LED lights have been the buzzword for quite a while now, so you might as well get used to them. Unless you have stocked up on traditional incandescent light bulbs and have stacks of them piled up in your garage, you will have to eventually give in and switch over to LED bulbs!
What does LED stand for?” Light Emitting Diode
But don’t worry about that. Everybody just calls it LED! When choosing a light bulb, there are a few things you should consider before you purchase them. I am not going to go into too much technical jargon, you could find that on Google, but since this is a blog about Color, I would like to make sure that you are focused on how the color of light can influence your mood. Let me first explain a bit about BLUE light vs YELLOW light. Both these light colors have a tremendous influence on our Circadian Rhythm Bulbs that emits BLUE light waves, stimulates the excretion of Serotonin, which is the hormone that produces energy, alertness, keeps you focused and also has some cognitive functions, including memory and learning. Same as Sunlight or Daylight! So it makes sense that you would want to use a blue (or a white) light bulb in working spaces such as kitchens, offices, showers, sewing rooms, hobby rooms or any surface that requires task lighting. Of course that will influence how your paint colors look under those bulbs as well, but I will tell you more about Metamerism elsewhere.
When it comes to YELLOW light, we have learned that the correct color of light plays a crucial role in producing the right amount of Melatonin, the hormone that is responsible for making us relaxed, drowsy or sleepy. With that being said, it is obvious that Yellow Bulbs are more suitable for areas like a bedroom, dining room or a living room. And LED Dimmable lights are available now, which was not always the case and is perfect for a creating a soft, cozy feeling in a Dining Room for example.
When buying a LED Light bulb, look at what information is displayed on the packaging. It will always have the amount of LUMENS and KELVINS on it. The number of KELVINS in a light determines the COLOR it gives off. Red, orange, yellow hues are considered warm and will come from a bulb with a rating of 2,700K. 6000K will result in a cold blue light, which haven’t been very popular since the CFL light bulbs have been introduced.
When it comes to the intensity of the light,note what it says about LUMENS on the package. Lumens simply describes the BRIGHTNESS of the bulb. Incandescent lights were described as Watt’s, (which actually referred to the amount of energy used, not the brightness) but when it comes do LED bulbs, we talk about Lumens. The HIGHER the Lumens, the BRIGHTER, the light.
This package says it all!
What I also LOVE about the new Energy Efficient Light Bulbs, is the fact that it says: “Shows COLORS, True and Natural! ” My kinda light bulb! No more guessing!
But WAIT! There’s more! (Okay, I couldn’t resist, I just had to say it ;-))
The newer versions of LED light bulbs does not take forever and a day to brighten up! Don’t you just hate those lights! And it looks cold, eerie, sterile. I haven’t met anybody that even remotely likes those pigtail bulbs!
Make sure you read your packages before you buy it. And if you are not sure, ASK! Now you know what to ask for!
I found this cool table that compares the efficiency of the different light bulbs and it’s very obvious that LED lights will save you at least up to 80% in cost! Now that’s what I’m talking about!
The other advantage of the LED Bulbs, is that it is available in all shapes and sizes! No more excuses!
Have you switched over to LED’s yet?
