In the living room, the perfect room for sharing and relaxation, the television corner is a cozy space where you like to curl up on your sofa to take a moment to relax and watch a good movie as a group or your favorite series alone.
To benefit from all the visual comfort required by this complete disconnection aside, lighting plays an essential role. We already know that the living room requires three types of lighting: general lighting, called overhead lighting, mood lighting and auxiliary lighting by zone.
The television corner is therefore one of those areas of activity in the living room which requires additional lighting with suitable light and a particular lighting solution. Why ?
Because watching TV tires your eyes, especially if you are in the dark, due to the strong contrast between the brightness of the screen and the surrounding darkness.
The large differences in brightness between the room you are in and the TV screen are extremely tiring to the eyes. This is why it is recommended to use indirect light sources which illuminate the back or next to the screen.
Lighting that is too strong or reflected in the screen will be really annoying. It is, therefore, necessary to create soft lighting, attenuating this famous contrast between the brightness of the screen and the surrounding darkness.
But above all, the lighting must be invisible and not reflected in the screen. Zoom in on our lighting tips to optimize the lighting of the television area!
1. SOFT LIGHT AT THE HEIGHT OF THE TELEVISION
The simplest and most practical lighting solution to avoid the contrast between the bright screen and the dark area around it is to install a soft light at the height of the television, about one meter from the set. By placing a low-wattage lamp or floor lamp next to or behind the television, you won’t create distracting shadows and benefit from diffused, even accent lighting with a soothing beam of light. Above all, the lighting must be invisible and not reflected in the screen. Choose a table lampbehind the television facing the wall with lampshade to avoid dazzling or with directional arm to direct the lighting, one or more floor lamps next to the television set with lampshade or diffuser facing the ceiling, equipped with articulated arm or reading light to change the direction and height of the light source according to your activity and your position.
EXPERT TIP I LIGHT: Avoid placing lights in the same direct field of view as the television. Even when turned off, they may interfere with your viewing the screen.
2. LED LIGHT RODS AROUND THE TELEVISION SCREEN
Joy of technology, if you do not (yet) have a backlit television screen, today you can dress it up with illuminated Led rods. They are not only intended to embellish your interior or to immerse you in the sought-after cinematographic atmosphere, they are also excellent for your eyes! Led wands or ribbons are an indirect light source that gives a new dimension to television enjoyment with an improved visual sensation. You just have to stick them to the outlines of the screen and install the link between the power supply, the controller and the strip. Some are equipped with RGB technology which allows you to change colors and create very pleasant light effects using a remote control.
EXPERT TIP I LIGHT: also take care not to place too bright lighting in front of the television, as it will reflect on the screen and obstruct visibility.
3. LED LIGHTING INTEGRATED INTO YOUR FURNITURE
If you do not want to dress your TV screen with bright LED strips or ribbons, you can choose to integrate them into your TV cabinet and your wall shelves, or even create other indirect light zones by lighting your bookcases and sideboards to obtain an atmosphere. cozy and warm even more conducive to a good viewing experience. This lighting solution has the advantage of highlighting your interior decoration while creating a beautiful soft lighting ideal for the television area.
EXPERT TIP I LIGHT: Led mood lighting has anti-glare light that is soft and restful for the eyes.
4. COZY AND DIFFUSED LIGHT BEHIND THE SOFA
Discreet and practical, the wall lamp is a safe bet for creating mood lighting in a living room. If you have electrical outlets on the walls that frame your television corner, we suggest that you select a set of wall lights that will ensure luminous precision on the corner of the sofa. Our lighting advice: place the wall lights behind the viewer so that the diffused light attenuates the contrast between the brightness of the screen and the surrounding darkness. Prefer wall lights with diffusers so that the light is directed up and / or down and pleasantly filtered. In addition to being decorative wall objects, they will create very appropriate accent lighting for your moments of relaxation on the sofa, with a beautiful cozy atmosphere.
5. A DIMMER TO ADJUST THE LIGHT INTENSITY
Ultra trendy and very decorative, the pendant lamp that falls from the ceiling to illuminate the television area is a nice lighting solution but it must also be adapted to this specific area of the living room. As we mentioned above, an area too dark for the TV corner tires the eyes, but on the contrary lighting that is too bright and powerful or reflected in the screen is just as annoying! It is then necessary to create a soft lighting to soften this contrast. If you decide to install a pendant lamp in your television corner, make sure that it works with a dimmer in order to be able to adjust the brightness to your liking optimally and if you opt for a suspended lampshade, think of associating it with a diffuser to soften the luminosity.
6. INDIRECT LIGHTING ON THE CEILING AND ON THE WALLS
From the ceiling, orientable spotlights with reflector directed towards the objects control the light beam for perfect accent lighting to draw the eye to an object. In this case, this functional and indirect lighting solution makes it possible to have soft lighting on the ceiling and on the walls on each side of the television so as to frame the screen with a discreet halo. We advise you, for example, to install an orientable spotlight, slightly offset, so that the light arrives at an angle towards the television.
EXPERT TIP I LIGHT: pay attention to the orientation of the spotlight beam and their power, the LEDs are very dazzling, for example.
THINK ABOUT IT / Daylight can create unpleasant reflections on the screen. When setting up the television corner, do not place the television facing the window and do not forget to provide a system to control it (blinds, curtains or curtain panels). If you are using a projector, you will need full blackout blinds.
7. IT’S ALL ABOUT LIGHTING …
The minimum required luminous flux (or illuminance) should not be confused with electric power because different light sources have very different luminous performance. The choice is to be made according to the type of activity carried out. For a soft and relaxing atmosphere, such as watching television: an illumination of 100 lux (or lm / m², lumens per square meter on the ground) is sufficient. This light intensity is typically diffused by table lamps with shades, or halogens whose dimmer has been adjusted lower. This mood lighting can be connected to electrical outlets controlled by a single switch, preferably with a dimmer, for ease of use in the living room.
8.… AND COLOR TEMPERATURE
To create subdued lighting in the television corner of the living room, we do not try to recreate daylight with cold white color temperature fixtures with predominantly bluish color (over 3200 Kelvin)! We focus more on a warm light, predominantly golden. The color temperature is expressed in Kelvin and indicates whether a light is warm (predominantly golden) or cold (predominantly bluish). Above 3200 Kelvin, the light is considered to be cold or white, and therefore not cozy at all! How to control these two parameters? This first and foremost involves the choice of bulbs, on the packaging of which all the useful information on power and temperature is displayed. But the choice of lampshades and the type of luminaires with direct or indirect lighting also play a central role.