My New Studio

Whoopie!!!! I’ve just completed moving all my art supplies from our dining room, living room, and spare bed room into my newly renovated basement. The first photo is the finished painted concrete floor. I chose to go this route because having had wall to wall in the past it seemed to be the best choice per reference articles on basement studios. Note the reflective quality which aids in keeping the space bright. I’ve opted instead to lay down smaller area rugs for warmth.

The task lighting is using full spectrum light bulbs and the walls are very light grey so as to not cast any colors onto my work.

Read more.

Comments: We love reading about people’s lighting design plans. In this case, as an artist, the writer had quite specialised lighting needs. We’re pleased to see that full-spectrum lighting was able to give them what they needed.

Related articles

• Choose the Perfect Lighting (potterybarn.com)
• Developing a Lighting Plan (smallspacestyle.wordpress.com)
• Bedside Illumination: A Case for Task Lamps (apartmenttherapy.com)

Related posts:

1. How to make your home more inviting

What Makes Us Happy

This premise, that humanity has evolved for million of years to live in, thrive in, and enjoy a specific environment (notably the warm, sunny climate of sub-Saharan Africa), logically assumes that when people begin to replicate their instinctive behavior in things like diet (Mostly meat, nuts, and some vegetables) and lifestyle (Active and sun drenched), their happiness should rise as their genetic makeup begins to resonate with their lifestyle.

Read more.

Comments: Many of the articles discussing light and how you feel, come at the topic from the point of view of treating sadness or seasonal affective disorder. This article however is about how light is one of the elements that take us from regular living to happiness. Worth a read to get their insight into the conditions required for happiness.

Related articles

• 9 Things That Happy People Do Regularly (dangerouslee.biz)
• The Rules of Happiness (jenhall86.wordpress.com)

Related posts:

1. New Year Amaryllis – Happy And Alive!
2. How to: Have a Happier Winter
3. Unhappy Holidays and Seasonal Affective Disorder

How to: Have a Happier Winter

With the holidays over and Spring break months away, the winter may seem like a long unnecessary cycle of overcast skies and frigid temperatures.

A combination of shorter days, less sunlight, and cold temperatures may cause heightened feelings of depression and sadness during the winter months. However there are several things you can do to improve your mood and make the winter more bearable.

Get Some (fake) Sun: While there may seem to be a shortage of sunny days during Michigan winters, take advantage of them and get outdoors. Sunlight releases neurotransmitters in the brain that improve mood. Enjoy the benefits of sunlight even on overcast days by using full spectrum light bulbs, which have been shown to ‘mimic natural sunlight.’

Read more.

Comments: For those living in the Northern hemisphere we are starting to see the peak of published material on how to deal with Seasonal Affective Disorder. This article (from a secondary school paper) has a good down-to-earth list of solutions for those suffering from SAD this year.

Related articles

• What darkness does to our health (bbc.co.uk)
• Singing the Winter Blues (drklemmnd.com)
• I’ve Got Sunshine on a Cloudy Day (brandievo.wordpress.com)

Related posts:

1. Seasonal Affective Disorder – a summer or winter condition?
2. Snippet: Make winter enjoyable by using all five senses
3. Health, Happiness and Sunlight Closely Linked

How important are light fixtures in schools

Anecdotal evidence still suggests that “warmer” light (associated with incandescent and fire-light) is easier on the eyes, and full-spectrum products can make black print easier to see on white paper.

Read more.

Comments: This article refers to a recent decision by a local school to invest in lighting that while more expensive in the short-term, has long-term energy savings and cost savings. The lights chosen are also rated by teachers as being “warmer” and better for reading. We applaud any organisation that is prepared to look after their people in this manner and trust that more schools start thinking in this manner.

Related posts:

1. Full-spectrum light in schools
2. New fluorescent lamps awakens sleepy students
3. Why is Melatonin so important?

Stop Flirting & Commit : Rules of Engagement With Colour

Just as with any budding attraction, should you bring it home with you, you might be surprised how it looks like in a different light. Colours which look great on the colour chart under fluorescent lighting in the paint store will look much different at home in a sunny room or lit by incandescent lighting. Tungsten bulbs give a slightly yellow light; halogen gives white light, while some fluorescent bulbs can give flat, cold light. All these lights can all affect how the colour looks. Your best bet is full spectrum lighting, which mimics daylight, to show a colour at its’ best.

Read more.

Comments: In this long(ish) post, the authors advise on ways in to include colour in your home design choices. In terms of making your colour decisions, the best piece of advice they give, is to make sure you’re looking at it under the right light.

Related posts:

1. The Colour Rendering Index (CRI)
2. Full-spectrum Light and Colour Perception
3. How accurate is your colour perception

Aiming for an employee-friendly office environment

To begin with try to go for an office with decent windows and light-coloured paint – as being stuck for hours in dark, drab surroundings will lower anyone’s morale. There is also the option of full-spectrum light bulbs, which effectively simulate the feel of natural light – ideal for brightening offices during the dreary winter months.

Read more.

Comments: When looking after our health, the time we spend in office work each day is often forgotten time. We applaud the writers of this article for thinking of the role that light plays in looking after workers health and well-being.

Related posts:

1. How important are light fixtures in schools

In this interview the point is made that “Halpa lampuilla ei näe hyvin” – or “you cannot see well in the light of cheap lamps”. The Viva-Lite partner is passionate about this relationship between quality of light and price – and that we need to bring quality light into our lives.

Other highlights of the interview are the interviewer referring to Viva-Lite lamps as the Rolls Royce of light-bulb options. And then when Ilkka, turns on the Viva-Lite bulb (an E-27) the interviewer exclaims (in Finnish) “good heavens, how much light!”.

Related posts:

1. Full-Spectrum light on TV
2. Impressions From The Northern Light Fair

Unhappy Holidays and Seasonal Affective Disorder

Douse Yourself in Light.
When you wake and want to pull the comforter over your head, flip on the light or throw open the curtains instead. Look into the light. Use the force. Getting light into your eyes. Try a winter light machine or broad spectrum bulbs in your lamps both at work and home to make up for lost UV rays from the sun. Sunlight gets your circadian rhythm on track, helping to manage cortisol (your stress and get-up-and-go hormone) and melatonin (a calm and sleep hormone).

Read more.

Comments: For those currently in the grip of an overly long winter, we recommend the 10 tips outlined in this article for ways to beat the winter blues.

Related articles

• Health: Seasonal Affective Disorder (philadelphia.cbslocal.com)

Related posts:

1. Seasonal Affective Disorder – a summer or winter condition?
2. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and Perceived Market Risk
3. Circadian rhythms and how to check yours

This video shows how to make an emergency light-bulb with a piece of lead (from a pencil) and a power source.

If you’re looking for a project for your next school fair, this could be it. Variables to experiement with include the thickness of the lead and the size of the power source you use. You may find after making your own, you find it easier to understand the science behind light bulbs available on the market today.

Watch video.

Related posts:

1. Stop Flirting & Commit : Rules of Engagement With Colour
2. The most artistic house in the world!