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The kitchen is often considered one of the most important rooms in the house. This is the case not just for those who live there, but it’s equally important to prospective buyers when you consider selling a home.
The kitchen makes up one of the “big three” rooms when selling a house, alongside the living room and main bedroom, and represents one of your biggest returns on investment, especially when working with an experienced real estate agent.
Hiring a real estate agent not only helps to identify the right neighbourhood for you and your family but also gets you the most value when it comes to selling your home.
If you want your kitchen to shine to its maximum potential but don’t want to break the bank with a costly renovation, one of the best things you can focus on is the kitchen’s lighting.
Lighting can dramatically transform a room from its warmth, brightness, and ambiance. The modern kitchen often acts as the dining room, study station, and home office, so having proper lighting to accommodate these many hats is important.
Here are some ways to help maximize the potential of your kitchen’s lighting.
Natural Lighting
Natural light is the most eco-friendly and sustainable form of light and can be one of the best assets in a home. Natural sunlight grants warmth, brightness and helps a space feel open and fresh; plus, it’s great for most houseplants!
Consider maximizing the potential of natural light in your kitchen by replacing older windows or installing new ones in walls that did not hold them previously.
Replacing doorways to the kitchen with glass panes, ones with windows, or removing them all together in favor of archways can help light further flow in and out of the area as well.
To further utilize the existing light you already have, consider a bright wall color such as white or light grey, which can reflect light in a room better than darker colors. Decorating with reflective objects such as mirrors, glass, and crystal, will also help to spread natural light around your kitchen.
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Artificial Light
While desirable, natural light can only take you so far. When it comes to artificial light, it’s all about the layout. Consider the following categories of artificial light when planning their arrangement.
Task Lighting
These lights should be your highest intensity lights, providing you with ample lighting for important work areas in the kitchen, such as the stove, sinks, prep stations, inside pantries, and other work areas while being out of the way to help ensure efficiency.
Ambient Lighting
Ambient lighting is the softer lighting that you use to generally light your kitchen. This lighting focuses on lighting your walls and floors so you can see where you’re going and are not generally meant for specific work areas like task lighting.
These lights are usually a little warmer than the more intense brightness of task lighting. Avoid placing ambient lighting in ways that will cast shadows into your task areas, as it will hinder the effects of the task lighting in those areas.
Accent Lighting
Accent Lighting helps to highlight the design and décor elements of your kitchen.
For example, lights are installed on open shelves or cabinetry to help showcase décor contents like a tea set or vases.
These can also be lights that cast onto artwork, statement pieces, or anything else you’d like to showcase in your kitchen.
