Home Management

Archive for May 29th, 2011

What is there to choose from? You probably won’t want to do away with your general light but could it be gentler? There are diffuser shades for strip lights, and paper globes and glass and plastic bowl-type shades which make sure you can’t see the glaring bulb from below. Frosted glass light bulbs can help. Table or standard lamps with opaque shades, and spotlights and desk lamps will give direct light, but if you point a spotlight at a wall or ceiling it will give a much gentler and wide spread illumination. Or you could train it on a collection or item that you want to highlight. If it’s a picture, you may find non-reflecting glass is necessary.

This brings us to the question of direction do you want your light in one direction permanently, or should it be flexible? If so, make sure your lamps, etc. is tough enough to stand up to being altered regularly. Another aspect of flexibility is that it’s easy to replace your on/off switch with a dimmer, so you can turn your lights from bright to a soft glow. Unless your lamp specifically requires low wattage, always have bright bulbs. Fluorescent tubes should not produce a green or bluish light they will make you look ill. They are also bad for your eyes if used alone. There are varieties of diffuser shades you can buy for them under and behind ledges. A rise and fall pendant lamp fittings, where you can adjust the height of your light, can be useful and effective over a table, although for a really romantic light you can’t beat candles.

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All too often lighting is limited to a single dangling bulb and lampshade; yet it has an enormously important and all pervading effect on your house. No matter how good your decorating is, if the light is bad a room will look uninteresting. Good lighting can transform a very ordinary setting. What is good lighting then? Again, there’s no straight answer; it will depend on your personal needs. Clever use of light and shadows can appear to alter the shape of your rooms; a ceiling that is too high can be brought down by remaining shadowy, while wall lights appear to increase your space. Leave your room’s deficiencies in the shade and high-light its good points. An even all-over light can be depressing areas of light and shadow will give interest. Plan where you’ll need light, what sort and how much.

Apart from the usual bedside light, this will mean considering where you do the mending, pay the bills, and listen to records and so on. Then make sure the switches and sockets are where you need them. If they’re not and you can’t afford or aren’t allowed to do any electrical work, look for standard lamps with adjustable spotlights, use the central ceiling outlet for a track with a number of spots, or use extension leads from skirting sockets. You could have a long flex from that outlet with a lamp attached to the end, and loop the flex over a hook, perhaps above the coffee table.

You may think that lights inside cupboards are too much of a luxury but a spotlight could be angled to shine into them. In a child’s room make sure that the fittings are out of reach, and use safety plugs and childproof sockets. You will need stronger light for an elderly person. Lights should not shine on to mirrors or they’ll shadow the bags under your eyes. Reading lights should shine down over your shoulder, and ideally should be used in conjunction with a background light to avoid glare. If you’re right-handed you will need it come over your left shoulder. For dining, watching television and for stairways, make sure no one’s dazzled by low lights for other activities low level lighting can be affective and look very glamorous.

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This is the cheapest, simplest and most versatile storage. Check that the wall you want to put shelves on is sound and solid, and doesn’t have any pipes or cables hidden in it. Measure the weight and size of what you want to put on them. If the contents on your shelves are going to remain the same you won’t need adjustable shelving just brackets attached directly to the wall. Otherwise you’ll need wall mounted up rights, with tracks or lots of sockets for movable brackets. The heavier the load, the more supports you’ll need. Shelves come in a variety of materials and in standard widths to fit brackets. DIY shops will often cut them to any length you want. Light plastic drawers with their own runners can be fixed to the underside of a shelf. You can make your own shelving with planks supported on bricks arranged in double rows, 90 cm apart. Whitewood book shelves or stacking bins are other alternatives.

Freestanding Storage

Freestanding storage, like wardrobes and chests, tends to be less efficient than the built-in type. If you’re in rented accommodation, you’ll probably have to rely on it. Old tin and wicker trunks can be a godsend too. A basket by the kitchen door for slippers, a bag hanging on the back of a child’s door for dirty clothes, metal rails on castors a simple and inexpensive idea can often help. In an old cupboard with deep shelves that are wide apart, you could fix a narrow shelf between two old ones.

Building in

When you’re short of space in the bedroom or spare room perhaps it may be best to devote an entire wall to storage and have very little furniture. You will have to give careful consideration to the space needed. Decide what you’ve got to store and which type of doors would be best. Sliding doors save space but there will always be a section inside the cupboard that you can’t reach. Wide, hinged doors need a lot of clearance. Narrow, hinged doors will make it more expensive because you will need more of them. Hinged concertina doors will need a slightly deeper cupboard a fold into.

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