Radiant Room

Lighting Tips for Nurseries and Children's Rooms

When thinking about nursery lighting, it’s important to think about how your child will be affected by the light in his/her room. Pendant lighting, in particular, can add both functionality and great design to your baby's room as there are many beautiful options to consider.

Since children are smaller than adults, they’re often going to be looking up at lights – either from the crib or from crawling on the floor. Given that, any lights you have on the ceiling should have diffusers on the bottom. (Typically plastic/acrylic sheets on the bottom of the fixture that filter the light so the bulb doesn’t shine in anyone’s eyes). This is not such an issue with Table Lamps as the lampshade will cut the glare from most places, but it is an argument for smaller fixtures there to begin with. Tri-light bulbs (those that have a low, medium, and high setting) are a good idea as well so you can have low light when you’re trying to set a mood at bedtime, and brighter light when you have tasks to do like changing diapers.

Working with a theme

Having lights that play to the theme you have decided on for your nursery can be a fun way to augment your design choice. You may also want to think about buying lights that will grow with your child, staying relevant and stylish as they move even into their teens. One way to achieve both would be to choose less expensive lights that play to your theme that you won’t mind having spent money on when you decide to get rid of them, and spend more (if necessary) on the lights that will grow with your child so to speak.

For instance, if you have an owl theme to your room (using the Wee Décor Owl Wall decals for example), you could accent it with either of these two table lamps: This metal bronze owl lamp from Kirkland for $59.99 (I personally would change out the shade for a more modern one with clean lines), or this Resin lamp from Target for $39.99. By the time you are ready to change the room design when your child is older, you will have gotten great use and value from these table lamps.

For a less literal translation, this rope table lamp from Pottery Barn Kids would be a great addition to WeeDécor’s Under the Sea Wall decals. It’s a slightly more expensive lamp at $99, but this light could last well into your child’s early teens even as you change the design around it.

This Tulip Floor Lamp which is elegant it its own right, and would fit in with a flower theme (such as with Flower Wall Decals). It would certainly last through the teenage years in a girl’s room. Beware though, it is more expensive, at $752.

Here are a few other options for lights that could fit with a theme, or simply bring an element of child-like whimsy to the room:

Pottery Barn Kids Starry Night Table Lamp

Pendants Galore

Many rooms already have an overhead light, and they can be great for adding general light to the entire room in general and for playtime. I like how these stylish, hanging pendants are versatile enough to work well in a baby’s room as well as a teen’s room and in between.

Oilo-Raindrops-Aqua-Cylinder-Double-Pendant.jpg

Nightlights

There are some great night lights these days that can bring in an element of fun to your child’s room as well as helping ease fears of the dark. No more just the standard light bulb with a shade in front, these nightlights can bring friends into the room either in line with your theme, or as a departure.

Adding a sense of playfulness

Children come with such a wonderful imagination and you can keep it going by adding playfulness into their room with these lights. The Bright Ideas Pendant Light is perfect for encouraging new ideas, and could be used in lieu of a table lamp or over a games table in a playroom. The purple light will generate many a double take while adding a great pop of color to the room. I think the Balloon light would be great as a desk or table lamp in your child’s room, and then would be terrific in the home office once they’ve left or you change the design.

Function and Style

As always, you don’t have to sacrifice function for style if you don’t want to. These lights offer both in their designs.

Diffuse soft light is easy on a baby’s eyes, and this light is the epitome

Sleek and modern, this desk light will inspire getting homework done

Giving a floating feeling, this light can light up a bedtime story

Bedside Table Lamps

With table lamps, of course you’ll need to watch if there is a time when your toddler is a little too interested in the table lamps or if they like to pull things off tables. If that’s the case, you’ll either have to remove them for a little while, or make sure they’re up high and out of the reach of little hands. If you haven’t found the right lamp yet, how about one of these?

The cork board base of this light scan be used to stick pictures or notes on when the child is older and it’s a desk lamp. In the meantime, it brings in a nice natural feel.

This simple white base sets off the playfulness of the pink and yellow check, and the lamp overall has a sophisticated feeling

A more traditional lamp, this would fit well into a classic boy's room or one with a nautical feel.

This lamp is a way to bring pink into a room in a sophisticated manner, with its well designed playful design.

I love the pattern on the lampshade of this swing arm lamp. It would be great in a boy's room or a gender neutral design, and could be used for years to come.

Last but definitely not least, this bedside table lamp brings in an element of nature – just imagine reading stories with this beautiful soft light next to you. It would pair well with WeeDecor nature wall decals, if you were interested in having a theme to the design of your child’s room.

See more Nursery & Children's Room lights in the Lights section of my site.

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