Ideas for Subdued Lighting

Light Strips

• Light strips are the easiest and least expensive way to create an atmosphere with subdued lighting. You can purchase light strip tubes in the lighting section of your local home improvement store or you can use simple white Christmas tree lights to accomplish the task.

  Simply place your light strips inside woven baskets, on the top side of your cabinets or inside tray ceiling alcoves to create a soft light experience in your space.

Soft White Can Lights

• Recessed can lights (also referred to as pot lights) are a versatile lighting option. They can point directly on a subject with high intensity or they can be pointed above items to provide indirect lighting.

  Using soft white light bulbs in can lights gives you the ability to bring down the intensity of this lighting option. Look for light bulbs that are labeled "soft white" or "low light" for a more subdued lighting element in your space.

Wall Sconces

• Wall sconces are a perfect idea when you're looking for a lighting element that softly illuminates a room. The basic construction of a wall sconce only allows light to escape from one side of the fixture since the other side is against the wall. Also, using a wall sconce that has the lighting source pointed upward decreases the amount of light released directly into the room and creates a soft, subdued look in the space.

Dark Lamp Shades

• If you already own a light fixture that you love and don't want to replace it, you can make it a more subdued fixture by changing the lamp shade to a dark color or more dense fabric. Lamp shades with pleated materials are especially useful when trying to create subdued lighting. You can also add fabric to an existing lamp shade to make it darker and bring down the volume of light in the room.