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 Should I consult with a professional firm to plan my outdoor lighting system?
We recommend that you do. Consulting with a landscape lighting contractor who will help you plan your outdoor lighting system is the best way to ensure safety, security, and aesthetics, and attractively illuminate your house in a way that reflects value and sensibility without overpowering its surroundings. Decorative luminaires added to the house itself and around the property will create warm layers of light that create a sense of welcome. Facade lights can illuminate the entire face of your home with glare free light that will not disturb your neighbors. Lanterns hung by the door will greet your guests, and mercury vapor tree lights installed innocuously in the upper branches shine a cascade of ambient light downward around the trunk, roots, and surrounding earth.
What types of safety lighting do we need?
Flood lights are generally used to secure the perimeter of the property and illuminate particularly vulnerable areas. Dark areas in corners and around the garage create opportunities for trespassing. Not only do these places offer a great deal of darkness to conceal an intruder, but they can easily pose a hazard to children and guests not familiar with the property. Flood lights can be incorporated into your outdoor lighting plan to provide a secure perimeter that discourages prowlers and washes out the dark spots in hidden places.
Why not just buy our own flood lights?
Flood lights work best when you install them with lighting controls. This can be tricky, and should really be done by someone trained and licensed as an electrician who has access to specification grade equipment. Some retail grade flood lights will not even work with lighting controls, and if you leave them on at full strength, you may annoy your neighbors. An ILD lighting expert can offer you a better outdoor garden lighting solution by installing top-grade fixtures controlled by wall dimmers. These allow you to raise or lower lighting levels at will and minimize the risk of light shining into surrounding homes.
How many layers of decorative lighting should we have in our outdoor lighting plan?
We recommend four overlapping layers that illuminate keynote architectural features and indigenous vegetation on your property—effectively uniting your home with Nature itself. If you work with an expert lighting planner from our team, you will find that your choices in decorative lighting are more than you can imagine. Tree lighting and decorative fixtures are only two options you have. Other options include path and step lighting, specialized garden lighting, and path lights. If you have a gazebo or deck, these structures can be cost effectively lit with low-voltage deck lights to point the way to central gathering points for outdoor special events—making your property an exemplary example of homes in your neighborhood.
Where is your landscape lighting design studio located?
We are located in the heart of Houston just west of Downtown at the corner of Durham Drive and Blossom Street, which is located between Memorial Drive and Washington Avenue in the Rice Military Subdivision. Although we are located in Houston Texas we provide lighting and design services in Austin TX, El Paso Texas, San Antonio TX, College Station Texas, Beaumont TX, Dallas Texas, Midland Tx and points beyond.
No other lighting design firm is able to provide such a well-rounded service line or a more informative Lighting & Home Automation Blog. But do not just take our word for it. Just ask Lance Armstrong, Tracy McGrady, Mayor Bill White, President George W. Bush, or dozens of other commercial clients or residential clients, large and small clientele, across the great State of Texas who have enjoyed our lighting services.Labels: Designing Landscape Lighting, Exterior Landscape Lighting Plans, Landscape Outdoor Lighting, Outdoor Tree Lighting Plans
 Your yard and landscape are just as much a part of your home as your house, so planning your landscape lighting should be done with as much care as you have taken to light your home’s interior. Covered patios and porches, and outdoor entertaining areas may need indoor lighting techniques such as recessed down lights and wall box dimmer controls that allow you to adjust light levels, show off the structure, and make your home a lighting gallery. Setting the tone between the threshold of your home lighting plan and your outdoor lights in such a manner will establish the conceptual and emotional foundation of your design plan that will then extend into the green, open landscape of your yard.
You should develop a landscape lighting plan that uses a combination of light and shadows.
