Comments on: How Light Bulb Temperatures Affect Paint Colors: KELVINS

By: Angie

Angie — Tue, 24 May 2022 14:45:42 +0000

Hi Kylie! You are hilarious and so helpful—I look forward to your new posts! What kelvin do you recommend for houses with antique white/cream trim and cabinets (most walls are SW Anew Gray)? Currently, using 2700K and not loving it.

Thank you in advance!

By: Pauline Pierrot

Pauline Pierrot — Fri, 07 Jan 2022 23:19:46 +0000

Hi Kylie,
I just painted the walls in my kitchen Stonington Gray with Chantilly Lace on the ceiling. I have honey oak cabinets and I noticed in the evening when the overhead light with a single incandescent bulb 100 watts is on the cabinets look even more orange, Any suggestions on how to tone down the orange with lighting?

By: KylieMawdsley

KylieMawdsley — Thu, 30 Dec 2021 17:40:58 +0000

In reply to Nik. Hi Nik, well if it were ME, I would look around 3000k :)

By: Nik

Nik — Sun, 19 Dec 2021 06:51:32 +0000

Very interesting and informative article! Thank you!
Could you please recommend Kelvin range for a north facing living room?
It has moderate natural light. I’m considering SW Repose gray color.

By: Candice

Candice — Sat, 13 Mar 2021 05:16:56 +0000

In reply to KylieMawdsley. Thank you for this post!! Ever since they stopped selling the old style bulbs I have HATED the lighting in my house. The places I’ve been shopping for lightbulbs only ever have Soft White or Daylight and I can’t stand either one. Yellow or blue , what to choose... Just checked the kelvins and one is 2700k and the other 5000k. I’m going to head to a lighting store with my newfound knowledge and find something a bit more middle of the road.

By: KylieMawdsley

KylieMawdsley — Fri, 12 Mar 2021 15:53:22 +0000

In reply to Tina. Hi Tina! Well, if the LED bulbs affect your eyes and I'm not a doctor, but it seems to me that the old-fashioned incandescents could be better while giving you that lovely warm glow!

By: Tina

Tina — Fri, 12 Mar 2021 12:27:09 +0000

In reply to Haydee. I have a question Kylie! I have a eye disease and I luckily come across your Pinterest page today. Sometimes it seems like the led lights affect my eyes. Do you recommend led or regular bulbs. For a room with warm tones?

By: KylieMawdsley

KylieMawdsley — Mon, 08 Mar 2021 23:51:32 +0000

In reply to Leslie. Well, thank you, Leslie! I love to hear that :)

By: Leslie

Leslie — Mon, 08 Mar 2021 18:52:14 +0000

Hi Kylie just dropping in to say EXCELLENT post!!! Very informative I thought I knew about lighting but after reading this I knew nothing until know.

By: Jen B

Jen B — Sun, 07 Mar 2021 16:41:07 +0000

This is really interesting. We have daylight bulbs (5000K) which I would have never thought of but our decorator suggested since our house felt soooo dark when we moved in. Some people have commented that it is very bright but it works for us. We do have lower kelvins in our table/floor lamps and ceiling fans. Our last house had tons of natural light everywhere and I really missed it. When we moved in I felt like the paint color was blah, but with the daylight bulbs – I can actually see the color. The builders used SW Creamy on the trim (which is everywhere and we don’t have the $$ or time to repaint) so I wanted something to combat the yellow. Thanks for the great info – when it comes time to replace these lights I may look for lower kelvin daylight bulbs.

By: KylieMawdsley

KylieMawdsley — Sun, 07 Mar 2021 04:03:12 +0000

In reply to Andrea Yeary. YES YES YES, this is what I love to hear! It's that magical combination that pulls a great paint colour together with the vice you want in your home! And no, I'm not particularly married to one particular brand at all, and kind of grab bulbs on a one-by-one basis :).

By: KylieMawdsley

KylieMawdsley — Sun, 07 Mar 2021 04:01:22 +0000

In reply to Christin.

IT’S FATE or Kismet, or something like that ;). Seeeeeriously, evne if you could bump it down to 3500K that could help. Personally, 4000 is not warm enough for me, but going from Zircon (damn cold) to Revere Pewter would ABSOLUTELY help the 4000K feel better!

I’ll put another notch in my headboard for another marriage saved ;).

By: KylieMawdsley

KylieMawdsley — Sun, 07 Mar 2021 03:58:55 +0000

In reply to Corinne Koftinoff.

Hi Corinne – you had me at wine cellar ;).

And thank you, we love our home too! Now, with where you live, I would THINK you’d want a bit more warmth, to counteract the grayer colder days, but you’d also want brightness, so som LUMENS in there. I’d think somewhere around 2700-3000K could be your sweet spot!

And YES, once this darned Covid is done, we’re definitely going to be on the road – can’t wait to meet you!

By: Corinne Koftinoff

Corinne Koftinoff — Sun, 07 Mar 2021 01:37:16 +0000

Oh My! There is so much to know and thank you so much for sharing. By the way, I love your new home! It is so classy with a relaxed west coast feel. I wish I had found your website before making some costly mistakes in our new home.
Do you think that where I live, Vanderhoof~ (the Geographical Centre of BC, ) I would need different KELVINS?

Corinne
Do you do road trips? I have a wine cellar!

