The first thing people always say to me when they enter my home is WOW, I love your lighting! This includes several real estate agents who recently did an appraisal on our home. Inside I do a happy dance at this feedback.
In the case of my home, lighting was one of the most expensive decisions I made when designing the interior.
At the time my sister was not happy about this, feeling it was a wasted cost.
However, I felt it was an investment.
As it turns out, it has indeed strengthened our appeal on the market and increased the value of the property.
We changed 90% of our home lighting from the builder’s options to carefully chosen pendant lighting, down lights and bracket lighting for the exterior.
Things I wish I Knew Then
There are more cost-effective ways of finding great lighting options.
In my case we bought our lighting from shops like Beacon (brand new) and we paid an electrician to install them. If you don’t have a sparky friend to install your lights then this can be quiet a costly exercise by the time you have brought your lights and paid for their services (labour).
Once I had finished our build I discovered my love of DIY batten lighting.
Some example of my favorites below:
- Elrose Batten Fix
- Amy DIY Batten Fix
- Darly DIY Batten Fix
- Hamilton DIY Batten Fix
- Mercator Batten Fix
- Kelly Batten Fix
My personal favorite is DIY Batten Fix Suspension Cord which can also be purchased at your local Bunnings store.
I remember when we first moved in my sister purchased what she thought was the most wonderful beaded light from an online shop. It was delivered and she discovered that it was in fact just the shade (it has no lighting facility) which I imagine would be an easy mix up for anyone who isn’t familiar with these things. So, I suggested to my sister we pick up a DIY Batten Fix Suspension Cord in white to match her white beaded shade. Once we got home we assembled the cord through the beaded shade and viola, we had our very own beaded chandelier for a fraction of the price and we didn’t have to pay anyone to install it! It just hooks on to your existing batten.
Costing
Beaded Chandelier Shade $150.00
Postage of the light from online store $50.00
Suspension light kit $29.95
Installation costs $0.00
Featured on my @baiinteriors Instagram
Cool & Warm Lighting
It’s important to know that there is such a thing as ‘cool’ and ‘warm’ light and you need to look for globes and light fittings to match the look you like.
Although this seems like a tiny decision, this can massively impact how you view your home, and how your room looks when the lights are on.
When I moved into my second property I bought lighting which made my brand-new curtains look like they were in fact green. I was devastated. Having spent so much money on something I couldn’t return, and it not turning out as expected. It was lucky that at the time I was selling the original chandelier fixture to the house (I sold this on Facebook market app scoring myself $250.00). I replaced it with a pendant that was more suited to my style. When installing this new purchase, I changed the globes from a cool light to a warm light and the change in the color of my curtains was amazing! The green look was gone.
Sourcing Second Hand
Second Hand Lighting is going to save you heaps.
I think there is always a stigma about buying things second hand, especially for Gen Y’s.
However, I encourage it. The benefits of doing this far out way the negatives in my opinion.
You can save big $$$ by buying a light second hand; you can help look after the environment by stopping that perfectly good item from going to the tip; you can get a light from a brand that you may otherwise have not been able to afford; and you can sometimes find lights that are no longer in stock or that can’t be found in any store despite a desperate ring around.
Some great places to purchase second hand lighting include:
Gumtree
- Facebook Marketplace
- Etsy
- Ebay
- Op Shops
So regardless of how you choose to light your home, don’t forget the impact that lighting can have on your mood.
Overall the lighting in my home is a combination of old and new, warm and cool, functional and fun, and above all when I turn it on I enjoy the WOW! xxxx
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