Homeowners often mistakenly think that shadows are a bad thing when planning a lighting design. They believe the purpose of lighting is to get rid of all the dark spots in an area. The opposite is really true. Landscape lights best used to create a healthy balance between light and shadow. Depending on the degree to which you vary the contrast of these two elements, you can create all sorts of luminary effects and differing states of mind. Bathing dark places in your yard in soft ambient lighting mimics the effects of moonlight and is highly romantic. Outdoor path lighting provides a visual aid to trip hazards and other obstacles in the garden. Up lighting ornamental statuary and structures will help create an elevated sense of emotion apropos to outdoor parties. Hidden lighting inside shrubbery and flower beds will create a mystical effect where objects seem to glow with a light of their own. How you plan your outdoor garden lighting will really depend in the end on how you plan to feel when you look out of your window at night, or entertain family and guests outdoors. Begin by evaluating plant materials, flower beds, trees, and gardens. These are elements that create shadow, and they make for excellent guidelines to follow when laying down the basics of an outdoor custom home lighting system.
Think of layering the light when you are developing a plan for illuminating your landscape.
ILD landscaping lighting professionals recommend four distinctive layers of luminance, some of which will distinctly overlap one another; and others of which will blend and synthesize together. Every landscape lighting design is different and has to be planned around the unique dimensions of a yard and its contents. Fountains, sculptures, rock formations, bridges, and ornamental structures provide ideal accent and feature lighting opportunities. Tree lighting with mercury vapor tree lights creates pools of artificial moonlight, and is a favorite design theme among ILD clientele. Depending on the overall mood you wish to create, any number of light fixtures types can be used to light these objects. You may want to install fixtures that are completely hidden and only illuminate objects of interest, or you may go the other route and use highly visible, decorative lights that add an additional aesthetic to your yard. If you are unsure of what type of fixtures to use, call an outdoor lighting contractor like Illuminations Lighting Design and request a consultation with one of our professionals who can explain the benefits of specialty commercial grade fixtures made especially for what you have in mind.
Illuminations Lighting Design is the only "One Stop" destination for lighting design, engineering, landscape lighting services and installation in the state of Texas, and remains unrivaled by any lighting firm in the United States for lighting that is art. As homes grow larger and needs become more complex, having a single resource provides home owners with peace of mind. This translates into a smoother process, reduced costs and a better product.
Where is your landscape lighting design studio located?
We are located in the heart of Houston just west of Downtown at the corner of Durham Drive and Blossom Street, which is located between Memorial Drive and Washington Avenue in the Rice Military Subdivision.Although we are located in Houston Texas we provide lighting and design services in Austin TX, El Paso Texas, San Antonio TX, College Station Texas, Beaumont TX, Dallas Texas, Midland Tx and points beyond.
Call us today at 713-863-1133 or 800-863-1184, visit our lighting blog or request a consultation online using our contact us form.
Labels: Austin Landscape Lighting, Houston Electrical Contractors, Landscape Lighting Consultants, Landscape Lighting Professional, Landscape Outdoor Lighting, Planning Landscape Lighting
 What is the best way to approach a recessed lighting plan?
You should plan your recessed lighting system from a three-dimensional perspective of your home’s interior architecture. Key elements such ceiling height, the overall size of the room, the number of windows determine the amount and the direction of lighting in the room. Other fixtures you hang from the ceiling, such as chandeliers and pendants, also play a major role in how recessed lighting complements preexisting layers of general light. Elements like room color, decorative accent lighting color, fine art, and interior design plans also help you determine what types of lamps and lens designs to use as recessed lights.
What is the most important element of recessed lighting to keep in mind?
The technique that lighting designers refer to as the "pooling of light." Because recessed fixtures direct light downward from circular or semi-circular housings, they create circles of on whatever surface they illuminate. When a number of these lights are installed together, they form overlapping pools of light which create uniform layers of general lighting. When recessed lights are selectively or individually installed, the reverse is true. The pools of light act have a “spotlighting” effect that works very well with a number of art lighting scenarios and decorative plans. Regardless, it is paramount to develop a point-by-point photometric lighting plan prior to purchasing and installing recessed lights. Because you are dealing with multiple layers of lighting combined together, it is crucial to mathematically calculate first how many fixtures you will need, the distance between your recessed lights, and the angle of incidence for the direction of each light.
