Incandescent Lamps

By Sarah Van Arsdale

When choosing your lighting scheme for your home, you must decide between fluorescent and incandescent light. While fluorescent lights have many advantages, their light is harsh and cold. Incandescent light is more comfortable and is much softer. You want to think about the functions of the lighting, the mood you want to create, and how the lighting fixtures will harmonize with the rest of the room's decor.

Next, let's look at the types of lamps.

First, in talking about "types of lamps," we're not talking that thing sitting on your desk or standing behind your easy chair. What you and I call a "lamp," meaning a table lamp, chandelier or floor lamp, is referred to in the world of interior design as a "fixture," and the word "lamp" is used to refer to the bulb.

There are two basic types of lamps - incandescent and fluorescent. Each has particular advantages and disadvantages.

Incandescent lamps are the ones that you're most accustomed to seeing used in residential lighting, and yet they have really only one major advantage over fluorescent lamps: The light they produce has a warm cast that is soft, natural, and flattering to skin tones.

• Tip: Incandescent lamps have many disadvantages, compared to fluorescent lamps: They are hotter, burn out faster, and use much more electricity for the same brightness. But the advantage of providing a softer light makes them the most popular choice for home lighting.

Imagine trying to create a romantic dining situation in the harsh fluorescent lighting you'd find in an office, and you'll get the picture right away of just how important it is to forego the benefits of fluorescent lamps when you're planning the lighting in a home.

Reprinted with permission by the Sheffield School of Design