A Fresh Take on Traditional Lighting For Dining Rooms
If you could pick one designer and give them free reign to design your entire home, who would it be? For me the answer is simple: Mark D. Sikes. I love everything he does. From his interior design work, to his book, and his fashion line, he can do no wrong. His fresh traditional style and his modern take on the classics is so inspiring in a design world overrun by white walls and shiplap.
Traditional Lighting Fixtures
So when it came to finally selecting a traditional lighting fixture for the dining room (can it really be over a year since we started making changes??), you can imagine how excited I was to hear about the Mark D. Sikes CLASSICS collection for Hudson Valley Lighting. I knew he would bring his unmistakable MDS style and freshness to traditional lighting. The pieces are refined yet approachable and I'm thrilled to say I partnered with Hudson Valley Lighting to bring one of these beauties into my home.
Come, have a look!
How To Choose Lighting For The Dining Room
How do you choose your dining room lighting? There are a few rules to keep in mind when selecting lighting for your dining room in particular.
Multiple Light Sources
Dining rooms tends to be used at night so lighting is very important. They are also multifunctional spaces, where game night or home work are just as likely to happen at the dining table as dinner. Given the demands placed on this room, you should have multiple sources of light:
- general lighting to provide illumination to the whole room
- task lighting for lighting specific areas
- accent or decorative lighting suited to the room's style
In this room, we had recessed lighting installed months ago to provide general overall lighting. The room isn't that large so we had 4 recessed lights, one in each corner, to ensure the entire room was well lit. Putting these lights on a dimmer would allow us to keep the mood bright for parties or darker for intimate dinners.
Dining Room Lighting Size
The size of your central light fixture also needs to relate to both the size of the room and the size of the table over which it hangs. Generally, a light fixture should be 1/2 to 3/4 the width of your table. Here's a handy calculator to help you gauge the size of your chandelier. The bottom of your chandelier should rest 30" to 36" above your table.
Lighting Style
There's no hard-fast rules that your light fixture style should match your dining room style. My preference is to have things a little 'off'... a bit modern mixed with traditional. The tension of styles keeps things interesting. In our dining room, I wanted the lighting to be polished but not fussy, sophisticated yet welcoming.
The Sphere No. 2 light completes this room beautifully. With the colourful wallpaper, the room needed somewhere for your eye to rest. It begged for a light that had a simple shape yet was eye catching. This light does just that.
I was worried it would be oversized for the space (it's 20.5" in diameter and hangs 32" above our 54" wide table) but the mix of half brass, half glass keeps the light from feeling overwhelming. Here's some handy tips to consider when selecting a chandelier for the dining room. Remember to think not only about the style and finish of the lighting but also the size and height - proportion is everything when it comes to lighting!
The round shade also echoes the round table and helps to soften the hard edges of the trim on the walls and the buffet cabinet.
This is the view I always envisioned when I designed this room. Standing in the kitchen, the dining room light draws you in. It is truly the focal point of the room.
The roman blind acts as a nice backdrop and keeps the light from getting lost against the sunlight streaming in the window. The brass finish reflects light beautifully and adds a bit of sparkle to this entertaining space.
Disclosure: This project is sponsored by Hudson Valley Lighting. Thank you for supporting the brands whose quality products I bring into my own home.
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