Meet the Experts: houseof

Need help lighting your living room to perfection? Our Head of Design, Lucy met with Helen, co-founder of houseof to hear her top tips

How to light your living room this winter

You should feel instantly calm and relaxed when you step foot in your living room and the right lighting is crucial to that.  Watch as Helen White, co-founder and lighting pro at houseof took us around a living room sharing her top tips:

Create a statement

Helen: "This piece is really sculptural and art led. It's really inspired by the 70's. All the LED's are built in. It's also hard wired to the wall so you have no nasty trailing cables that distract from the piece."

Looking for more lighting tips? Watch more from our day with Helen:

How to light a reading nook

Helen: "I think it's really important that you have a little sanctuary in your room where you can hide away with a book, and that's what this has been created for.

You take this floor lamp for example, which is the perfect height for reading. You don't want something that's really tall and overlook you and make you feel like you're under a spotlight. The two levels of light mean that you can slouch in the chair or sit up straight and you can still see.

You don't want to be reading in your shadow which is what's good about this light. It gives you direct light high up or low down so you can sit however you like.

It's also always good to have a coffee table with a table lamp by the side of your chair as well. This one has an enclosed bulb but it is a little brighter than our normal opal bulb because you do need that brighter light when reading."

How to avoid reflections on your TV

Helen: "This light is specifically made for watching TV. We love the hue this pink one gives off because it emulates a sunrise and sunset and so it warms the space up a lot making it really calming and relaxing.

If you're sat on the sofa it's not in your eye line. The bulb is also hidden behind a metal panel so there's no glare from the bulb making it perfect for watching TV with. 

Want to hear about the latest lighting trends?

The best lighting for living room shelves

Lucy: "I love this piece as well. It works really well on these ladder shelves as often lamps are too tall for shelves so it's quite nice to have this as an ornamental piece that's also a light source."

Layer your living room lighting

Lucy: "This room is such a good example of layering lighting. You've got your lovely floor lamps, the sculptural wall lights and then the lower table lamps."

Helen: "Yes, definitely, this room shows how you can use different layers of lighting. You've got your fixed wall lights and fixed ceiling lights but in order to bring in the atmosphere to your living room, you need those lower level table and floor."

Catch all of our Meet the Experts films here: