Masterful Make-up Lighting
With all the tips and tricks available these days on Pinterest, TikTok, FaceBook, and other social media outlets, your make-up routine could be getting more and more complicated by the click! But there’s one simple consideration that all the beauty bloggers would agree upon—great lighting is essential for perfect make-up application! So, before you break out those brushes, take time to evaluate the lighting situation in your make-up area. A few simple tweaks can get your features looking flawless!
While natural daylight is the queen of light when it comes to all things, most of us don’t apply our make-up outside. If you’re fortunate enough to have a large window in your make-up space, depending on its placement, the light it provides can help your cause. But it’s not always easy to come by the perfect amount of daylight when applying make-up, particularly in those early morning hours before work or later in the evening as you’re headed out on the town. So, now is the time to flip on the switch! But vanity lighting is often lacking with only overhead fixtures that cast shadows (yikes!) and don’t provide the necessary cross light for even illumination. Try adding lights or lamps on either side. Vintage-style make-up mirrors favored by celebrities and in dressing rooms often feature globe-style bulbs all around the face. If you don’t have built-in lights around your mirror, consider adding some strip lights to your existing mirror for a similar effect. While incandescent and halogen bulbs have long been employed in bathroom and vanity lighting, LED bulbs have made great strides in generating the desired tones of Queen Daylight and provide energy savings to boot! Choose bulbs with a 75–100 wattage (or equivalent), nothing higher. While more light (especially from the sides) is better, harsh light is unwelcome here. Don’t overdo it! Bulbs with a frosted finish provide a pleasant, diffused light.
High CRI LED Globe - PLT-11446
But it’s not just about the amount or direction of the light. It’s also about the quality of light—using bulbs with a high color rendering index, or CRI, will help achieve that perfect look. Color rendering is the ability of a light source to accurately reproduce color in objects as compared to sunlight. CRI is expressed on a scale from 0–100, where 100 is best in producing vibrant color in objects. Bulbs with a CRI of 80 or higher produce more vibrant color of the same object than a source with a CRI of 60 and are said to provide “high-quality light” because objects and people look more appealing—sign me up!
Get yourself looking and feeling great with the proper lighting in your make-up area and throughout your home. For advice on choosing the right products for your space, chat with one of our lighting experts at 1-800-624-4488.