Is recessed lighting the best way to illuminate a new interior design plan?
It is also best to coordinate a recessed lighting installation in conjunction with your interior design plans. If you are working on a new home build out, think ahead to how you plan to decorate each room of the home. Visualize your new home’s interior ahead of time and try to imagine which areas will most benefit from general ceiling lighting and which decorative elements will need special accenting and spotlighting. Planning ahead is even more important if you are remodeling your home. Some recessed light fixtures are made specifically for home remodel, and you need to have a profession firm install these to make certain they work harmoniously with your existing home wiring system.
What type of recessed lights should I have installed for general lighting?
You should pay close attention to the types of lamps you plan to install in your recessed fixture housings. Clear lamp halogen lights provide the best accent lighting, and they render color the colors of paintings, decorative arrangements, and vases with at a level nearly equivalent to daylight. Clear lamp halogens are not so good for general lighting, however. They highlight the outlines of objects too sharply, produce distinctive shadows, and will sometimes highlight skin problems and wrinkles. When used in general lighting plans that require a gentler dispersal of light, recessed halogen lights fitted with frosted lenses are a much better choice.
If you are trying to figure out how to plan your lighting, contact us toll free at 800-863-1184 or locally at 713-863-1133. Illuminations Lighting Design’s signature design is a space where every lantern, sconce, chandelier, up-light and down light balances a room for its precise intent. Using sophisticated computer technology, we create that balanced design weeks, or even months before the fixtures arrive. When the lights go up, you will be truly amazed at how the beautiful interplay of light and shadow will make you feel at once inspired, and at ease. That is what good home lighting plan is all about.
We are located in Houston Texas but provide lighting and design services in Austin TX, El Paso Texas, San Antonio TX, College Station Texas, Beaumont TX, Dallas Texas, Midland Tx and points beyond. Labels: Home Lighting Designs, Home Lighting Plans, House Lighting Plans, Lighting Design Assistance, Recessed Accent Fixtures, Recessed Lighting Layouts
 Should I devote time to reading DIY manuals to learn how to plan lighting in my home or should I consult with an interior lighting designer?
We do not recommend you spend money on how to manuals. Most of the basics you would need along these lines can be found on our website and many public domain “How To” resources all over the Internet. Using a lighting design service is just as important as hiring a builder or interior designer.
The best source of interior lighting design planning is actually in your own mind. By taking a specialized and focused approach to your own daily lifestyle, you will quickly recognize that light plays an important role in any design style. You will also quickly see the connection between light and the many activities and material things within your home. These simple wish lists you have made can then be shared with an interior lighting professional from ILD who can then partner with you as an extension of your personal desires. This helps materialize in form what you conceptualized originally as an idea.
How do I work with my designer to plan the lighting in my kitchen?
If you are going to have custom cabinets and marble countertops installed, share these details with your lighting specialist. Also, write down all the major activities you will be performing in the kitchen. Some people use the kitchen as the hub of a party, while others use it primarily for cooking. How you use the kitchen is just as important as what goes into the kitchen when it comes time to plan and install the ceiling lighting system.
How do I plan the lighting in the living room? Should it be more functional or decorative?
In most cases it turns out to be a near-equal balance of both. People spend more free time in the living room than any other room of the home. You will soon realize how much you use this room yourself just by listing all the daily life activities you find yourself performing here. The list suddenly grows much longer as soon as you add entertainment, favorite furnishings, decorative displays, and special occasions such as family reunions.
The more details you itemize, the more your specialist can help determine what needs general light and what needs special accent lighting.
Does the den require a separate, special lighting plan uniquely its own?
In most cases, yes. Dens are almost always places of quiet and focus. The home decorative lighting here must support both key elements to be effective. Knowing in advance how you will use your den will help you better determine how to plan lighting in your den. Ask yourself questions. Will you place a desk here to bring home work from the office? Will you be running a home-based business that requires “office style” lighting to set a “work mode” mindset? Is this your personal adult playroom where you come to practice guitar, work on personal artwork, or start that book you always wanted to right?
