How to Lay Out Interior Lighting

List all the activities that take place in the room, including the furniture and lighting required for each activity. This is the room usage list.

Draw a to-scale floor plan of the room, placing furniture in the appropriate positions.

Plot the traffic flow patterns in the room; these are the pathways that must be followed to move through the room. Mark them on the floor plan.

Position the ambient lighting on the floor plan. This is the lighting that is necessary to move through the room -- for example, overhead lights in a hallway or ceiling lights in a kitchen.

Position the task lighting on the floor plan. This is the lighting required to complete any tasks, as detailed in the room usage list -- for example, a lamp to light the music at the piano, a floor lamp beside a reading chair or lamps on bedside tables.

Position the mood lighting on the floor plan. This is the lighting that adds interest to the room but is not integral to the function of the room. For example, pot lights directed at wall art or floor lights directed up into a plant.