Bathrooms that are less than 65 square feet are considered small. Bathrooms that are more than 65 square feet are considered large. Whatever the square footage, the average bathroom costs $12,000.00. The cost can reach $35,000.00 with high end products, according to the Kitchen and Bath Business magazine. For small or large baths, a tub costs between two hundred and five thousand dollars. Surely no one would object to spending two to five hundred dollars to light the bath.

Bathrooms are difficult to light, however many lighting options are available. The effect of good lighting in the bathroom often gets your day off to a positive start. We prepare ourselves each day in the bathroom including applying makeup and grooming, therefore we want to have appropriate light sources.

Whether contemporary or traditional, bathrooms contain mirrors, tubs, showers, closets and sometimes a sitting area. All require light. Light for mirrors must be on the person (The task surface) not on the mirror. Lighting for tubs, showers and closet must be directly in the tub, shower or closet.

Also, decorative items should be enhanced with accent light as well as textured walls. General lighting for the bath can come from task and non task lighting. The task surface at mirrors is the face reflected in the mirror, not the surface of the mirror. Often when meeting to discuss bathroom renovations we find the existing mirror itself is lit but light must fall on the face and hair, the surfaces needed to be seen in the mirror.

We light all bathrooms individually taking into consideration the preferences of our client. Age, eye conditions and interior colors are prime factors. Older users require between twice and two-thirds more light. Illuminated magnifying mirrors can also be effective in such cases.

A lavatory can be a freestanding pedestal, dropped into a vanity or a piece of antique furniture or wall hung. The bathroom mirror is usually on the wall above the lavatory. This fixtures should light the top of the head and distribute the light along the side of the face and under the chin. Sconces positioned along side a decorative mirror with a recess positioned above the lavatory are usually our best choice for this area because it offers good light distribution for little energy. It also gives us an opportunity to select decorative sconces. Sconces with translucent shades @ 20 watts per lamp and the recess @ 65 watts is preferred.

Baths are used for several activities including relaxed bathing. There are basically different lighting moods. Dimmers are always used for these reasons. Dimmed lighting can suggest many possibilities and brightening the room can be quite motivational.

Once again, the lighting in our bathrooms is very important. It enhances the products and fixtures chosen not to mention the person looking in the mirror.