As an interior design company we know that lighting is one of the most important things to consider when designing your home.  Lighting can change everything about the design, from the mood of a room to its perceived size.  Good lighting compliments the design of a room and makes you want to spend your mornings and evenings relaxing in the comforting ambiance of your home.

When considering the interior lighting design of your home, you have to work with different factors such as colour selection, room size, and availability of natural light.  All of these will affect what type of lighting you choose to install, from the paint colour of the walls to the openness of the space.  Every room has different needs, but each should be lit according to its own function and style.

Manufacturers are designing more and more innovative and stylish lighting designs each year, and the latest styles and trends are always changing.  To give your home a unique look that does more than just light up a room, you’ll want to hear about some of the latest trends in interior lighting design.  If you’re looking to redesign the lighting in your home, you might one to take advantage of some of the following interior lighting design trends of 2019:

LED Lighting

LED lighting is one of the most popular lighting trends today, as people are becoming more environmentally conscious of the wasteful nature of incandescent bulbs.  Not only does LED lighting save money and power, it comes in a variety of styles and functions to provide you with greater control over your lighting design.  You can install LED lamps with dimming capabilities to transform the ambiance of your living room after sunset, even changing the colour of the light to fit whatever the mood may be.  While LED lighting is more expensive up front, you’ll save quite a bit in the long run as they will last substantially longer than incandescent bulbs.

Oversized Lighting

Bigger lighting fixtures are currently soaring in popularity, drawing the attention of your guests immediately upon entering the room.  Stylish oversized lighting fixtures can act as the centrepiece of a room, creating a focal point that the rest of the room can be centred around.  Using large fixtures over the kitchen table can be a great way to focus the attention of the room on the spot where the family gathers, creating a symmetrical and practical look.  Ceilings are also becoming increasingly important in the design world as designers start to focus more on incorporating them into the design, so take advantage of this trend with a stylish ceiling light that matches your style.

Sculptural Lighting Fixtures

Art doesn’t have to be restricted just to the paintings on the wall; lighting is coming into its own as a decorative art integral to the home.  Whether you’re looking for form or function, a sculptural lighting fixture can be a great addition to any room that needs a little something to liven in it up.  Make a statement with a lighting fixture in a unique and unusual design that draws the eye and impresses your guests.  Sculptural lighting fixtures will complement your room’s overall design by providing a bold and attention-grabbing artistic piece for guests to look at.

Indirect Lighting

If you’re looking for something a little more minimalist, indirect lighting is also a trend that’s becoming increasingly popular.  Consider lighting the kitchen from under the counter to make it more night-friendly for those late night romantic dinners.  Up-lighting the walls of your living room can make it feel more calming and help you relax at the end of the day.  And if you’re looking to set the mood of your bedroom with a soothing ambiance to help you drift off to sleep, indirect lighting installed along the floor can be the perfect solution to help you get ready for bed.  Both functional and stylish, indirect lighting is a trend that’s here to stay.

Modern Retro Lighting

One of the most interesting trends that’s currently taking place in interior lighting design is the resurgence of retro designs with a modern twist.  Industrial rustic finishes are making a comeback, but in sleeker metals with more updated and modern designs.  Many people are also matching retro lighting fixtures with a more modern design for the rest of the room to create an interesting and personalized look.  Art Deco in particular is coming back strong, with wild overhead Art Deco fixtures adding a spice and liveliness to any room.  Mid-century modern fixtures are also trending, with starburst lamps providing a functional aesthetic to your home.

The most important part of choosing the lighting for your home is making sure that whatever you choose represents your own unique style.  Whether you go for something attention-grabbing like a large oversized ceiling lamp, or something more subtle like under the counter indirect lighting, you want the lighting in your home to represent who you are.  Home Guide can provide you with home interior design in Singapore that will ensure your lighting is both functional and stylish.  Check out our portfolio to see some of the lighting designs we’ve installed in our projects, and contact us today for all of your Singapore interior design needs!

The perfect retail experience is heavily dependent on interior design. The layout, the lights, the colours and the way in which traffic is organised can all affect the mood and the behaviour of boutique visitors.

If you’re 100 per cent committed to making your retail business a success, you should consider hiring professional interior design company in Singapore. Otherwise, you risk committing an array of mistakes that may ruin your boutique.

