Thank you to LUSA Lighting for sponsoring this post. As always, all opinions are my own.
Happy autumn! I know I am not alone in claiming this season as my favorite. With the shorter days and cooler temperatures, I love making small changes in my home to reflect the shift in seasons. One change that I made this year is replacing the recessed lights in our basement family room with LUSA lights.
Modern Kitchen LIghting
Last year as part of our kitchen renovation, we upgraded our old LED kitchen lighting to LUSA lights and I immediately fell in love with them. They have a modern profile, no coning, and no glare, but in my opinion the color temperature adjustment while dimming is what really sets them apart from other lights.
For a little bit of context, Kelvin units are how lighting manufacturers measure color temperature. The lower the number the warmer (more orange) the light is and the higher the number the cooler (more blue) the light is. With a typical dimmable light, the Kelvin temperature is going to remain stable. As you dim a LUSA light, however, the color temperature decreases. So you get a nice, crisp light when it’s brighter (3000K, which is IMO the absolute perfect color temperature for daylight hours) and a soft, cozy light when you dim them. It is by far my favorite feature!
Best Basement Lighting
When we moved into our home five years ago, one of the first things that started to bother us was the basement lighting. Our basement family room is our main playroom during the day and the place we relax together in the evenings as well. We have nine canned lights and all of them were really bright, but the real problem was that they were daylight bulbs – 5000K. Anytime I went down there after the sun set, it felt like the light of a thousand suns was shining in that room, and it was not good for our circadian rhythms! The cooler temperature mimics daylight, which is not good for your body when it’s 10pm.
I knew I needed some new basement lighting and after loving LUSA lights in the kitchen, it was a no brainer. The ability for LUSA lights to adjust color temperature allows for us to enjoy daytime play, then successfully wind down in the evenings. Having customizable ambient lighting for the basement family room – and the kitchen! – has been such a game changer.
Installing LUSA Lights in your Home
LUSA’s lights have a smaller 4” profile (most older lights are 6”). The smaller profile gives them an amazing modern feel and they sell a conversion kit to make the adjustment super easy. You simply remove the old light by popping it out of the ceiling and disconnecting the plug.
Then screw in the conversion kit mud plate and use drywall mud to smooth it out. I know that this step sounds intimidating, but I promise you can do it! Don’t be afraid to do multiple coats until you get the lines smoothed out, and remember to sand. Then prime and paint it to match your ceiling.
After you have that in place, pop the light into trim. LUSA sells several different trim options so it’s easy to find something that reflects your home style. I chose the round white trim because I think it blends the best into our ceiling, and I love that if I ever decide to color drench this room, I could easily switch it out for a darker trim! The light plugs into your wiring and the whole thing pops right into the new housing.
Switching everything out is easily done in one day unless you run into problems with mudding the conversion kit in – really old ceilings that are uneven may require more layers of mud, so account for a little extra time if that sounds like your house.
Check out LUSA’s lights here!
LUSA Lighting Review
The difference I’ve noticed having such high quality lighting has been amazing. Our kitchen feels bright with fewer shadows and crisper colors, making dinner prep all the more enjoyable. When we wake up, we’re able to have them set to a lower level – a feature my school aged kid is particularly fond of. In the basement, we are able to customize the lighting to support how we use such a multipurpose space. Whether we’re building magna-tile towers and need impeccable task lighting or gathering around for a family movie, we’re able to get the most out of our home.
So, whether you’re doing a remodel or building new, don’t underestimate the power of high quality lighting. After seeing the difference, I can never go back! Don’t sleep on these amazing LUSA lights!
With love,
Mercedes 🖤
With Love, Mercedes 