By: Christin

Christin — Sat, 06 Mar 2021 14:50:08 +0000

Kylie, I thought my phone was listening into our household conversations this week when this came across my feed! My husband and I were talking about this very topic for our basement lights being put in. I want 3000, he wants 4000, colour chosen was SW Zircon (so cold!). I compromised with the 4000 but changed the colour to BM Revere Pewter to bring a bit of warmth back in. I truly can’t believe the difference Kelvin makes, that sneaky fella! Thank you for solidifying what I tried to tell hubby this week…he doesn’t always take my word for it so I told him to ask his buddy Kylie (no joke, you’re the paint marriage counsellor here haha), and you delivered!

By: Andrea Yeary

Andrea Yeary — Sat, 06 Mar 2021 10:52:23 +0000

This all makes so much sense now especially combined with your CRI post! I just redid my entryway and put in 3000K LED w/ CRI 90 and it is my favorite room in the house and the paint looks amazing (agreeable gray). I finally found my happy place with 3000K but am learning it isn’t commonly stocked. Can you recommend any go to brands that carry 3000K in all styles?

By: Linda

Linda — Sat, 06 Mar 2021 03:46:47 +0000

I JUST painted 2 walls in my bathroom Palladian blue. Could not figure out why they looked so different, in fact I repainted one white, as I didn’t like the 2 tones. Then I received your email and fabulous lighting blog. Turns out I had 2 different bulbs in 2 different lights. Changed a bulb, and already see a difference. Talk about excellent timing and help for me. THANKS. You should do a TV, JUST DECORATING tips show!

By: Carol

Carol — Sat, 06 Mar 2021 02:13:41 +0000

Wow! This is going to either end or exacerbate some arguments at my house. In my mind – we’re done! Thanks so much for a truly (oh, no! don’t do it) enlightening (I did it) and very useful post.
I refuse to wear sunglasses in my own home now that I have guidance written in stark, cold, blue-white, 5100 Kelvin English.

By: KylieMawdsley

KylieMawdsley — Sat, 06 Mar 2021 01:15:57 +0000

In reply to Emilia. Hi Emilia, I'd LOVE to send you to a great local store, but we're on opposite ends of the country! LOCALLY, I go to McLarens and Illuminations. I do believe Illuminations has some locations on the east coast! Hope you're keeping well my fellow Canadian!

By: Emilia

Emilia — Fri, 05 Mar 2021 12:03:25 +0000

Thank you so much for these 2 articles, that makes so much sense and explains why my previous rented house felt so cold, the light was nearly blue in some rooms ! Do you have any specific stores you would recommend that have a good variety of bulbs ? I am in Eastern Canada and went to home depot and Kent but the selection was small and it was hard to find bulbs where both CRI and Kelvins were indicated on the box.

By: KylieMawdsley

KylieMawdsley — Fri, 05 Mar 2021 01:18:39 +0000

In reply to Pat W. You're so welcome, Pat, thank you for commenting!

By: KylieMawdsley

KylieMawdsley — Fri, 05 Mar 2021 01:18:21 +0000

In reply to Haydee. YES! That's what this blog post was about, helping you figure out the light you like to live in as well as what suits your paint colours. I think 3500K could be a GREAT happy medium between things! I don't have a variation of more than 500K between the fixtures in my own home!

By: KylieMawdsley

KylieMawdsley — Fri, 05 Mar 2021 01:17:06 +0000

In reply to Jessica. Hi Jessica, it all depends on what you want it to DO. If you want it to stay soft and warm (as it is a warm colour at heart) then something in the 2700K range would work, although it could tweak the green undertone a bit. If you want it to go GRAYER, you may want to inch up a bit, try something closer to 3500, maybe 4000K, just make sure you enjoy LIVING in those lights too!

By: KylieMawdsley

KylieMawdsley — Fri, 05 Mar 2021 01:15:54 +0000

In reply to Angela Whitney. Hi Angela, I might try a bulb around 3500K-4000K and see how that feels. This could cut back on the warmth of it without having your room look cold! Bring a few bulbs home to try and return what doesn't work!

By: Angela Whitney

Angela Whitney — Thu, 04 Mar 2021 23:19:56 +0000

Hi! Thanks for this article. Can you recommend a bulb to use with
SW Agreeable Gray? I have this color on my first floor and love it in natural daylight but not a fan of it in artificial lighting. It looks more beige/tan/pinkish to me in the artificial lighting and I want it to lean more gray (how it does during the day). Any suggestions?

By: Jessica

Jessica — Thu, 04 Mar 2021 17:36:48 +0000

Hello! What kind of bulb would you suggest for sw drift of mist ?

By: Haydee

Haydee — Thu, 04 Mar 2021 04:06:09 +0000

This post is perfect timing! It's so much to take in, now adding lighting to the exposure and undertone considerations! My last place had a different bulb in every fixture and I hated it, but couldn't figure out how to fix it. I had cool grey walls and warm lights shining on them which was so uncomfortable, like little pools of yellow on the wall. I just want that continuity of light throughout the whole house. But then there's all "you have to have warm in the living room and cool in the kitchen and warm in the bedrooms and natural light in the bathrooms." can I just tell the electrician to put 3500 in everything?

By: Pat W

Pat W — Thu, 04 Mar 2021 03:25:41 +0000

Wow, this cleared up a lot of confusion with lighting. Thanks so much!