Getting the Lights Wrong

The selection of the proper retail interior lighting is probably one of the biggest prerequisites for a quality retail experience. People who do not have the knowledge and the training could commit an array of serious mistakes in terms of light installation.

The first serious mistake is a failure to accent the focal points in the boutique through the use of lights. Do you have a brand new product? A certain item that you’d like to boost the sales of? If so, you have to talk to your interior designer. A trained professional in the field will use the right light placement, colour and intensity to make the respective shop section noticeable.

Poor colour balance or contrast are also issues that stem from the selection of the wrong lights or from inadequate placement. Using the same lights throughout the store is a serious mistake. There will be no contrast, no visual intensity. Something as simple as the placement of accent lights in certain areas can increase the dynamic appeal and the visual attractiveness of the entire boutique.

Finally, lights can end up costing a lot. Aesthetic considerations aren’t the only important ones. Interior design professionals should also know just how practical the proposed solutions are.

A failure to use energy efficient lights will also increase your costs in the long run. While such lights are initially more expensive than regular bulbs, they will pay themselves off through utility bill minimisation in a very short period.

Poor Traffic Flow

Disorganised traffic flow will either make potential buyers skip important parts of the boutique,  or interfere with the buyer experience – like the infamous butt-brush effect.

Your interior design comppany is going to take the layout of the venue in consideration when determining the placement of racks, shelves and display tables. This way, twisted or very narrow paths will be avoided.

If the potential buyer doesn’t experience a smooth flow of traffic, the shopping experience will be quite uncomfortable. As a result, people may not spend more time shopping, but leave your boutique without exploring or even  buying.

The simplest way to avoid such a mistake is to follow a simple organisational structure. A “fast-traffic” path should be created to the checkout area and the entrance. It should be wider than the traffic areas located between the merchandise displays. Think about the floor plan, the size and the shape of the commercial venue. A good designer will know how to use the floor plan to your advantage.

Problems with Shelf and Display Design

Cohesiveness is probably one of the most important retail interior design characteristics.

Your brand and your corporate aesthetics should be evident in every single element – the colours, the flooring choice, the display tables, shelves and racks. The lack of consistency could be confusing and it will also take away from the visual appeal of the boutique.

Using different types of racks and shelves is pretty amateurish and tells shop visitors you don’t know what you’re doing. Different types of racks could even take the attention away from the products being displayed.

This is yet another specific you and your designer will have to work on. Let your interior design team know about the number of products you want to display, the number of racks or shelves. Based on this information, a designer will help you best utilise the available space. When you know how the boutique is going to be organised, you can stock up on a sufficient number of racks and hangers (if you are displaying clothes) to ensure consistency when your inventory increases in the future.

A single display scheme should be adopted right from the start and you should stick to it. If you plan to introduce a change, you will have to overhaul everything.

Issues with the Checkout Area Design

The checkout area is as important as the product displays in retail interior design. It should be planned for speed and efficiency.

A checkout area must be clean and uncluttered. There should be enough space for people to leave a pile of items. You should also consider potential returns – a sufficient storage space will have to be established as a part of the checkout area design.

The checkout area gives you a chance to promote a few final products. People could be bored while waiting in line. Give them the opportunity to explore some small items – chances are a few additional products will be placed in the shopping cart.

Your checkout area is the last part of the boutique that people will see before leaving. A failure to do some additional branding will be a huge mistake. Everything from colour selection to logo placement should be planned strategically to leave a good impression.

Retail interior design can get complicated. There’s no one size fits all solution because of the specifics of the boutique and those of the commercial venue itself. Even if you’ve owned, or you still own a boutique at another location, you will be unable to apply the same interior design formula to a new place.

To avoid mistakes that can cost you money, hire retail interior design professionals. The Home Guide team features such experts. We start with basic retail interior design concepts, and build from there to craft a tailored retail boutique experience. We have worked with multiple clients through the years, attempting to accommodate their specific needs and preferences. A good understanding of the business itself is in the heart of the interior design process.

If you’re dreaming about designing the perfect boutique, contact us today. We will help you pick the interior that will make the most sense in both practical and aesthetic terms.

Whether you display art, furniture or luxury automobiles in your showroom, you have to put emphasis on the product. One of the best ways to accomplish the goal involves the use of light.

Singapore interior design professionals will tell you that lights can be utilised to accomplish just about every retail interior design goal that you have in mind. Lights can set the mood, show potential buyers where to look and what to pay attention to. Lights can be both functional and aesthetic, which is why their selection should never be left to chance.