Each of these scenarios requires a completely different type of illumination. How you plan and install your lighting in your den will play a major role in defining how your mind works and how your emotions respond to this specialized environment whose very nature tends to be set apart from the rest of the home.
How do I plan art lighting and bedroom lighting?
These are highly emotional forms of lighting that require a lot of attention to decorative appeal and multiple layers of accent. Think about how you want your children and guests to feel when they go to sleep at night, and how you would like your favorite artwork to be perceived by distinguished visitors. ILD specialists can take it from there and develop custom solutions tailor made to your family’s personal values and values and your home’s interior architecture.
Where are your main offices and how can I engage your services?
We are located in Houston Texas but provide lighting, consulting and design services in Austin TX, El Paso Texas, San Antonio TX, College Station Texas, Beaumont TX, Dallas Texas, Midland Tx and points beyond. Visit our lighting blog or call us today at 713-863-1133 to request a consultation online using our contact us form. Labels: Designing Lighting Plans, Home Lighting Plans, House Lighting Plans, Lighting Consultants Designers, Planning Lighting Designs
 What are some good free sources of ideas for home lighting plans?
You can get a wealth of free information from the Internet. If you feel like getting out from behind your computer and stepping out, try going to a demo home and looking around. Or, if this is not convenient, stop by a local bookstore or newsstand and look through interior design and home realty magazines. Because these publications are by nature artistic, they are ideal sources of inspiration for creative ideas of your own home lighting design. You do not have to spend any money to do this, either. Thumb through the magazine and take a few mental snapshots of what you see. Your own mind will modify and adapt these images and help form the beginnings of a plan.
Should I meet with my architect and my builder to work out a home lighting plan?
We recommend that you visit both. Your architect will most likely be planning your home lighting from a neutral, purely functional perspective. He or she will think along the lines of what works best in terms of general lighting, light regulatory compliance, and energy savings basics. However, if you talk to your architect about your personal preferences and lifestyle, this will go a long way toward personalizing your house lighting plans before they ever reach the builder’s desk.
Meeting with the builder, then, will help you plan for more advanced lighting design and controls should you ever want to have the installed in the future. The builder will be working with an electrical subcontractor who knows the ins and outs of wallbox dimming control technology and the basics of how different types of lights will be working in your home. The builder can provide you with invaluable insights into the technical details of your home lighting plan. Later on, after you move in and set up an entirely new life in your residence, you will probably want to either do some upgrades or consider advanced lighting control systems. This often happens to families who move into a house and over time begin to entertain more and more at home. Controls and automation sequences can make a residence rival a public venue when done by a professional skilled in his field. Knowing a little bit about the technical foundation of your home lighting system give you a foundation upon which you can build a more sophisticated, personalized system in the future.
This is also the time to make any last minute changes, or request specialty lighting such as art lights, cabinet lights, home security lighting or decorative display lighting fixtures. Your builder can arrange to have these things added to your home lighting plan, or call us to have them installed.
Should I install my own lights or hire a lighting design company?
You should always have a licensed electrician with credentials install your home lighting. Electricity is never anything to attempt a do-it-yourself stop gap solution with. Working with a firm like Illuminations Lighting Design gives you the dual benefit of licensed electricians who are also lighting designers. You can have your home lighting professionally wired and installed, and you can get advanced planning and decorative solutions developed by the same group of experts.
Where should I begin my search for a lighting designer?
For over 30 years now, ILD has worked with home construction companies and home remodeling firms to help the custom homeowner enjoy the most technologically sound and aesthetically pleasing home lighting control systems possible. Our staff has been cross trained in landscaping, art theory, interior design, and basic principles of architecture and is intended to function hand in glove with the general contract invoice any Houston home construction firm.
Call us at 800-863-1184 today to talk about your next project.Illuminations Lighting Design is a full service design build firm specializing in residential and commercial indoor lighting and outdoor lighting, electrical service and maintenance as well as home automation, home theaters, emergency generators, surge protection systems, phone systems and lighting control systems.
