Sunlight is essential for your health and well-being. It helps regulate your circadian rhythm, improves your mood, and can even help you get a better night’s sleep. Unfortunately, many homes don’t have enough windows or sunlight to take advantage of its benefits. So, here are eight easy ways to bring more natural light into your home:
1. Install additional windows
If your home doesn’t have enough windows, consider installing additional ones. This is a relatively easy and affordable solution that will bring in a lot of natural light. Plus, you can choose the windows you want to install and their placement in your home.
However, before you install any windows, take into account the layout of your home. You don’t want to cover up or obstruct existing windows that provide light, airflow, and a view.
2. Add skylights
Another great way to bring in more natural light is by adding skylights to your home. This can be a bit more expensive than installing additional windows, but it’s well worth the investment since skylights are designed to maximize sunlight. Plus, they bring in more light than windows of the same size.
You may want to use flat glass in your skylight to reduce the costs. This type of glass is generally used for commercial buildings and doesn’t require an aluminum frame.
3. Use light-colored paint
Painting your walls a light color will help reflect more sunlight into your home. Dark colors absorb more light, while lighter ones reflect it. That’s because a white wall reflects about 90 percent of the sunlight that hits it, compared to only 10 percent for a black wall.
And while you can use any color paint, it’s best to go with lighter shades like white, cream, or eggshell. This will help highlight any natural light in your home rather than compete with it.
4. Place mirrors strategically
If you have an area lacking natural light, use mirrors to redirect the existing sunlight into that. Mirrors can help reflect sunlight into darker areas of a room, making them feel brighter and more spacious.
So, for instance, you can hang a mirror on the opposite side of a window to reflect more light through your home. Or you could place mirrors along an exterior wall and angle them toward an existing window to redirect more light into your home.
5. Use curtains strategically
Curtains can prevent too much sunlight from coming in if you want to take a nap, but they can also be used to attract and maximize natural light in a room. For instance, you can layer sheer curtains over dark ones to filter the sun’s rays and prevent too much light from entering your room.
Another example is using modern roller blinds to maximize sunlight in a room. These blinds can be tilted to allow more light into your home while still giving you privacy and blocking out too much sunlight.
6. Pick light-colored upholstery
Picking light-colored upholstery for your couches and chairs is another way to reflect more sunlight into darker areas of your home. Lighter upholstery will help highlight any natural light in your home and give an overall more spacious feel to a room.
Of course, when picking upholstery, you’ll want to take into account the existing color scheme in your home. So, go with something that complements the existing design. This will not only help highlight your current color scheme but also make your home look brighter and bigger.
7. Add plants
Adding houseplants near the windows in your home is a great way to add some natural beauty while also filling your home with more sunlight. Plus, the plants can add a pop of color to any space. This is especially helpful if you live in a dimly lit room since the plants can brighten it up.
However, make sure to place the plants in locations where they’ll get enough sunlight to grow and thrive, so they don’t die. You should also remember to water the plants, as they need water to survive.
8. Use transparent or translucent materials
Using transparent or translucent materials will help diffuse sunlight throughout your home. This is because sunlight can enter through these materials and help brighten up darker areas.
Good transparent or translucent materials include glass, windows, and doors. Furthermore, solar tubes can also be used to bring natural light into your home. So, instead of using opaque materials like brick and concrete, you could use transparent materials like glass to bounce more light throughout your home.
Bringing more natural light into your home is not only good for your health but can also improve the aesthetics of a room. So, if you’re looking to brighten up a dark space in your home, consider implementing some tips here. Not only will this make your home look and feel brighter, but it’ll also provide some health benefits for you and your family.