If you are trying to put together the perfect showroom, the following lighting tips can come in handy.

Choose the Right Type of Lights

The market features multiple options and many of them will seem like a good idea for showroom design. If you’re looking for the best, however, you should definitely consider the installation of LED lights.

LED lights are very easy to maintain and they’re particularly long-lived. Once you come up with the set up and deal with the installation, you’ll be free from having to worry about showroom lighting for many years to come.

These lights are also highly efficient and environment-friendly. As a business owner, you want to be seen as an innovator and someone who is socially-conscious. Thus, green choices for the showroom make a lot of sense and they will have a positive impact on your reputation.

Several other reasons justify the purchase of LED lights.

They are incredibly versatile and you can work on various different ideas with them. Light islands can easily be created to direct the attention to a product or a section of the showroom. In addition, LED lights are perfect for illuminated paths. These provide visual markers, directing visitors from one part of the showroom to another.

A few technical aspects of LED lights worth mentioning are the colour rendering index and colour temperature. The colour rendering index shows how accurately the respective light reproduces colour. When you opt for LEDs, your products will appear authentically coloured in the showroom. LEDs are also available in warmer and colder tones. While warm colour temperatures are usually preferred, colder ones could make sense under specific circumstances. To sum it up – you have many options to choose among and you’ll easily identify the one that’s just right for your showroom.

Consider the Primary Types of Showroom Lighting

Now that you know what types of bulbs you’re going to get, it’s time to take a look at the primary types of light used in retail interior design and showroom setups.

General or ambient lighting is typically the main source of light in the showroom. The general lights have to create a bright and cheerful atmosphere at the venue.

Task lighting comes next. It is more focused and it is usually needed for certain activities to occur. Task lights can be utilised at the entrance, in the checkout area or an office where visitors sit down to talk to a showroom representative.

Two more types of lights can be used in a showroom – accent and decorative lighting. Accent lighting has a pretty self-explanatory name. It is needed to put emphasis on a product or a specific part of the showroom that you want visitors to notice. Decorative lights aren’t mandatory but they could be used for some cool effects. Such lights can make the interior much more sophisticated and polished. Chandeliers and beautiful fixtures are typically required to accomplish the goal.

Work with your interior design professional to pinpoint the types of lights you will need in your showroom and to choose the bulb/fixture combinations that will give you the best results.

Think of Innovative Light Controls

Innovative technologies can make your showroom appear a lot trendier and original.

Various showrooms throughout the world already rely on such technologies. Motion sensors to activate the lights when somebody is walking in the respective section of the showroom are just one example of a cool and functional light control possibility.

One furniture store in the UK (Jordan’s Furniture) has made some excellent use of the technology. When someone explores the mattresses in the bedroom section, the lights in this part of the showroom become dimmer. The aim of this function is to create a more relaxing, home-like experience for the visitor.

You can have different layers of light that get turned on and off on the basis of the ambiance you want to create.

Automation systems, wireless control over the lights, customisation features (controlling the light, the music and even the temperature in the showroom) can all enable you to make on the spot adjustments. If you’re considering such smart automation systems talk to reps of your Singapore interior design company. Together, you will figure out which solutions are best and whether innovative light controls are really a necessity for your showroom.

Use Accessories to Brighten Up the Showroom Even Further

Choosing lights isn’t the only thing you can do to make the showroom brighter and more welcoming.

There are additional things interior designers can suggest for the purpose of increasing the brightness in the space.

Strategic mirror placement is one of the options. Mirrors can reflect the light, especially if they’re placed correctly to view the light sources. This way, you can keep the number of lights limited and still have the beautiful showroom interior you’ve been hoping for.

Mirrors are also great for showrooms that already have their lights installed but that don’t look bright enough. The mirror is an excellent low-cost alternative to the additional installation. Getting new fixtures installed is going to be costly, plus there will be some downtime.

Light selection is one of the most important prerequisites for a beautiful, impressive showroom. If you want to give visitors the ultimate experience, you should begin thinking about hiring an interior designer today. The Home Guide team has extensive experience in the field of retail interior design. Contact us today to learn a bit more about our projects and the things that we can do for your retail venue.

Light can be used to accomplish a complete transformation in the appearance of your HDB apartment. The brightness, the colour, the placement of the fixtures and their shape will all play a role in realising the home interior design theme.

