Using Lights and Chandeliers and your Dining Room's Ambiance

Families and friends gather to experience that "cozy dining experience", entertaining, enjoying home cooked meals, conversing, and creating memories. This is the reason it is vital to create a welcoming, comfortable, and warm ambiance in the dining room.

Chandeliers are typically the focal point and direct source for dining room light as they provide sparkle, though at times these may be too large for small spaces. These are suspended above the dining table, but not too high. Alternatives such as pendants can be used to provide sufficient light, yet still be stylish. Downlights can be placed on either side of the table to complement and balance the light from the chandelier and to provide more lighting. It is suggested that they be directed towards the table to minimize the glare on the eyes. Dimmers can be employed to adjust illumination, creating a more elegant mood.  Incandescent light makes food more attractive, but combining it with fluorescent could be another option.

In addition to the chandelier, recessed lights can placed in larger dining rooms with additional pieces of furniture such as buffet tables, cabinets, or paintings, These can be placed above the center of the furniture. This focuses the light on showcase pieces or food. To widen or to make the dining room look as if it were more spacious and to brighten it up, uplights aimed towards the ceilng can be placed on the floor behind other furniture. Lamps placed on tables can also accent and enhance the drama of the room. Halogen bulbs are also advised because the white light sparkles crystals on display.

Other considerations in determining the type of dining room light are the size of the room, shape and size of the dining table, color of the room, furniture and windows. There are varied sizes of chandeliers available to complement the different sizes of tables. These factors all come together in determining the types of dining room lighting that will adorn the area.