When it comes to renovating or designing your home, there is usually no money left in the pot for two things – lighting and blinds.
That’s according to Pamela Cull, and she should know because she has been working as a lighting consultant for 35 years.
Pamela designs lighting plans for home renovations and new builds, helping clients to achieve the style and look they want.
“I tend to see two clients. One client will tell you that they are so glad I am in their lives, because I make life so much easier for them, and I save them so much money. And the second client that I meet says, ‘I wish I had met you so much sooner.’ But then we work as best we can to make the changes without costing too much money,” says Pamela.
“I think the key thing is, when it comes to lighting, start as early as you can. People think – ‘I can’t be considering lighting when I’m walking in a field.’ But you need to. Once you get help and advice and have a plan before the electrician comes looking for what they’re calling ‘first fix’, then we have a chance of changing things.
“That’s before walls are plastered. Once the walls are plastered, certain things can still be done, and often the electrician will do them, but they’ll charge accordingly.”
Ideally, a lighting consultant is brought into the build or renovation as early as possible, explains Pamela, to help clients choose lighting fixtures, sockets and switches that compliment their home, and to meet with electricians on cabling and wiring specifications.
As with anything related to home improvements, the budget is the place to start with a lighting plan. But putting one together – and getting it right – doesn’t have to be expensive.
“For example, there’s never money left for the garden or for the outside lights,” adds Pamela. “But I’ll say, let’s look at an inexpensive way. Let’s look at something that we can put in temporarily, but it means we get the cable in place. We put in something that would actually be fine for a year or two, and then when the budget replenishes, you can swap them back out again.
“But the key thing is, don’t say ‘we can’t afford that’ and then not put it in place. I would always say to people, plan not just for now, but also for the future.”
The budget is the place to start with a lighting plan. But putting one together doesn’t need to be expensive. \ pamelaculldesign.ie
Transformation
The way that light can filter through a home transforms the feel of the place. For example, spotlights can make a room feel very harsh, which is why Pamela opts for layers and levels of lighting.
“I only put spotlights in the very, very essential places,” she says. “Usually, that’s over the kitchen sink, areas where you need functional light. But other than that, I like multiple layers of light coming all the way down.”
Beyond light, Pamela says it is also important to give time and consideration to where your sockets and switches will go.
“People make such a mistake of not putting them in the right place. I literally mark out the floors, mark out your couches. I mark out your tables and chairs. You probably don’t know where you’re going to put your kitchen table, but there’s ways that we can actually put that in place. It’s so important to have somebody helping you along and to plan it out.”
On new builds, Pamela has another piece of advice. Many have vaulted ceilings (an architectural feature that adds height and openness to a room) and it is important to get lighting right in those areas to avoid shadows or dark areas, she explains.
“Most fittings do not have long enough cables to cater for vaulted ceilings, so you need to allow time to source these, and ideally get them in place, when you still have the use of scaffolding in the house.
“Layered lighting in a vaulted room is the ideal solution, starting at the roof and working down to pendant lighting, tops of units lighting, lit floating shelves, wall lights and then low level – such as island lights, table and floor lamps. Having these on separate switches will allow multiples atmospheres in the area, as well as being functional.”
Start with the basics
Similar to Pamela, interior designer Felicity Brown says: “You can’t do anything without a plan – that’s the most important thing for me in every project.”
For the interior designer, that plan involves deciding where everything is going to be and what size is needed.
Felicity has worked as an interior designer for the past 15 years. After working for Ireland’s leading interior design firms, she has branched out and set up her own company. She works with clients who are renovating, extending, downsizing or building new homes.
Felicity says she is often asked about colour but that is irrelevant until much further into the project. “We have to get the foundations right first. The most important thing to decide is where is everything going to go, and what size does it need to be. Then we can go about finding pieces that fit the space.
Felicity Brown says no home improvement can work without a plan.
“A lot of people – even though they’ve hired an interior designer – will say, ‘I saw a sofa on sale at the weekend, and I bought it.’ If you don’t have a plan, when you’re going out buying stuff, you’re destined to make expensive mistakes.
“Think about it – if you buy the right size jeans, they’re going to look great on you but if you buy the wrong size, they’re not. You have to get the size right first.”
This is why one of the most important things – as far as both Felicity and Pamela are concerned – is getting the fixtures, fittings and floorings right. That’s because, while colours on the wall or furniture can change, the bones of the house will be around for much longer.
“If you get a beautiful neutral floor, anything sitting on that floor will look beautiful, even if it’s not expensive.”
Felicity advises to keep things like flooring and tiles “simple and timeless and classic” but get creative with furniture and cushions that you can change more easily.
In terms of where people make the biggest spend in the house, it tends to be the areas that others will appreciate.
“It’s always the hall, the good room, the living room, the kitchen, dining area. They’re always the rooms that other people are going to see. Everyone will walk into your hall, downstairs bathroom, the front living room.
“I suppose back in the olden days, the good room was the room you brought the priest into,” Felicity reflects. “Everyone always had one room in their house that was clean in case someone knocked on the door.
“People still want to have a good room that feels different from the everyday workings of the house,” she adds.
“They want to walk in to a room that feels calm and restful and clean and luxurious, because it’s an escape from the rest of the house.”
