How to Make a Bathroom That Doesn't Have a Window Brighter

A bathroom is one of the first places that most people enter when they wake up in the morning. While many bathrooms have some sort of natural lighting – such as an opaque window or translucent skylight – some lack any sort of natural light and may appear dark, even during the daytime. With the right lighting and color choices, you can brighten up such a bathroom, even when it lacks a window.

Paint color swatches
Bright compact fluorescent or tungsten-halogen light bulbs
Lighting fixtures catalog

Instructions

- 1
  
  A bathroom can be painted in a warm, bright color.
  
  Use color swatches to determine what colors will brighten your bathroom. Commonly, white is used in conjunction with warm colors – such as red and yellow – to create a space that appears bright. You may also choose light earth tones, such as light brown or light green, to create an appearance that is warm and bright.
- 2
  
  Tungsten-halogen bulbs are more efficient than standard incandescent bulbs; however, they still provide the warm light associated with incandescents.
  
  Replace any light bulbs in the bathroom with bright compact fluorescent or tungsten-halogen bulbs. Because compact fluorescent bulbs use less energy than incandescent bulbs, you can use a brighter fluorescent bulb without using more power. If fluorescent light is too harsh for your taste, choose a high-efficiency tungsten-halogen bulb instead.
- 3
  Look into getting additional lighting fixtures if changing the color and the existing light bulbs doesn’t brighten the room enough. If the existing light fixtures are poorly placed or are not functioning properly, look into replacing these fixtures first. Check an online or printed lighting fixtures catalog to see if any would work well in your bathroom. Accent lighting -- such as wall sconces or ceiling-mounted track lighting -- can cast light upon the wall surfaces and make the bathroom look brighter overall. Lights mounted on the edges of a vanity mirror will give fewer shadows than a single overhead lighting fixture.
- 4
  Add some mirrors to the bathroom. Mirrors give the illusion that a room is larger than it really is, and can reflect light that is already present in the room. A mirror can be placed directly opposite a lamp, or even behind the lamp, to reflect light back into the bathroom.

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Lighting