Create theater style ambiance in your media room with lighting

Having a comfortable and inviting place to watch TV, movies and sporting events has become a priority for homeowners building new custom homes and is also a popular remodeling project for existing homes. There are several considerations to get the lighting in your media room just right.

More than any other room in the house, it is important to use multiple layers of light since the room will likely be used for different purposes. In addition to watching TV,  you may also use the room for entertaining, reading,  or working, and you will want your lighting to be as flexible as possible.

Joe Rey-Barreau, an expert in lighting, and an associate professor at The University of Kentucky School of Interior Design, recommends recessed cans for general lighting. Rey-Barreau suggests that recessed cans should be placed around the perimeter of the room and the trims should be black, instead of white or shiny metallic,  so they will not create glare.

Wall sconces are a very nice addition in media rooms, preferably designs with a more opaque front so that the light will shine up and/or down instead of out. Sconces can create a cozy ambiance in media rooms.

Adding more light without creating glare is also possible through the use of cove lighting. The light will bounce off the ceiling instead of reflecting on the screen. LED tape light or rope light can be used in coves and ceiling treatments and can be dimmed.

Lighting along the steps or walls is another layer of light that can be considered. There are a variety of step and wall lights available, and placing wall lights about 18 inches from the floor would not create any glare on the screen, but still offer enough light to safely move around the room.

Hanging fixtures and lamps will create glare and are not ideal choices for media rooms.

The photo below, from Houzz, is a media room built by Zuri Custom Homes and Renovations in Austin, Texas. This media room has been added to over 7,000 idea books and includes all of the layers of lighting mentioned above, in addition to the use of LED tape light around the TV screen and a special ceiling treatment that mimics a starry sky.

For some added fun to go along with this blog post, we asked our lighting specialists at Legend Lighting to pick out their favorite sconces for media rooms.

Cathy Shockey chose the Flux sconce from Hubbardton Forge. She loves it because it reminds her of an olympic torch and she likes that it is both structured and whimsical. Cathy feels that Flux would fit perfectly in a media room in a more contemporary setting.

Michelle Palma chose the Crossroads sconce from Tech Lighting. She likes it for a media room because it doesn’t put out too much light, you can’t see the light source, and when it’s on, it shows the imperfect, rugged industrial design.

Kathryn Karkella’s favorite sconce for media rooms is the Monaco sconce from Kalco. She likes the fun style and the fact that it’s not too bright and won’t disturb the movie watching experience.

Resa Russell’s favorite media room sconce is the Burst sconce from Kenroy Home. She likes the unique way to get indirect light from the light play on the wall and says that this sconce helps create the perfect mood to complement the feature movie!

Alissa Fischer chose the Fornello sconce from Elan for her media room sconce choice. She likes the color and the way the light is cast up on the wall while glowing red. The vibrant color popping off the wall gives it great style.

Which sconce do you like best for a media room? Leave us a comment below!