See @whiterockinteriors on Instagram and pamelaculldesign.ie
When it comes to renovating or designing your home, there is usually no money left in the pot for two things – lighting and blinds.
That’s according to Pamela Cull, and she should know because she has been working as a lighting consultant for 35 years.
Pamela designs lighting plans for home renovations and new builds, helping clients to achieve the style and look they want.
“I tend to see two clients. One client will tell you that they are so glad I am in their lives, because I make life so much easier for them, and I save them so much money. And the second client that I meet says, ‘I wish I had met you so much sooner.’ But then we work as best we can to make the changes without costing too much money,” says Pamela.
“I think the key thing is, when it comes to lighting, start as early as you can. People think – ‘I can’t be considering lighting when I’m walking in a field.’ But you need to. Once you get help and advice and have a plan before the electrician comes looking for what they’re calling ‘first fix’, then we have a chance of changing things.
“That’s before walls are plastered. Once the walls are plastered, certain things can still be done, and often the electrician will do them, but they’ll charge accordingly.”
Ideally, a lighting consultant is brought into the build or renovation as early as possible, explains Pamela, to help clients choose lighting fixtures, sockets and switches that compliment their home, and to meet with electricians on cabling and wiring specifications.
As with anything related to home improvements, the budget is the place to start with a lighting plan. But putting one together – and getting it right – doesn’t have to be expensive.
“For example, there’s never money left for the garden or for the outside lights,” adds Pamela. “But I’ll say, let’s look at an inexpensive way. Let’s look at something that we can put in temporarily, but it means we get the cable in place. We put in something that would actually be fine for a year or two, and then when the budget replenishes, you can swap them back out again.
“But the key thing is, don’t say ‘we can’t afford that’ and then not put it in place. I would always say to people, plan not just for now, but also for the future.”
The budget is the place to start with a lighting plan. But putting one together doesn’t need to be expensive. \ pamelaculldesign.ie
Transformation
The way that light can filter through a home transforms the feel of the place. For example, spotlights can make a room feel very harsh, which is why Pamela opts for layers and levels of lighting.
“I only put spotlights in the very, very essential places,” she says. “Usually, that’s over the kitchen sink, areas where you need functional light. But other than that, I like multiple layers of light coming all the way down.”
Beyond light, Pamela says it is also important to give time and consideration to where your sockets and switches will go.
“People make such a mistake of not putting them in the right place. I literally mark out the floors, mark out your couches. I mark out your tables and chairs. You probably don’t know where you’re going to put your kitchen table, but there’s ways that we can actually put that in place. It’s so important to have somebody helping you along and to plan it out.”
On new builds, Pamela has another piece of advice. Many have vaulted ceilings (an architectural feature that adds height and openness to a room) and it is important to get lighting right in those areas to avoid shadows or dark areas, she explains.
“Most fittings do not have long enough cables to cater for vaulted ceilings, so you need to allow time to source these, and ideally get them in place, when you still have the use of scaffolding in the house.
“Layered lighting in a vaulted room is the ideal solution, starting at the roof and working down to pendant lighting, tops of units lighting, lit floating shelves, wall lights and then low level – such as island lights, table and floor lamps. Having these on separate switches will allow multiples atmospheres in the area, as well as being functional.”
Start with the basics
Similar to Pamela, interior designer Felicity Brown says: “You can’t do anything without a plan – that’s the most important thing for me in every project.”
For the interior designer, that plan involves deciding where everything is going to be and what size is needed.
Felicity has worked as an interior designer for the past 15 years. After working for Ireland’s leading interior design firms, she has branched out and set up her own company. She works with clients who are renovating, extending, downsizing or building new homes.
Felicity says she is often asked about colour but that is irrelevant until much further into the project. “We have to get the foundations right first. The most important thing to decide is where is everything going to go, and what size does it need to be. Then we can go about finding pieces that fit the space.
Felicity Brown says no home improvement can work without a plan.
“A lot of people – even though they’ve hired an interior designer – will say, ‘I saw a sofa on sale at the weekend, and I bought it.’ If you don’t have a plan, when you’re going out buying stuff, you’re destined to make expensive mistakes.
“Think about it – if you buy the right size jeans, they’re going to look great on you but if you buy the wrong size, they’re not. You have to get the size right first.”
This is why one of the most important things – as far as both Felicity and Pamela are concerned – is getting the fixtures, fittings and floorings right. That’s because, while colours on the wall or furniture can change, the bones of the house will be around for much longer.
“If you get a beautiful neutral floor, anything sitting on that floor will look beautiful, even if it’s not expensive.”
Felicity advises to keep things like flooring and tiles “simple and timeless and classic” but get creative with furniture and cushions that you can change more easily.
In terms of where people make the biggest spend in the house, it tends to be the areas that others will appreciate.
“It’s always the hall, the good room, the living room, the kitchen, dining area. They’re always the rooms that other people are going to see. Everyone will walk into your hall, downstairs bathroom, the front living room.
“I suppose back in the olden days, the good room was the room you brought the priest into,” Felicity reflects. “Everyone always had one room in their house that was clean in case someone knocked on the door.
“People still want to have a good room that feels different from the everyday workings of the house,” she adds.
“They want to walk in to a room that feels calm and restful and clean and luxurious, because it’s an escape from the rest of the house.”
See @whiterockinteriors on Instagram and pamelaculldesign.ie
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