PLAN IN ADVANCE
It’s essential to plan what sort of lighting you’ll need & where it will be located, before the wiring is finalised. The best time to lock down your lighting plan is as soon as your structural and architectural plan is decided, and you have determined the core use for each room.

The primary use of each room and the location of furniture and other items help immensely to
optimise your lighting.
- Will focused task light be required, such as a study or kitchen bench?
- Do I want certain features highlighted (e.g. artworks, outdoor features)?
- Will this be for a baby’s room?

CONSIDER A “LAYERED LIGHTING” APPROACH FOR OPTIMAL RESULTS
At Special Lights, our approach to lighting design is to consider the type of lighting required – i.e. general, task, decorative and accent - and then layer this in to the overall lighting plan. For example, installing only overhead downlights is often unflattering as it produces shadows on people’s faces.

To create atmosphere and ambience, we can produce pockets of light that subtly highlight different parts of the room and create a warm glow.

Reflected light provides for an easier and more relaxed atmosphere while producing very effective and even general light throughout the room. The use of uplights is a great way to deliver this.
Click here for more information on the Special Lights ‘Layered Lighting Approach’
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ENERGY EFFICIENT LIGHTING & THE ENVIRONMENT
New types of “compact fluorescent globes” have been available for a few years, and are a good way to reduce energy usage under the right circumstances. Many of the lights we provide are designed for CFLs and we recommend them in a number of our oyster, pendant & table light fittings. However, environmentally responsible disposal of fluorescent lamps can be difficult.

When lighting ambience & atmosphere is paramount, it is more than likely that a halogen globe equipped with a dimmer is more appropriate. By utilising a dimmer, you can not only create the desired lighting effect, but can also ensure you are reducing your power consumption. In addition, the use of IRC (Infra-red control) halogen lamps can further increase energy efficiency by around 30%.

LEDs (light emitting diodes) represent one of the more recent growth areas in lighting technology. The costs and quality of LEDs are improving all the time and manufacturers are rapidly increasing the variety of choice available. LEDs are regularly used for decorative and delineation applications, and are becoming broader in their usage as the equation of cost, light output, and energy efficiency moves closer towards LEDs. However, there are currently a number of circumstances where LED does not represent an economical substitute for other technologies.
Click here for information on some of our LED based products
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HOW TO USE DOWNLIGHTS
There is a trend away from the “grid of downlights’ approach to lighting a room. In fact, downlights are best used as spotlights to accent varies parts of a room (e.g. over a coffee table, highlighting a decorative statue), or as support lighting (e.g. for a decorative pendant that on its own doesn’t adequately light the surface of a dining table)

Innovation in downlight design and manufacture has produced a 2nd generation of downlight which solves a number of the limitations of the original downlights:
• A deep “baffle” recesses the bulb further into the ceiling, minimising “line of sight” visibility of the bulb and reducing the secondary glare beam.
• Slim surface rims allow for minimal interruption to your ceiling line, replacing the thick borders located around early downlight designs
• Easy bulb change is now a requirement. Previously, some downlight designs required the removal of the whole fitting simply to change the bulb!
• Other improvements include matt colour options, stainless steel construction to avoid corrosion, splash resistance for bathrooms or outdoors, and more.
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MICRO PENDANTS & FEATURE PENDANTS
Traditionally, a large, decorative pendant would be placed over a dining table (or in other locations) in your home. These feature pendants look great and we certainly still recommend their use. However, there are alternatives.

One such alternative is the micro pendant. This is a small pendant which is usually less than 15-20cm in diameter and is often installed in groups. It is not better or worse than the feature pendant - just different.

The micro pendant is more subtle, and, whilst still contributing a decorative element, doesn’t make the same statement and contribution to the decorative personality of your home. These micro pendants have 2 core reasons why some people choose to use them instead of a large feature pendant.
• There is minimal interruption to your view from one side of the pendants to another. This is ideal when you want to view your kids in the backyard, or enjoy your water views.
• When performing a task, micro pendants allow the useable, high intensity lit area to be extended over a distance. For example, over a long kitchen preparation bench, 4 micro pendants can be positioned to brightly illuminate the entire bench.
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