Winter Lighting; Create Your Own Magic!

The afterglow of the holiday season has faded, and we all find ourselves in the throws of winter, some of the year’s darkest days. As I’ve said before, there’s beauty to be found in winter with unique winter colors, and it’s not a seasonal void to be feared. But, as a color specialist, I also understand that it can be a difficult time of year with limited daylight and warmth. Unless you’re an avid skier or snowbird traveler, you’ll undoubtedly have some difficulty finding inspiration during these months of the year. 

I’ve found that the key to warming the heart and rekindling some design inspiration in January, February, and March is to work winter lighting into your efforts. But what is winter lighting? What falls under the umbrella of winter lighting? How can winter lighting help us stay warm in spirit and body? In this article, I will explore lighting options and how we can bring a little magic into our homes!

What Is Winter Lighting?

Winter lighting doesn’t come with a strict textbook design definition, but for me, it’s the lighting we can use, both indoors and outdoors, that helps accentuate the beauty of winter while also providing bits of warmth by contrasting the surrounding darkness. Don’t confuse winter lighting with lights left up long after the holidays; it’s something much better and more fun than that! 

Calming Serenity Outdoors

There’s something seasonally magical about exterior lighting during the wintertime. Whether on the side of a commercial building in the city or strewn across the branches of a weeping willow hunched over a pond, winter lighting can be the “spark in the darkness” that will warm the hearts of onlookers. However, there are a few guidelines to follow with exterior winter lighting to differentiate it from holiday lighting that’s stayed well past its welcome. 

As you may have picked up on, a real no-no of winter lighting is when lights installed to celebrate the holidays act as winter lights; that’s not at all what I’m referring to. Winter lights don’t have themes beyond highlighting seasonal beauty and providing visual warmth. 

Winter lighting provides something magical. Whether sparkling in the night or illuminating a chilly winter day, it’s about adding a design element that we hardly notice at any other time of the year. There is something about winter lighting that takes on a life of its own! 

Here are some guidelines to follow to bring out the best in your winter lights this year:  

• Avoid architectural lines

This is very important to remember for winter lighting: don’t follow the architectural lines of your home; this is a surefire way to replicate Christmas light arrangements. Let the lighting sway from one support to another to stand out on its own; let it hang loose or leave it bunched up! Let the light glow without restricting it to the lines of your home. 

• Stick to warm or cool white lights; nothing colored.

If you’re using string lights of some sort, it’s best to avoid the classic Christmas bulb shapes; look for something different, like a string of Edison bulbs. Lighting intended for summer picnics can be the perfect choice to illuminate your space in the winter months; my only rule here is never to use colors other than a creamy white. Believe me; they will glow with warmth on winter nights!

• Highlight nature, not structure.

If the goal is to provide illumination and create contrast with the darkness of the season, it’s always best to highlight nature. What do I mean by this? Place your winter lighting around a brook, pond, or standalone pine tree at the end of your driveway. Use things like plant pots, birdhouses, water pumps, or garden statues as the base for your winter lighting display, but we want it to highlight one specific item/area focused on interacting with nature. 

Picture this: Is there anything more enchanted than a small weeping willow tree with winter lights reflecting on the surface of a still pond in the darkness of a winter evening? Create magic! By lighting a standalone object, you’ll avoid falling into the structured patterns of holiday lighting. 

Interior Winter Lighting Ideas

I feel the warmer the lighting hue, the better for the home interior. While the icey look of some white lights that learn harder in the blue light spectrum can be very effective on the exterior (especially during winter snow), they’re not appropriate for the inside. They come across as sterile and cold, which is not the way to keep your interior cozy and inviting. 

I keep many biophilic design schemes in my home, and the post-holiday season is an excellent opportunity to illuminate my house plants differently! Whenever possible, I’ll add lighting to highlight my different plant life, and the results make me just as happy as if warm sunlight is living in each corner of my home. 

Potted plants, hanging plants, and even floor-standing palms look beautiful when wrapped in warm lighting and illuminating different corners of the home. The combination of the warm string lights and the green glow emanating from the leaves and ferns is hard to beat in my book! It’s like being at a winter spa right in my home. 

Don’t Feel Uninspired in the Darkness 

I know winter’s shorter, darker days can be taxing, but there are beautiful ways to illuminate, inspire, and keep your energy flowing through the year’s colder months. Don’t wish the days away; embrace the unique colors, sights, and sounds, and try different design schemes! 

If you want to explore some wonderful winter color arrangements, check out my Color911 color app! There are dozens of curated palettes perfect for setting an enchanted winter scene! More than anything, stay inspired and try something new. It brings the home to life, which can feel magical for any time of the year!