Small Change, Big Impact: Recessed Lighting Installation

I recently had the pleasure of working with a family in Great Falls to make some key changes to their home. When it came to their teenage daughter’s room, we weren’t planning on doing too much – often allowing teenagers to control and decorate their own room can be a great form of their self-expression, and great for their mental health. But when I looked around her room, I knew one key change would have a major impact. She needed a lot more light! Keep reading to find out why and how we installed recessed lighting into this teenage girl’s room.

The Need

The light in a room is crucially important – it completely sets the mood and atmosphere. Additionally, there’s a major practical element that comes with lighting. For instance, in her room, there was no lighting installed, just a large window. And while this window may have been able to let in an appropriate amount of light, it was entirely shaded by a crape myrtle. Even if it didn’t, I still think she still would’ve needed ceiling light – for instance in the wintertime when the sun sets before she’s had time to do her homework at her desk. It was clear that she wanted a bit more light as well, with the way she had set her room up. There was a floor lamp and string lighting along the ceiling. While that lighting may have been nice right before bed, it wasn’t nearly enough light, and areas like her desk were left in the shade.

Installing something like ceiling lighting takes trained contractors and is likely beyond the breadth of a DIY home decor video on youtube. That’s where my team and I came in. We decided to go for recessed lighting, rather than say a hanging ceiling light, for a few reasons. The first is that the ceilings of this bedroom were not particularly high. Therefore, anything that was hanging or coming out from the ceiling would make the entire room feel shorter all together. Additionally, because of the size of the room, and especially where her desk was, I wanted to make sure that a good amount of light reached all corners of the room. Just one central light wouldn’t do that to the same effect as something like recessed light. Recessed lights are installed into the ceiling and lay flush against it. You almost always install more than one light, which gives you easy control over where in the room they’re placed. Because of this, I knew that installing recessed lighting was the way to go. My team and I got to work.

Let There Be Light

We decided to install four lights, approximately 25” from each corner of the room. This was going to bring symmetry and ensure the entire room had even lighting. The lights needed to be big enough to provide enough light for the room, but if they were too big, they would easily become an eyesore. 6 inches seemed to be a perfect size.

The actual process of installing the recessed lighting involved making cuts into the ceiling where the lights would be installed – it’s really important that these cuts are perfectly placed and the perfect size for the light, which is why we’d always suggest getting a professional in rather than attempting to do this yourself. Once the holes were ready, my contractor wired the electric through and installed the lights. We used LED bulbs which last much longer and use less energy – better for the environment. 

Out of Darkness

The finished result almost seems like a different room. Not only does this new lighting mean she won’t have to spend her mornings and evenings in the dark, but her desk will be well lit for her to use. Additionally, the extra light allows you to better see the wall art and decor, giving you an insight into who this bright young lady is. I’m really happy with the final results. But of course, the most important thing is that my clients were also really happy with the final results.

If you think an area in your home is in need of new lighting, get in contact today! At Kelley Astore Interiors, we have ongoing relationships with a range of licensed contractors and skilled craftsmen who work under our supervision on all our projects. Get in touch to book your free consultation today!


The Colors of Palm Beach

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of visiting Palm Beach and refreshing all my interior design inspiration and ideas. I visited various furniture and decor shops, and different hotels to see everything that Palm Beach had to offer. Palm Beach has a rich history for designers and artists alike. Over the past century, artists like Lily Pulitzer have visited and influenced the design of Palm Beach. Perhaps the best thing that stood out to me after a long winter was all the beautiful colors of Palm Beach. Everywhere I looked was bursting with vibrant color and life. Looking around it was like everything was planned to be seen together – the beautiful blue skies complimented each flower which seemed to match each painted building. Keep reading to find out the best colors of Palm Beach and where to find them.

In Nature

When it comes to beauty, little can compare to Mother Nature herself. The most vibrant and striking colors of course were those found in nature. From the deep blue of the ocean to the sandy beige beaches, the brilliant blue of the sky, the luscious green trees, and the vibrant fuchsia bougainvillea, every corner of Palm Beach boasted of beautiful and colorful nature. What an inspiration to experience that after such a long and cold winter. Taking in each and every color that the Earth was offering my eyes seemed to rejuvenate my spirit and definitely inspired me to bring more elements of nature into my designs. As discussed in our article about unmissable paint trends, paying homage to the Earth is becoming increasingly central to interior design.

In Architecture

It’s clear to me that the architects and designers who built up Palm Beach were just as inspired by the colors of nature as I was. Each painted building seemed to compliment the bright blue sky. Perhaps my favorite of all was The Colony Hotel, known as Palm Beach’s “pinkest hotel.” The Colony is a go-to destination for stars and tourists alike. It’s painted a beautiful dusty pink color that compliments the blue skies and blends into each sunset and sunrise. Even their golf carts were pink! And The Colony Hotel is not the only building painted vibrantly. Across all of Palm Beach are beautifully painted buildings in pastel shades that both uplift and compliment the beautiful colors of nature around them.

