Let in the light: How easy updates can illuminate your home inside and out

This paid piece is sponsored by Montgomery’s.

The daylight is dwindling this time of year, making it an ideal time to consider new ways to bring light to your home – inside and out.

“We offer most everything that you need for any lighting project – exterior and interior, whether it’s one fixture or the entire home,” said Paula Kruetzfeldt, senior interior designer and lighting specialist at Montgomery’s.

“Lighting is an easy way to update a room, or you can address the whole home from the beginning to the end of a project.”

For instance, if you’re choosing a new dining set for your home, “one of our designers might suggest a new fixture to go over the table because what you have currently might not go with your new look,” she said.

“And often, once you update one area, you look at it and say it’s so much better that you decide to go on to the next room.”

As always, design services at Montgomery’s are complimentary, so the design team will work with you both in the store and come to your home to help determine the best lighting for your lifestyle.

Light for all living

Light should vary depending on where you’re at in your home and how your use different areas of your home.

“We can work through things like under-cabinet lighting for task lighting, ceiling mount lights, ceiling fans and bathroom vanities and help you choose the right light for each room,” Kruetzfeldt said.

“It’s critical to know your ceiling height, for instance. That’s how we can recommend the right fixtures to fit your space. And then we’ll ask how you use your spaces. If it’s a kitchen island, we might want to focus light down, or we might suggest adding cabinet lighting for a more shadowed space.”

In a living room, for example, “if you’re watching TV, you may not want the overhead bright light in the room, but you still need light to get through the room, so you may add table lamps with a little warmer and cozy feeling, which is nice going into the winter months.”

Dimming options, including in lamps, can be a great fit for changing the atmosphere in a room. Consider it on your chandelier, allowing for dimmable light during a dinner party, for instance.

Bedroom spaces “are a little trickier,” Kruetzfeldt continued. “A lot of people like ceiling fans, and usually that light kit is not enough to light the room. We can add can lights to the ceiling or pendants beside the bed or an accent lamp in the room to give you more options.”

And that’s the beauty of lighting – there are so many options.

“But it can be overwhelming,” Kruetzfeldt acknowledged. “So we like to help narrow that down by asking the right questions to get you the right products.”

Layers of light

The experts at Montgomery’s also can help you layer light inside and outside the home. For instance, bathrooms are best lit by sconce lighting on both sides of your mirror if you’re applying makeup or doing other tasks.

“But we also like to put can lighting behind you or an overhead in the same room to add another layer of light and add depth and warmth to the areas,” Kruetzfeldt said. “The advances in LED lighting and the output that comes from sconces is much greater than it used to be, so we have excellent options for applications in the bathroom.”

Layering light also works well in kitchen, where you might not want the ambient overhead light on all the time but can benefit from under-cabinet task lights or pendant lights to read by, with an option to add an overhead as needed.

Advances in LED technology also are bringing new options for exterior lighting.

“We have a lot of integrated LED lights, which means the light bulb is integrated into the fixture itself,” Kruetzfeldt said.

“It’s unique and a nice look. That integrated approach to lighting is a little sleeker and more modern-looking, and it’s not going away.”

Plus, most of the LED lights have up to 13 years’ life expectancy if you’re using them a few hours every day – so by that time, “you’ll probably be ready to change it out anyway,” she said.

Trends and tech

Because LED bulbs are so prevalent  in the industry, Montgomery’s team has become experts in helping navigate the wide variety of options available.

“These bulbs have different color temperatures,” Kruetzfeldt explained.

“So if you don’t have that discussion when you’re purchasing bulbs, you’ll end up with a mixture in your home. We have many discussions with clients on this, and it’s very helpful to have a consultant who can help you decide what’s right for you and ensure the light in your home is cohesive when it comes to color.”

The good news is energy-efficient lighting will greatly decrease your utility bills.

“If you go from every bulb in your house drawing 60 watts of power to LED replacements that might only draw 5 watts, you dramatically decrease your energy use each month,” Kruetzfeldt said.

Light fixtures themselves also continue to evolve.

“Many of them now are coming out with beautiful alabaster glass because the light bulb doesn’t produce as much heat, so it doesn’t darken the fixture,” Kruetzfeldt said.

“Milk glass bulbs are also very popular, along with anything circular or with spheres.”

Even more ornate: Bulb lighting spun together like a strand resembling jewelry or hanging multiple strands at different heights in a foyer.

“There are all kinds of ways to use it, and it’s just beautiful to use light in a different way like that,” Kruetzfeldt said. “Almost every line we carry has come out with this look either in frosted, clear, alabaster, chrome, gold or black, so a lot of manufacturers are using it.”

Plus, new offerings will begin coming out early next year.

Montgomery’s stocks many lighting options in-house and can customize to meet your needs.

“We have a whole design team educated and ready to help with your lighting project, whether it’s the whole home or one small area,” Kruetzfeldt said. “We know it can be daunting, and we’re here to make it easy.”

To learn more about lighting options at Montgomery’s, stop in the store, or start online here.