Spotlight on bathroom mirror lighting
03.2022
Finding the perfect lighting solution for your bathroom mirror is not always easy
Focus on bathroom mirror lighting
At some time or other, we all need to think about giving our bathroom a design makeover, and while it’s natural to think of the more obvious décor aspects, an element many forget about or neglect is lighting. While this is important throughout the home, including the bedroom and living room, here it borders on crucial.
Given the practical role this room fulfils, bathroom lighting is a subject that deserves – and demands – attention and the mirror is a central feature.
We take a look at the four main types of illumination to help you create the perfect bathroom mirror lighting solution.
Why is bathroom mirror lighting important?
So just why is mirror lighting so important in the bathroom? The main reason is that of all the various parts of the room, the basin or vanity zone is the focus as it is where key daily rituals are carried out, often when you are pressed for time.
Activities such as applying make-up and shaving require concentration and accuracy. So, while an overall light fitting, such as our Farfalla, can be useful and also a great way to inject a stylish décor element into the room, it will not be effective if you really need to see what you’re doing close up. It is not enough to have a wonderful mirror; it needs to be combined with the right lighting.
When these two elements come together to create a well-lit reflection, your daily routine becomes just that little bit easier and inevitably, the quality of life of the entire household improves.
Light temperature
The first thing to consider when choosing bathroom mirror illumination is the colour and temperature of your light.
Whether talking about natural or artificial lighting, the scale of graduation is measured in warmth in the temperature sense and falls into three tones: warm, cool and neutral. Warm covers colours that tend towards yellow, cool covers bluish tones while neutral sits somewhere between the two and is the closest in terms of replicating natural light.
Each of these three categories comes with pros and cons in the way they affect the environment, our mood and even visibility.
Returning to the bathroom mirror, as we said above, the key thing we are looking for here is functionality and the ideal choice is a cool or neutral white light as these are more luminous, have a positive effect on the psyche and, importantly in a bathroom, foster the perception of cleanliness.
Types of bathroom mirror illumination
Once you have decided on the colour of your mirror lighting, it’s time to choose the type of illumination, and here you have 4 main options:
- Backlit or integrated lighting
- Lighting above the mirror
- Adjustable wall lights
- Ceiling lighting
Often the choice comes down to personal preference, given that the main difference is the position of the light source. Let’s take a look at each of them in a little more detail.
Backlit mirrors
A trend that has become increasingly popular in recent years, particularly in bathrooms, is the backlit mirror.
Perfect for small bathrooms, backlighting is an extremely practical solution. LED lights are integrated into the perimeter of the mirror, resulting in a uniform, evenly distributed light which is important when you need a close-up on your face. Another advantage is that if it is a model requiring electrical cabling, everything is hidden neatly behind the mirror itself.
A backlit mirror is an innovative, smart alternative to ceiling-or wall-mounted lights and, if you are a fan of understatement, this could well be a match made in heaven for you. Discreet and stylish, our Mirari LED mirror is an example of how a functional accessory can add effortless elegance to your bathroom.
Above-mirror lighting
If you prefer a more traditional light fitting, a popular solution is to light your mirror from above, positioning it on the wall so that it illuminates the entire vanity area.
If it is fixed rather than adjustable, it will invariably leave a few areas in shadow and does not necessarily create uniform illumination, making it slightly less effective for shaving and applying make-up than some of the other options. That said, however, if you choose a design or statement piece, it is an excellent way to add a touch of style and will still be significantly more effective than simply having an overall light in the middle of the ceiling.
Adjustable lighting
A third solution is to opt for adjustable wall lights which, as the name suggests are versatile and practical, allowing you to direct the light where you need it in any given moment.
While they can be installed directly above the mirror, the ideal position is one on either side as this creates a more linear, uniform quality of illumination.
Ceiling lights
The fourth option is to illuminate your mirror from above with a hanging light fitting. This can be an extremely striking décor element, but you will need to think carefully about how to make the most of the space.
When it comes to choosing the fitting, you ideally want something that directs the light in a precise, focused manner, and here our Silo ceiling lamp in natural stone works beautifully, combining a stylish aesthetic with a direct light beam.
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