Uh-Oh, You Bought a Cave: 7 Ways to Lighten Up a Dark Home
Make the most of the natural light your house receives and learn to appreciate some shadows, too
When I was a girl I was a tree hugger, and that’s no metaphor. My childhood home was in a clearing surrounded by beautiful woods, which I loved. Had you told the younger me, when my face was pressed against the trunk of my favourite maple tree, that I would one day see trees as an enemy, I wouldn’t have believed you.
Seeing trees as the enemy is what happens when you buy a cave, which my husband and I did, inadvertently. Of course, it wasn’t only the trees that made our house dark. Deep eaves, too-few windows, faux beams, low ceilings and a valley setting surrounded by wood-covered hills all contributed to our home’s lack of light. From the day we took possession of our home until it burnt down (!) we were steadily working to increase and maximise its natural light.
Seeing trees as the enemy is what happens when you buy a cave, which my husband and I did, inadvertently. Of course, it wasn’t only the trees that made our house dark. Deep eaves, too-few windows, faux beams, low ceilings and a valley setting surrounded by wood-covered hills all contributed to our home’s lack of light. From the day we took possession of our home until it burnt down (!) we were steadily working to increase and maximise its natural light.
In our kitchen, which also had a sunny exposure, there was only one small window above the sink. We left that alone when we renovated the kitchen, but a couple of years later when we had some other work done, we removed a large double cabinet to expand the existing window and add two more, similar to this kitchen’s design.
Kitchens and living rooms are obvious places to add windows, but stairways and landings are great places to consider, too. They’re frequently dark and windowless spots.
2. Install Tubular Daylighting Devices (TDDs) or skylights
The very first thing we did was have tubular daylighting devices installed. These are sort of like mini skylights. TDDs are reflective cylinders or pipes installed between the roof and ceiling, with a clear plastic dome. The bottoms of the tubes are diffused or glazed to prevent glaring beams of light and to ensure a soft glow.
We had three installed; one in the living room, another in the kitchen and a third in our foyer. They worked beautifully, and to say the difference was like night and day for those rooms isn’t just a figure of speech.
The very first thing we did was have tubular daylighting devices installed. These are sort of like mini skylights. TDDs are reflective cylinders or pipes installed between the roof and ceiling, with a clear plastic dome. The bottoms of the tubes are diffused or glazed to prevent glaring beams of light and to ensure a soft glow.
We had three installed; one in the living room, another in the kitchen and a third in our foyer. They worked beautifully, and to say the difference was like night and day for those rooms isn’t just a figure of speech.
Our ‘before’ photos were even darker than this TDD company’s promotional image. In the bathroom a need for privacy makes having no windows almost a benefit, but in other rooms a lack of windows gives a feeling of being shut in, even when the TDDs bring bright and sufficient light.
In this London townhouse a large skylight dramatically brightens a windowless kitchen.
With skylights there can be a greater risk of leakage simply because of the larger hole cut in your roof. Another consideration is the heat they can let in. Make sure yours conforms to Australian standards for the best quality possible.
With skylights there can be a greater risk of leakage simply because of the larger hole cut in your roof. Another consideration is the heat they can let in. Make sure yours conforms to Australian standards for the best quality possible.
3. Add glass panels
Our original front door had side lights with amber glass in that bottle-bottom pattern so popular in the 1970s. Our foyer was dim and dark. It led into our windowless dining room, which flowed into the kitchen. Standing at the island bench in our brand new kitchen, that dark entry was my view. Ugh.
We installed a solid wood 15-pane glass door with matching five-pane sidelights. This door is a modern version in keeping with the style of the house.
Our original front door had side lights with amber glass in that bottle-bottom pattern so popular in the 1970s. Our foyer was dim and dark. It led into our windowless dining room, which flowed into the kitchen. Standing at the island bench in our brand new kitchen, that dark entry was my view. Ugh.
We installed a solid wood 15-pane glass door with matching five-pane sidelights. This door is a modern version in keeping with the style of the house.
If privacy is a concern, there are many options, such as etched, frosted or reeded glass, for maintaining privacy while allowing light in.
4. Replace solid interior doors with glass or French doors
Interior doors help to provide soundproofing, something that’s very important in the open-plan living spaces prevalent today. However, French doors provide a way for rooms to share light and to avoid shutting rooms off.
If the door shown here was solid, it would look like a dead end when shut. The narrow French doors make the hallway feel open and beautiful.