A brand new HDB apartment will lack personality and charisma. This problem can be addressed easily through the selection of the right lights. To improve the appearance of the space, you will have to take the following in consideration.

Choose Lights That Are Right for the Size/Shape of the Space

Scale is of uttermost importance in the field of professional Singapore interior design services. Every single decision that a good interior designer companymake is based on the size of the space and the goal that is to be accomplished.

The brightness and the placement of lights are especially dependent on scale. An oversized pendant isn’t the perfect choice for a tiny kitchen. The same applies to a standing light that is placed in a gigantic living room. In the first case, the fixture will overpower all other accessories in the room. The second scenario will contribute to insufficient light.

While you may think that it’s impossible to have too much light in the room, this isn’t the case. If the space is tiny and the bulbs are very bright, the effect will be quite aggressive and anything but comfortable.

Fewer fixtures are a good pick for a smaller apartment like a studio. Compact living spaces don’t need too many accessories. You may want to choose one large chandelier or a pendant that becomes the focal point of the room. A large apartment, on the other hand, will benefit from multiple fixtures that are placed strategically.

Use Mirrors and Maximise Natural Light

While fixtures play both a decorative and a functional role in your Singapore apartment, you should do your best to maximise the use of natural light.

Natural light will enhance your mood and it will make the interior appear more cheerful. Every residential interior designer will tell you that the aim of remodelling projects is to increase the use of natural light as much as possible.

One simple and very effective trick is the use of mirrors to help natural light disperse through the entire apartment.

Mirrors reflect light. Because of this effect, they will make rooms appear a lot brighter. Mirrors can be placed to reflect the light from the brightest rooms into ones that are dimmer. The placement of a mirror across from the window will be sufficient to accomplish the goal.

Mirrors that feature beautiful, handcrafted frames will give you the added bonus of serving as accessories. This way, you will be hitting two birds with one stone and the cost of execution will remain manageable.

Accent Lighting

The main lights and fixtures have already been chosen and it’s now time to move to something a bit more exciting.

Accent lighting is going to be a great addition to your HDB apartment. It is quite discrete and it can be used to set the tone and the mood. In addition, accent lights can be used to highlight certain accessories or to create functional areas in the room.

A lamp used to illuminate a favourite painting of yours and bathe it in warm light is one example of such accent lights. You can also use coloured bulbs to focus on an area. They are great for a relaxation spot or for a place where you plan to spend romantic evenings with a significant other.

Don’t Forget about Energy Efficiency!

Both aesthetic and practical considerations have been discussed so far but we haven’t touched upon energy efficiency yet.

Lights have a pronounced impact on your electricity bill. Small appliances and lights in the apartment contribute to approximately 60 per cent of the electricity bill. In comparison, the share of air conditioners is only 16 per cent. Thus, a switch from standard to green lights is going to have a pronounced effect on the apartment’s sustainability.

Switching to CFL and LED light bulbs is a great option for reducing electricity expenditure and the apartment’s carbon footprint. CFL lights use approximately 70 per cent less energy than the old-school incandescent light bulbs. The only problem with these lights is that they require a bit of time to warm up and reach their optimal brightness.

While LED lights are more expensive than standard bulbs, they bring a high return on investment in the form of reduced electricity consumption. One of their biggest advantages is that they tend to last much longer than CFL lights, reducing the need for replacements. This is yet another way in which money can be saved while taking care of the environment.

Everybody wants a bright, welcoming new apartment. The best way to accomplish the goal involves the use of strategically placed lights. To accomplish the goal, you should definitely consider assistance from an experienced interior design team. These professionals understand interior spaces and how to increase the amount of light in each.

Your brand new HDB apartment will come with standard lighting but you should certainly opt for more memorable fixtures. Luckily, the market has dozens of options for you to choose.

Once you know what theme and interior design concept you’ll be pursuing, it’s time to start looking for an interior design company to partner up with. Both reputation and experience will matter, which is why you should choose professionals like the Home Guide team.

Home Guide is an interior design company in Singapore that has decades of experience in the residential interior design. We are HDB-licensed, which means that we adhere to the highest standards. If you are looking for HDB apartment upgrades or a bit of assistance for the selection of the best lights, you should definitely contact us. Looking forward to learning more about your new place and the ways in which we could help you!