Top Lighting Trends in 2023
As a key element in interior design, lighting follows the trends set by that industry’s leaders, opinion-makers and the public whim. Dulux, for example, has chosen the soft golden neutral, Wild Wonder, as its colour of the year for 2023, and designers are following their lead with a trend towards calming ‘sunset hues’. Somebody – it’s impossible to identify who – has said that yellow is “in” for 2023 and the lighting industry will follow accordingly as that’s what designers will be suggesting to their clients.
Trends in colours, however, must fit in with the wider socioeconomic trends of the nation, so while we will be using yellows and warm neutral colours in 2023, we’ll be using them in ways that adapt to issues such as the rising cost of living, sustainability and post-Covid life.
Saving money
Will LED lighting save me money on my electricity bill? Yes. LED bulbs are very energy efficient compared to older bulb types and use 75% less energy than incandescent bulbs according to energy.gov. Because they don’t get as hot as other bulb types they also last much longer – up to 25 times longer – so need to be replaced far less frequently. This converts directly into savings on your energy bills.
Using smart lighting controls such as motion sensors, timers and smart sensors can reduce energy costs further by making sure you’re never lighting an unused room.
Getting creative
With shopping less becoming a major trend, upcycling and repurposing is on the increase. LED lighting is cooler than older lightbulb types and comes in a wide variety of sizes, shapes and colours. This makes LED lights a much more flexible resource to create your own bespoke designer lighting pieces by repurposing, recycling or upcycling other objects.
A quick online search will give you some amazing inspiration. For example, we found bicycle wheels, vases, bottles, paint cans, a retro camera, old torches or flashlights, a cocktail shaker, kettles, colanders, a car crankshaft and a steering wheel, timber offcuts, an old phone and even Lego combined with LED lights to create unique and individual statement lighting for your home.
Pendant lights, side lights and standard lights can all be created using old stuff you have in the loft, basement or garage, saving you an expensive trip to the interior design store and resulting in a new piece of lighting that’s really you.
Hybrid working
The work-from-home (WFH) trend that started as a requirement in 2020 has morphed into a hybrid working trend that is set to continue and evolve well into 2023. Hastily thrown together working spaces, whether a corner of the living room, a dining room table or a spare bedroom, are now being more considerately designed with a long-term view.
Layered lighting allows for general, ambient light levels to be set for the whole room, with mood lighting from sidelights and sconces for the evening and casual use, plus brighter task lighting in the work area which can be switched on or off as required. LED solutions to task lighting can be sidelights, desk lights or even a strip light using an easy-to-install, you can get that warm and mindful look anywhere in your home and, when you’ve returned to a state of calmness, change it back into a well-lit kitchen, hallway, spare bedroom or wherever at the touch of a button.
 
Sustainability
Lowering our energy consumption is synonymous with living more sustainably. The less energy we use, the fewer fossil fuels need to be burned and the less carbon dioxide is put into the atmosphere, lowering our carbon footprint and doing just a little bit to combat global warming. It’s a tiny amount on an individual basis but it all adds up and doing something is always better than doing nothing.
LED lighting is now available for every possible lighting solution, so with that 75% reduction in energy use to light every corner of your home or workplace, you’re already doing something good for the planet in 2023.
Climate change
The climate is changing and, in the UK, we’ve seen longer and hotter summers with generally milder, wetter winters. One result of these changes is that we’re using our gardens for longer in the warmer summer weather that’s starting earlier and extending into autumn.
Outdoor lighting that lets us enjoy the time outside with family and friends needs to be safe and protected and LED solutions abound. From outdoor sconces on walls to recessed deck lighting and patio floodlights, LEDs come in a range of IP-rated enclosures to keep them safe from the weather when it does rain.
Solar lighting solutions are even better as they don’t require complicated outdoor power supplies and come in a range of contemporary designs.
Interior design
And finally, we have to let the interior designers have their say. Complex layered lighting to offset the oversized pendants and table lamps of the last few years is a must in 2023, but they admit there’s also a trend for using white to smaller rooms feel bigger.
Most homes will want to use a combination of ideas but whichever you choose to help your home, home office or outdoor space feel fresh in 2023, there’s an LED solution, readily available.