Interior doors help to provide soundproofing, something that’s very important in the open-plan living spaces prevalent today. However, French doors provide a way for rooms to share light and to avoid shutting rooms off.
If the door shown here was solid, it would look like a dead end when shut. The narrow French doors make the hallway feel open and beautiful.
5. Widen doorways and take down unnecessary walls if you can
This is the London townhouse we saw above. The windowless kitchen doesn’t feel dark because of the wonderful skylight, as well as the complete openness to the dining room and beyond that, the living room with large windows. Imagine it with only a narrow doorway between; a different story entirely.
When we redid our kitchen, we tore down the wall between the kitchen and the living room, which opened things up tremendously. We also raised the large archway that led into the dining room.
On another wall in the dining room we knocked a hole to our mudroom and installed a single 15-pane glass door for better flow with the rest of the house and to take advantage of the light.
This is the London townhouse we saw above. The windowless kitchen doesn’t feel dark because of the wonderful skylight, as well as the complete openness to the dining room and beyond that, the living room with large windows. Imagine it with only a narrow doorway between; a different story entirely.
When we redid our kitchen, we tore down the wall between the kitchen and the living room, which opened things up tremendously. We also raised the large archway that led into the dining room.
On another wall in the dining room we knocked a hole to our mudroom and installed a single 15-pane glass door for better flow with the rest of the house and to take advantage of the light.
Here the open floor plan and abundance of windows create a pleasing feel in a rather dark space.
But what do you do if all of the above is outside your budget?
But what do you do if all of the above is outside your budget?
If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.
6. Paint your rooms deep colours
The inclination with dark rooms is to paint them light to try and brighten things up, but sometimes the best thing to do is to embrace the shadows and go for deeper, moody hues that make a dark room feel cozy.
Warm green is a perfect colour for this space. The black doors and brass hardware add to the feeling of richness and warmth. The double French doors open to the light and bright kitchen.
6. Paint your rooms deep colours
The inclination with dark rooms is to paint them light to try and brighten things up, but sometimes the best thing to do is to embrace the shadows and go for deeper, moody hues that make a dark room feel cozy.
Warm green is a perfect colour for this space. The black doors and brass hardware add to the feeling of richness and warmth. The double French doors open to the light and bright kitchen.
Trying to find a colour for our dining room was impossible. I bought so many samples and slapped them on to the wall. I tried to go dark, then warm and then happy. Inspired by the film The Royal Tannenbaums, I kept trying to find a warm pinky-coral shade. The short story is that I failed, and it looked like Martha Stewart and Charles Manson went on a spree.
I fell back on my favourite greeny blues, but so many (off the paint chip and on my walls) looked like battleship grey. I settled on a lovely pure robin’s egg blue and it looked amazing on one wall for about three weeks every summer. Repainting was on our list of things to do.
I fell back on my favourite greeny blues, but so many (off the paint chip and on my walls) looked like battleship grey. I settled on a lovely pure robin’s egg blue and it looked amazing on one wall for about three weeks every summer. Repainting was on our list of things to do.
The great thing about the current popularity of charcoal and black is they allow a person to surrender to a dark room and have it look awesome, as shown here.
Our local paint store has a colour consultant available at very reasonable rates and if I could turn back time I would have hired someone at the start. The money I would have saved on samples could have more than paid for it.
Our local paint store has a colour consultant available at very reasonable rates and if I could turn back time I would have hired someone at the start. The money I would have saved on samples could have more than paid for it.
Finally there’s something so simple, anyone can do it.
7. Hang a well-placed mirror or two
In my living room I hung up a large mirror to reflect light and the beautiful view of the woods. In the dining room I hung up a wall full of antique ones in various sizes to catch any light they could get.
Tell us: What have you found that works to make a darker home comfortable and cozy? Share your high-res photo in the comments section below.
7. Hang a well-placed mirror or two
In my living room I hung up a large mirror to reflect light and the beautiful view of the woods. In the dining room I hung up a wall full of antique ones in various sizes to catch any light they could get.
Tell us: What have you found that works to make a darker home comfortable and cozy? Share your high-res photo in the comments section below.
I don’t have pictures of my old dark house, but I’d like to tell you what we did (and what you can do) to improve the light.
1. Add windows
Our family room faced the right way, but the only light came from the sliding doors. Even after we added a large TDD (more on that later), the room was bright but didn’t feel right. We added a pair of double-hung windows on either side of the door, giving us a total of four. We also planned to install two more square windows on either side of the fireplace.