In design

It would be no good if the beautiful colors of Palm Beach were limited to the outdoors. So of course the designers have brought these vibrant colors indoors into each design. The interior of The Colony Hotel is classy, chic, and uses colors elegantly. In one of their dining rooms, for instance, the walls are painted a lovely pale yellow color and the rest of the design is kept quite neutral toned except for the dining chairs beautifully upholstered in a breathtaking colorful pattern that honors the orange trees of Florida. Additionally, the shops I visited were also full of colorful items which leads me to believe that the homes of Palm Beach are surely full of vibrant color as well!

Palm Beach: Bursting With Inspiration

A few weeks back from Palm Beach and I’m still inspired by everything I saw. Being surrounded by color really can uplift your mood and my visit definitely inspired me and my designs moving forward. Stay tuned and be sure to bookmark our blog page for an upcoming article on the best interior design shops in Palm Beach!


Designing for a Teenager: Bright and Fun Inspiration

At Kelley Astore Interiors, we are just as eager to create bedrooms and spaces for children and teenagers as we are for adults. We talk a lot about the importance of a design being true to who you are, and arguably that is even more important for teenagers. We all remember what it was like being that age, and having a safe space for teenagers to unwind and truly be themselves is very important for their development.

A little while ago we had a client with a daughter wanting to redo her room with some gorgeous colors! We took these colors and created a completely custom room and bathroom for her. This young lady chose bright pink, apple green, and turquoise – I absolutely loved working with this bright gorgeous palette and had a lot of fun with this design. Keep reading to learn about each element and how we brought the room together.

Custom Window Seat & Extra Storage

When I saw the space, my eye was drawn to the large window sill and I immediately saw the potential for a lovely window seat for her to unwind, do her homework, and hang out with her friends. We got started on building this for her. We decided to install drawers beneath the window seat as well as bookshelves on either side for extra storage…we all know teenagers have a lot of stuff!

After the drawers were installed, we painted the window seat and surrounding bookshelves white. I then got to work on incorporating her beautiful bright colors of choice. We went for the apple green seat cushion and colorful throw curtains. We installed roman shades of matching colors. The apple green is the main color on the bottom and the bright pink is the main color on the top, which balances itself out and creates a cohesive look. This particular teenager did a lot of ballet and dance, so we made sure that her beautiful white tutu stayed on display – a practical and beautiful way to store it.

All the fabric is by Osborne and Little.

Bedding

To ensure that the color palette remained consistent, we opted for a turquoise headboard as the main color of the bed. Now the bright pink, apple green, and turquoise each have their moment of shine and no color overtakes the other. We used the same patterned fabric for her pillows as we used in the roman shades, once again tying the whole design together into one.

Custom Memo Board

Every young person needs a memo board for notes, reminders, pictures, memories, and inspiration! Ensuring that your teenager has a desk and a designated place of work will help them develop a healthy relationship with work and establish a work-life balance. We upholstered this board with Pindler turquoise-colored cotton, white grosgrain ribbon, and silver nail heads from Houles. We sourced the desk from CB2. Looking at how much she covered this memo board from top to bottom, we couldn’t recommend getting one for your teenager more!

The Design is in the Detail.

Every designer knows that the small details are what will truly tie a room together. Although she had chosen bright pink, apple green, and turquoise as her palette – if everything in her room were one of those three colors, it would look like a Crayola explosion…and not in a good way. It needed balancing to allow those colors to shine, and we chose neutrals and white. We went for a darker wood on the ground to help the colors pop. We painted the walls a nice neutral to ensure they didn’t look too hospital-like. We then took inspiration from her beautiful white tutu and began incorporating more white into the design. As previously stated, we painted the bookshelves and window seat white. We knew that we wanted to allow the window seat, memo board, and bed to shine, so we went with white, but played with texture. The rug on her ground, her desk chair, and one of the throw pillows on her bed are all a furry white texture. This gives consistency without detracting from the beautiful bright colors.

Interested in renovating? Get in touch today!

We had so much fun with this design and are eager to continue working with clients to help them create the home of their dreams. Whatever the nature and scope of your redesign, we take full responsibility for seeing that the entire project is finished on time and on budget and that all work is of the highest quality. We take the worry out of the process for our clients. Visit our services page to get started today!


Kelley Astore Interiors

Expert Interior Design & Renovation Services of Every Style.

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Northern Virginia, Washington, DC,
and the Greater Washington Area

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