Britain’s leading lighting specialist John Cullen Lighting, established in 1981 offers a comprehensive service for all aspects of interior and exterior lighting.
Sally Storey is Design Director for John Cullen and is one of the world’s leading lighting experts.
Here are Sally’s Top Lighting Tips:
Well-lit shelving can create anything from a real feature, to just a way of adding another ‘layer’ of soft, atmospheric light. Think about the overall effect you want to achieve in the room, as well as any objects you want to draw attention to.
Plan ahead and think about how you’d like your shelving unit to be lit before it’s installed. It will save time and money if you ask a joiner about the easiest way to integrate the lighting and the driver (needed to power them).
Make sure concealed lighting is just that – concealed – even when you are sitting down. If you can see the light source it will ruin the effect, so lights may need to be recessed, or have either a lip or small downstand.
In a large shelving unit, think about lighting every other niche to create a chequerboard effect.
To add drama to a vase or small sculpture in a niche, use a strip of LED lights (Contour, £131 per metre) to backlight it and a small surface display light (Footlight, £57, both from John Cullen) to frontlight it.
It may be obvious, but never backlight a space, which will be filled with books or anything else, which is solid – no one will be able to see it.
A strip of tiny LED lights (Lightstream, £85 per metre or Contour £ 131 per metre, both from John Cullen) used behind thick (50mm) floating glass shelves, creates a minimal but really eye-catching look.
Make sure the shelves are 45mm from the back wall and that the front and side edges of each shelf are frosted, to stop the light travelling straight through the shelf and out into the room.
In our picture, the semi-recessed LED Eyelid Under Cupboard Lights (£53 each) highlight the objects below them, creating a chequerboard effect.
A small lip, helps to ensure the lights themselves remain hidden and there is no unwanted glare.
A single directional LED Polestar (£119.97 transformer) is used to light the picture.
For further information about John Cullen’s interior and exterior lighting service, please visit the website.
Stockist Enquiries: Tel: (020) 7371 9000