Here’s How to Create Infinite Moods with Only 3 Lights

Most of us have two lighting settings: off and on. But how we use our homes isn’t so black-and-white — one person’s meditative bedroom yoga practice might be just as beneficial as another’s high-intensity living room workout, but they definitely don’t look the same. The fanciest homes have lighting designers to address all these nuances, but you can give your home the same benefits using the lights you already have. We used the NOON lighting system to show how you can create the right atmosphere for everything from making good on your fitness goals to making out on movie night.

Nothing multitasks more in your home — except you, of course — than your lighting. Multifunctional lighting means layered lighting: general or ambient (to give the whole room a wash of brightness), task (to focus on a project, say, reading or chopping veggies) and accent (to add a sexy diffuse glow or special interest). You can change the mood to accommodate the room’s infinite uses by adjusting these three components.

The more light the better for daytime tasks like an upbeat morning workout (muscle emoji) or, say, vacuuming. If you’re doing your daily yoga practice, with super-long shavasana for extra chill, you’ll want to dim your general lighting and rely more on accent lights, turned to about 30%.

They don’t call it magic hour for nothing: Bringing the dreamy glow of twilight inside is ideal for cozy cocktails. Lower general lighting adds a little sexiness (without leaving you in the dark as the sun sets), while accent lamps — which bounce light and create a moody, universally flattering glow — become the main light source.

When you’re ready to curl up with a movie, you want to mimic the theater experience: Turn all the lights off except for a low accent or task light or two — just enough to keep you safe from Freddie Krueger (or maybe just help you see your popcorn).

Play with your lighting levels to create these moods and myriad more in your space — or just let NOON do it for you. NOON is a smart lighting system that automatically coordinates all the lights in the room to create scenes that suit any activity. Its sophisticated algorithms automatically identify existing bulb and fixture types to dim them accordingly. (It also works with lamps outfitted with LIFX bulbs.)

NOON’s Room Director switch wirelessly communicates with its Extension Switches to provide one-touch control of all the lights in a room. This eliminates the multiple switch-flipping or dimmer-sliding that’s currently required with traditional switches to create scenes. You can save your favorite settings on the NOON app (illustrated with more than 40 icons), then set the mood via touch (using the switch or NOON app) or voice (using Amazon Alexa and Google Home).

See how NOON can create infinite moods in your home—and use promo code AptTherapy for $50 off a Room Director or Room Bundle through October 9, 2018.

^{This post is sponsored by NOON and was created by Apartment Therapy Creative Studio.
Thank you for supporting the brands that make Apartment Therapy possible.}