Designing and planning a custom home is an incredibly collaborative process, one in which several experts join forces to create an extraordinary home that fulfills the wants and needs of their collective clients. In every case, that dynamic team of experts includes an architect, a custom builder, an interior designer and required engineers. Depending on the preferences and priorities of the homeowner, that team may also include additional experts, such as a building performance specialist, a landscape architect, a lighting designer, an AV consultant, a color consultant, an accessibility specialist, or others.
There are several reasons why a project may be a good candidate for bringing on a lighting designer. When a custom home project is complex, when there is room in the budget, and when a homeowner is particularly interested in paying extra attention to lighting throughout their home, it is a very good idea to add this expert to the team.
A lighting designer has a specialized understanding of how all aspects of lighting can affect each area of a home. They are well-versed in integrating various natural and artificial light sources throughout every space, strategically incorporating fixed and movable lighting sources to create a particular ambience, accentuate architectural features, or highlight particular accessories and art pieces. They view all spaces of your home not only through an aesthetic lens, but through a functional lens as well.
Because of this, the involvement of a lighting designer can often lead you to consider options that may not come to mind naturally. For example, in your kitchen alone, a lighting designer can help you figure out what combination of lighting types you would want in the space, from overhead pendants and other decorative light fixtures to canned lighting, directional lighting, and a variety of cabinetry lighting.
In addition, their particular knowledge of lighting innovations and technology, supply chains, and installation best practices can be particularly helpful in many ways. They can provide access to a wider variety of product lines as well as prevent issues with manufacturers and suppliers that can affect construction progress.
As you explore whether to hire a lighting designer for your custom home, keep in mind that not all lighting designers are created equal. Be sure to find someone who has a proven track record and a solid list of positive references that you can contact. Sound familiar? This is, in part, the same advice we share in previous blog posts about how to thoughtfully select an architect, custom builder, and interior designer for your custom home as well. Feel free to click on the links above if you’re curious to learn more.
If you choose to hire a lighting designer for your custom home project, the best time to bring them on board is early in the architectural design phase. An ideal sequence of the process would look like this:
- Your architect completes the conceptual design for your home, meaning they have solidified a floor plan for every level of the home as well as preliminary exterior elevations.
- Your interior designer reviews the conceptual design (floor plans and elevations) to provide feedback regarding room sizing, flow, furniture placement, and any additional thoughts they have. (To expedite the process, Steps 2 and 3 can happen concurrently.)
- Your custom builder creates a preliminary construction estimate of costs. While this is not a fully comprehensive budget backed by hard bids, it can provide enough information to confirm whether or not the conceptual design and projected construction costs are aligned.
- A lighting designer is brought on board to review the plans.
Having a finalized conceptual plan from the architect and interior designer helps lay the groundwork for conversations with the lighting designer. As you walk through your floor plan, you will be able to describe to your lighting designer the tone and mood you’re hoping to achieve in each space, what features of the room you’re hoping to highlight, and which types of furnishings or artwork you’d like to incorporate. On the technical side, the lighting designer will discuss other aspects of each space with your architect and custom builder, like outlet and switch placements, ceiling wiring, circuit needs, etc.
In addition, having a lighting designer on board early allows their procurement expertise to really add value. Because they are clued into the inner workings of the lighting supply chain, they understand what products, manufacturers, and suppliers are experiencing long or unreliable lead times or maintenance issues. This can help you select fixtures that will not cause logistical challenges or construction delays down the line. Waiting to hire a lighting designer until later in the process could lead to costly redesigns by the architect and interior designer and frustrating reselections of fixtures that are out of stock or no longer available when it’s time to purchase.
We hope this article has helped you decide whether or not you need to hire a lighting designer for your custom home project. If you do choose to bring one on, just remember that they should be incorporated into the process as early as possible. A proactive and cohesive collaboration between your architect, your custom builder, and each of your designers will lead to a finished product that fulfills all that you’d hoped for in your future dream home!
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