natural light are a firm favourite among buyers, but what happens when the sun goes down and the switches are flicked?

Curtis Dong of Canberry Properties, who lists this week’s Nicholls feature property, says lighting performs an important range of functions within a home.

“In the Nicholls residence, for example, the exterior and interior lights really showcase the presence and proportions of the home in the evenings,” he says. “Inside, generally, good lighting design can really help set a mood in living areas where people relax, or deliver task lighting in, say, the kitchen.”

Dong says interior lighting can also help increase the sense of space inside a home. “And outside, it can be used in entertainment areas to illuminate paths and to highlight special garden features,” he says.

Sonja McAuliffe of Archertec Interiors says creative lighting has come far since the days of a single light fitting in the middle of a room.

“Lighting … can help perform tasks where direct light is needed, something that is increasingly important, especially as we age, [and] can also be used to create effects, illusions of space and depth, through choices in floor lighting, table lamps, strip lighting and more.”

McAuliffe says lighting also plays an important role in safety by illuminating steps, and in outdoor security through motion sensors.

Design
Think carefully about the main purpose of each room when making lighting choices. Some rooms, like kitchens, need task lighting while the focus of others can be on setting the mood.

Ambience
Lighting can bring theatre into homes through thoughtful design. Floor and table lamps set the mood in a living room while strip lighting can bring a glow into kitchens and staircases.

Wellbeing
Considered lighting choices can help set the home mood. Subtle lighting can encourage a feeling of relaxation while full-spectrum light globes that mimic daylight help promote the feel-good factor.

Our pick of homes for sale:

Nicholls

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Welcome to the house of light, a stunning two-storey showcase in one of Nicholls most tightly held locations.

This beautifully renovated and upgraded home is on a block of about 820 square metres of elevated land and nearly 300 square metres of living space.

The luminosity becomes evident when stepping into an entry foyer with soaring five-metre ceilings.

And that’s where the light show really begins – enhanced by plenty of windows, a neutral palette and big, glossy floor tiles throughout.

The lower level hosts a living or theatre room, a guest bedroom with an en suite, and the central kitchen, dining and family hub. The dining area is a theatrical highlight, with extensive windows for more light.

There’s also plenty of task and ambient lighting in the new kitchen that’s highlighted by stone benchtops and an arsenal of Miele appliances, backed by a large butler’s pantry.

Upstairs, there’s a large main bedroom with a spacious walk-in wardrobe, dressing table and a luxurious en suite, while two minor bedrooms share the main bathroom. There’s also a guest bedroom with a walk-in wardrobe and en suite.

The highlight outside is a spacious pergola overlooking a mature, low-maintenance garden with a fish pond. Parking is in an oversized double garage and a single carport.

It’s close to a playground, schools, shops and recreational amenities.

Price guide: $1.65 million+

Auction: 11.30am, August 26

Agent: Canberry Properties, Curtis Dong 0449 889 665

This feature is part of an Allhomes Deluxe package.

Denman Prospect

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Price guide: $1.419 million+

Agent: Edge Adil Iqbal, Adil Iqbal 0416 354 232

Deakin

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Price guide: $1.6 million+

Agent: Hive Property, Josh Morrissey 0437 799 234

Googong

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Price guide: $1.149 million

Agent: PRDnationwide Bungendore, Dan Woodford 0414 264 441