We have gutted our bathroom in the basement. The vanity needs to go under the basement window. That's not a big deal because the window is still high enough to get a mirror underneath it. My question is what to do for lighting. Dh wants to put in pot lights above (I know, I know, I told him about hag lighting). So I can drop one or two pendants down in front of the window and mirror, or put wall sconces on either side of the mirror which I think may look funny because they'll be hung lower than normal and I think will emphasize that the mirror is a little low. The pendants might be a bit odd too hanging over the window/curtain.
Ideas??
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I'm not sure why sconces would seem too low? Usually they are placed at eye level anyway when there is a mirror and that is perfect for avoiding the hag effect. I don't recall any rule saying they have to relate to the mirror (like being half way on the mirror) or anything so I think you could keep a good optical illusion of the mirror being normal. I am sure with you on avoiding pot lights as a main source because it won't be a happy place to catch your reflection at all.
I was just checking to see if the light I bought for my last house was still available as it wired into a box over the mirror but had two pendants that hung on either side of the mirror. It was a Debbie Travis but I don't see it on the Cdn Tire site any longer. I don't know that it would work not being at normal hieght but it's a good example of different styles they are making now to fit funny spots so it may be worth checking out what things are available beyond the normal stuff. Meanwhile they had this one http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/browse/8/KitchenBath/BathroomDecor/Bathro... which might work if you picture it vertically on each side of your mirror.
Another option if hubby is all about pot lights, is battery operated sconces. I have a couple that do the job as accent lights and with rechargable batteries aren't a big deal to keep charged (I supplied those and the units use both switches and remote control). Here's a google of what they can look like as there are more and more styles coming out all the time. http://www.google.ca/images?hl=en&xhr=t&q=battery+operated+sconces&cp=21... I got mine through the shopping channel and they were under $40 each if memory serves. That way you can have lights lower without worrying about wiring and no big deal as they only require one screw to hang which leaves your options open. I think the only caution would to be avoid the ones with LED bulbs as those don't offer much in the way of light.
BTW I love the style of that bathroom. I renoed my last place to look very much like that and am now in another old house where it's similar. If you are designing new and have the space, keep in mind that pedistal sinks mean no storage so having some extra space to bring in something extra really helps. They make some nice compact tall units that fit in corners and such to make it easier in smaller spaces but you do need that floor space to fit them in.
Also a tip if you'd like. I put wood wainscotting in that bathroom which was real work as the fixtures were already in place (imagine cutting around plumbing). It also soaked up a lot of paint being raw wood as I bet I put 4 coats on it to make it right and even then it's still rough wood if you don't want to invest in sanding for hours and hours because it comes with knots and is not perfect smooth like trim usually is. Now they have a wallpaper (you can find it at Home Depot or Rona) that is absolutely realistic (same dimensional effect as the wood) and paintable. You just add the same chair rail trim after and no one will be the wiser. Bonus is it's a lot easier to put up and paint than the real thing and you don't have to worry about it warping due to moisture. If I was doing it again, I'd just go straight to that instead of the wood.
Hello eljay,
These photos/articles might be helpful with sconce choices and general bathroom lighting questions:
http://houseandhome.com/design/photo-gallery-small-bathrooms
http://houseandhome.com/design/common-lighting-problems
http://houseandhome.com/design/remodel-tired-bathroom
http://houseandhome.com/design/bathroom-reno-basics
I hope they help! Good luck with the bathroom!
Gwen McAuley (gmcauley at hhmedia.com)
Is your window split like the one in your example? If it is, could you possibly put mirror over the bottom half of the glass? The top half would still let in light but the bottom half being mirror would be like privacy glass and maybe you would not need curtains. Keep in mind that you have to do something to the back of the mirror to make it attractive to the outside such as wallpaper. You could probably attach it to the window frame with little L brackets or something but make sure it is as close to the window as possible and it is the same size as the window (or maybe a little bigger).
Also, when installing the pendent lights, I would install the ceiling junction boxes for the 2 seperate pendant lights just outside of the window frame so they would not be in the way of trying to open the window or clean the window, etc. Then it should also not look funny.
I did not have alot of time to search the web for the light that I was thinking of so the 2 I did post were just examples. I am sure you could find something more suitable for your taste but it got you thinking in a different direction. If you do go with a single hanging light, I would only have 2 lights come off it and not 3 like the first example I posted. Mind you, that one being the track type lighting, could take one off to have only 2 lights.
Hey, not a bad idea! I love the first one you posted but the room is going to be quite traditional, almost cottagey so not sure if that would work. Though I have seen opposite styles mixed together a lot in design. Could be interesting...what do you think?
The shades look quite large in the second one (I might bang my head on it ;-)
It will be similar to this in style but with white and grey/blue.
What about a ceiling fixture that splits off to two lights _ similar to a pool table light - but not that big.
http://www.livinglighting.com/html/product_detail.php?pid=377&catid=2 Here is a link that is a ceiling fixture with 3 tube like pendents. Tried to copy the picture but it is too big.
http://www.homedepot.ca/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CatalogSearchResultView?D=916074&Ntt=916074&catalogId=10051&langId=-15&storeId=10051&Dx=mode+matchallpartial&Ntx=mode+matchall&N=0&Ntk=P_PartNumber Here is one from Home Depot that could work. It is something like this that I was thinking of but I really like the first one I posted.