We are located in Houston Texas but provide lighting and design services in Austin TX, El Paso Texas, San Antonio TX, College Station Texas, Beaumont TX, Dallas Texas, Midland Tx and points beyond. Labels: Home Lighting Design Plans, Home Lighting Plans, House Lighting Plans, Planning Home Lighting Designs, Residential Lighting Houston Texas, Texas ASID Industry Partner
 ILD creates custom house lighting plans for the eclectic homeowner who is looking to transform his or her home interior into truly exceptional living space. House lighting plans are always unique and very personalized because they are meant to function as an extension of the homeowner’s mind and a reflection of personal taste. This requires extensive consultation to understand the desires and needs of the homeowner, and it takes a great deal of professional know-how to transfer the purely conceptual elements of a client’s "wish list" into a workable house decorative lighting plan that blends function and form. It also requires superior grade lighting fixtures that are designed with energy efficiency and extended lamp life in mind. This keeps operating and replacement costs to a minimum and allows for a network of interconnected subsystems to be linked together so that each element of home interior lighting design compliments and contributes to the success of all other elements in the overall scheme.
The lifestyle of the homeowner is the foundation of the entire house lighting plan.
Some custom homeowners see their home as a sanctuary to which they can retreat at the end of the day to get away from the stress and worry of busy urban life. Many of these people save their money and eventually move into a large custom home at the end of a long narrow street, or in a rural area just outside of a major city and require outdoor tree lighting. Such a home needs sophisticated layered lighting effects that can be dimmed at will to create a more relaxed mood and feeling of retreat from the outside world.
Other homeowners see their house more as a hub of entertainment and socializing. Sophisticated lighting themes, home automation systems, and one-touch controls are essential, supportive elements to high-end media systems such as whole house audio and home theaters. Dedicated circuitry is often required to power the lights and the equipment in these systems, and our licensed electrical service personal can provide this service as a part of your house lighting plan.
The homeowner’s decorative tastes define the aesthetics of any home lighting system.
No custom home can be complete without new home wiring, high-end decorations and fine furnishings. House lighting planners have to remain ever mindful of interior decorating and make certain that they isolate the major motifs in the home’s interior decor. Accent lights are critical components in almost every house lighting plan. They have to be concealed as much as possible, and they must feature the very best in optics and glare shielding so as to place just the right amount of lighting in key portions of the home’s interior.
Fine art and specialty lighting constitute sub-disciplines unto themselves, and require specialized equipment found only through a professional firm such as our own.
House lighting plans must never lose sight of practicality.
The successful blend of function and form for which our firm has earned great renown is due largely to our expertise in home wiring and electrical service work, and also to our extensive knowledge of residential architecture. Our lighting designers clearly understand the simple fact that no matter how ornately decorated a custom home is, at the end of the day, it is still essentially a functional living space where all the practical needs of daily life are attended to. While there are many consultants who can achieve amazing effects in specialty lighting, art lighting, and accent lighting, few companies like ours can do all of these things and at the same time create a house lighting plan with photometric lighting calculations that provides general and task lighting for the basic activities of home living.
Where is your lighting design studio located?
We are located in the heart of Houston just west of Downtown at the corner of Durham Drive and Blossom Street, which is located between Memorial Drive and Washington Avenue in the Rice Military Subdivision.
Although we are located in Houston Texas we provide lighting and design services in Austin TX, El Paso Texas, San Antonio TX, College Station Texas, Beaumont TX, Dallas Texas, Midland Tx and points beyond.Call us today at 713-863-1133, visit our lighting blog or request a consultation online using our contact us form.Labels: Architectural Lighting Houston Texas, Art Lighting Consultants, Home Lighting Plans, House Lighting Plans, Houston Home Light Plans, Texas Residential Lighting Plans
Illuminations Lighting Design
607 Durham Drive
Houston, Texas 77007-5316
(713) 863-1133 Main Line
(800) 863-1184 Toll Free
(713) 863-0044 Fax
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