Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Betsy Cannan on July 10, 2011 at 7:26am

I also have a room but with only one window at a long end so I also needed a good color and great lighting. I used a very light yellow on the walls to make the room warm and inviting. Stark white in my opinion can drain color from anything! Then I got my "utility" ceiling lights from Home Depot. They are about 4 feet long, nearly flat and got bulbs that are very bright. My room is long, over the garage, and the lighting really is great. Ceiling is traditional white.
Betsy

Permalink Reply by nancy heinrich mattson on July 10, 2011 at 7:33am

Susan, So very nice you are geting your own space to quilt. I would paint the walls a very soft light color. White is good but not bright white, perhaps more toward a off white, but flat, not gloss.  You can also use part of a wall for designs. Cover cardboard with felt to hold your designs. Attach to wall with velcro. Ott lights are super for providing adequate lighting. Best of luck and remember to post your before and after photos. Marnami

Permalink Reply by Marcia Fowler on August 15, 2011 at 4:18pm

I agree with you Nancy...my Playroom is a very soft beige...I have flourescent light at my cutting table, 1 window and I use an Ott light at my machine and where I hand sew...I can see black on black with this lighting!!! It's awesome...I do have a ceiling light I use at night but wish it was an Ott light too....

Marcia

Permalink Reply by Sue Clark Koenig on July 10, 2011 at 8:16pm

I like white for the walls as it makes the room brighter and you don't get any color distortion from the wall color.  If you use flourescent bulbs you can always make a small light box  with a "natural light" bulb to check your fabric colors; that's easier than running outside or to another room with a window.

Permalink Reply by Elizabeth Norberg on August 1, 2011 at 10:52pm

I use a room with no natural light. My hubby installed fleurescent fixtures and I got tru daylight tubes from Home Depot. I find these lights make  your color choices more acurate. I wouldn't do a pure chalk white it's too stark but a very light off white would work. I'm pressently planning a new quilt studio in a new home that we're building and I'm doing off white walls. This room will have bright daylight but I have had basement studios for many years. you will also find the Ott floor lamp a great addition. They are pricey so ask for one for a birthday present. That's how I got mine. Good luck. post some pics when it's done.

Permalink Reply by Victoria Scott on August 3, 2011 at 4:33pm

My father gave me a drafting table light years ago. It contains a pair of bulbs (incandescent and florescent). The combination is considered to be 'color-correcting'. Maybe an art supply store could provide an alternative to the speciality lamps at Jo-ann's/other craft store. My sewing space is in the basement.

Permalink Reply by Kevin Key on August 5, 2011 at 4:44pm

Don't forget the benefits of "task lighting."  Individual lights for specific areas.  I have some great little lamps I bought at IKEA for $9.99 (JANSA I think) that come with a weighted base (the clip on variety of the same lamp are like thirty bucks).  These little wonders are LED bulbs, and very very bright.  I have one that sits on top of my Bernina, shining down directly in front of the needle.  Bernina's lights are great, but this adds a lot for my old eyes.  I have others in spaces that need a little help--like right over my cutting table.  Look at lighting at places like IKEA once you have your room situated and you know just where more light is needed.  It's a great place to problem solve.  You might want a bar of LEDs you can aim at a design wall (like track lighting only easier to hook up)--they got em.  Or a floor lamp with flexible arms you can point at surfaces that need more light--they got that too. 

 

If you are planning to use a flat wall as a backdrop to photograph your quilts, you might want large sheets of felt or some other low-sheen solid fabric in a light gray--especially if your walls are painted white--because white or black backgrounds can really mess up a camera's automatic exposure settings and make it difficult to get accurate color in your photos. 

 

One more thing.  I really like using the "Reveal" light bulbs (I buy them at WalMart because they're cheapest there) in my overhead lighting (a ceiling fan, by the way).  They truly do make a difference in how the colors in my fabric look.

Permalink Reply by Robyn Horsewood on August 10, 2011 at 10:20pm

I tried a bright white and then a bright yellow and then i gave up and used a soft cream color and my fabrics held there color better.

Permalink Reply by Ellen Cormier on August 13, 2011 at 11:25pm

What are "Reveal" lights? Energy savers? LEDs?

Thanks-

ellen

Permalink Reply by Kevin Key on August 13, 2011 at 11:36pm

"Reveal" lights are just full spectrum lightbulbs.  They are not energy savers at all, but give a truer color.  I buy them at Walmart.  The bulbs come in all sizes for lamps you already have--I use flame shaped ones in the ceiling fan in my sewing area.  They are clear--not frosted--and a light purple glass. 

LED's are "light emitting diode" bulbs.  You might be familiar with them as tiny bulbs on electronics or keychains that help you find locks in the dark, etc.  But they burn really bright while using very little energy.  They are making bulbs now that group them together to create room lighting.  They last 10x as long as incandescents, and use very little electricity.  But they can be expensive (like $30 for a bulb). 

The adjustable neck light I bought at IKEA has a tiny shaded LED.  The shade itself is maybe 1 1/2 inches across.  The bulb is about the size of a mustard seed, but the light is bright enough that I use it when handquilting, and I have another identical lamp over my kitchen sink to light it while I wash dishes.  BRIGHT!

Permalink Reply by Kevin Key on August 13, 2011 at 11:37pm

"Reveal" is a brand name, by the way.  They are made by GE

Permalink Reply by Ellen Cormier on August 15, 2011 at 6:32am

Thank you! Kevin!

I have to decide on lighting- floor lamps? Table tops? wall? dunno- I have 3 areas to light: the sewing table, work table, cutting table/ironing area! They don't all necessarily need the same brightness. I may start with putting brighter bulbs in the overhead and seeing the difference from there..I really have little "table top" room, as I have designed that all the tables   be moved as needed- so lamps with cord will be a problem. I'll checkout Walmart for the Reveals, as well as the 50% sales at Joanne's for OTTs. I love IKEA- it's good to have options.

ellen

ellen

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