Home > Create a Welcoming Mood with Light Create a Welcoming Mood with Light Besides your charisma and sense of humor, lighting is one of the best ways to create a warm, welcoming environment for your guests. At Lighting by Gregory, we like to help our customers be very popular amongst their friends, so that’s why we asked the professional lighting consultants in our New York City showroom which are the best ways to create a welcoming mood with light. Here’s what they said: It All Starts on the Outside The first impression people get of a person’s home is the outside. You may have the perfect lawn and garden, but guests coming at night for dinner or a party won’t see all that wonderful foliage. Nevertheless, you want to make your guests feel comfortable from the moment they lay eyes on your home and this takes lighting. One feels very welcomed coming to a new place in which the entire pathway is completely lit up, so make sure you have numerous quality path lights; it’s the equivalent of a lighting red carpet. Once your guests get to your door, having a well-lit porch or front door area is a great equalizer as you open your door and your well-lit home. Nobody likes to be in the dark when meeting someone, make sure your guests are in a happy, warm light as they ring your doorbell and await your presence. The Inside Counts, too! A home bathed in soft, subtle light is great for putting people at ease. You want to layer and spread out the light, not using one or two predominant fixtures but several smaller ones that can even out the illumination. Overhead lighting is great for creating even light that won’t cause shadows, but make sure it’s not glaring in your guests’ eyes. Sometimes people are unaware of how the light is affecting them when inside a new place, or maybe they will just feel awkward asking you to adjust it, so try not to put your guests under the interrogation light, so even out the light. Ideally, well-placed table lamps and wall sconces are effective in layering the light. If you have interesting artwork or objects in your home, accent lighting can be a great conversation starter. Put a spotlight on a particular painting or sculpture, and guests will immediately be compelled to ask about it. This is a great tool in case there are several people who do not know each other at your gathering. By pointing things out and advertising something about yourself, you open up the conversation avenues with a simple little maneuver like turning on a light. As the night goes on and a few bottles of wine have been drunk, slightly intimate lighting can be great to maintain the comfort level of everyone in the gathering. This is when you might want to turn off the overhead lighting and rely on wall lights and table lamps to create a cozy, intimate ambience. And finally, when the party’s over, everyone’s gone home, and there is a huge mess is all over the kitchen and living room, the best part of having perfect lighting is that you can just turn them off!