12 bathroom lighting ideas for a practical yet stylish space

Creating a practical but stylish lighting scheme is a key part of your bathroom design and a job that shouldn't be left until the last minute. In a space where functionality and personal style hold equal weighting, it's important to get your lighting right from the beginning.

As well as saving time and potentially cost (alterations to a lighting design once renovation or building work has begun can be messy and expensive), choosing your bathroom lighting ideas early on also allows you to really consider how the room will be used.

But with so many lights available, how do you choose the right lights for your bathroom? From family spaces to luxurious spa like sanctuaries, we've rounded up 12 bathroom lighting ideas to help inspire you. And, to make sure you get the practicalities right, find out what the experts advise when it comes to lighting your bathroom well.

Bathroom lighting ideas follow the same rules as other rooms

Lighting your bathroom well involves creating a layered scheme, in the same way as you would kitchen lighting ideas or any other room in your home.

Having multiple sources of light as opposed to just one over head light ensures your bathroom lighting is beneficial, both in terms of providing you with enough light to perform tasks, and in creating a beautiful and relaxing room.

Richard Ticehurst, group head of brand & trade marketing at Bathroom Brands Group explains: "Bathroom designers often layer different types of lighting to achieve a functional yet luxurious effect. Good lighting provides both practical and aesthetic benefits to the bathroom, which is essential for daily tasks but it also helps create a specific ambience while enhancing the room’s overall design.

"Introducing lighting sources to target darker areas or highlight key fixtures in the room, such as decorative mirrors or freestanding baths, also has an impact overall," says Richard, which is why creating a well-rounded scheme is essential.

Functionality of your bathroom lighting ideas will mainly come down to who will be using the bathroom and when, and you bathroom design. For instance, en suites for adults relaxing before bed have different requirements to large bathrooms with young children getting ready in the morning.

But when it comes to form and fashion, then that's down to your personal taste and finding the right types of lights to complement your overall bathroom design ideas.

Richard Ticehurst

Richard is a brand expert passionate about design, quality and performance. His background in European manufacturing, projects and retail has led to him coming a product expert in everything related to designing and creating the perfect bathroom.

Bathroom lighting ideas

1. Start with a safety first approach for all your bathroom lighting ideas

On a practical level, making sure the bathroom lighting ideas you choose are suitable for a space where humidity and water splashes are common is key.

"Depending on how close you are to water sources and how those water sources work you need to pick an appropriate level of protection against water ingress," explains Melanie Shaw, design director at Brilliant Lighting.

"Fittings carry an IP rating, e.g. IP67, where the 7 is the level of protection offered against liquids; the other number is protection against dust. A rating of 0 carries no protection against water, whereas 8 is protection against long periods of submersion under pressure."

Bathroom zones are also given to the different areas to help you determine which IP rating you need. They are as follows:

• Zone 0 (inside baths and showers) should be rated at least IP67
• Zone 1 (above the bath/shower) requires a rating of IP65
• Zone 2 (0.6m outside the perimeter of zone 1) needs IP44
• Zone 3, where no water splashes are likely, no IP rating is required

Melanie Shaw

Melanie Shaw is Design Director of Brilliant Lighting, the award-winning lighting design company she founded in 2004.

2. Install bathroom mirrors with lights for extra functionality

There are always three types of lighting that need to be carefully considered in every room of the house, including the bathroom: task, ambient and accent.

Bright, but warm bathroom mirrors with lights are ideal for a clear view of every-day tasks like putting on make-up and brushing teeth. For tasks such as these, overhead lighting can be unflattering while natural light doesn't always illuminate effectively.

Many units come with touch or motion sensors while the latest designs can also be linked to apps for remote control use, or connect to your phone so you can play music.

3. Wall lights take centre stage in bathroom lighting ideas

No matter the size, shape or requirements of your bathroom, one thing our experts all agree on is the value of wall lights in any bathroom lighting ideas.

"Adding wall lights to your lighting scheme is a great way to layer lighting," says Lee Lovett, co-founder and creative director of The Soho Lighting Company. "Giving you the option to add a decorative edge to match the style of your home, they are the perfect lighting choice for small bathroom lighting ideas as well as large bathroom spaces."

"Positioning a pair of lights either side of a mirror is the best location for lighting around a mirror," suggests David Amos, CEO of Amos Lighting, "as it evenly distributes light across your face, and a directional spot light above the mirror, angled to wash your face in light enables the ultimate precision for your everyday ablutions.

"When it comes to fitting wall lights into the bathroom," adds David, "the lamp should ideally be fitted in a pair around eye level as this will provide the most flattering light for the space."

Lee Lovett

Lee Lovett founded the company after being unable to find the right lights for her renovation. Seeing an opportunity to create beautiful lighting, switches and sockets that were inspired by period properties yet made for modern living, the company was created and focuses on lighting that elevates and enlightens, is reliable and responsibly-made.

Some of our favourite bathroom wall lights

4. Add accent lighting to set a relaxing mood

Accent LED lighting in bathrooms can be used to highlight modern bathroom ideas and features such as baths, interesting tiling patterns or along the side of coving. As well as drawing attention to key design elements, it can add a softer, more relaxing light to help you unwind after a long day.

"LED has revolutionised bathroom lighting," adds Melanie Shaw. "It’s now possible to use miniature LED fittings in niches, window sills and shelves to pick out interesting features and add a touch of personality to the room."

As this scheme from Brilliant Lighting demonstrates well, the addition of small LED floor light around the bath and at the base of the blue glass screen creates a spa-like atmosphere. "A circuit of accent lights around the bath or washing the floor adds accent lighting," adds Melanie, "but more importantly gives you a light source that won’t wake you up in the night but still lights your way."

5. Allow for ample ambient lighting in family bathrooms

Bright, functional lighting is an essential component when collecting family bathroom ideas.

To begin, weigh up the benefits of spotlights vs downlights. Will a flexible change of directional lighting assist over the course of the day, or would an overall wash of illumination be more helpful?

"Thoughtful bathroom lighting can transform your family bathroom from a basic, functional space into a multi-purpose room that meets the needs of every family member," says Richard Ticehurst. "From morning routines to evening bath times, adjustable lighting is one way of creating a mood and atmosphere, no matter who is using the space.

"Lights such as the Crosswater Tranquil Pillar Lights, for example," adds Richard, "have the ability to move at a 45° angle, giving various options for mood lighting in any bathroom setting."

6. Use plenty of lighting circuits and carefully consider which switches you need

When planning your bathroom lighting ideas, thinking carefully about your switches and ciruits can make all the difference between to the end result. Not sure how to do this? Melanie Shaw offers the following advice.

"Think about all the ways you use a bathroom and then picture how the lighting might work with each," she says. "Pretty quickly you’ll come up with a range of images from soft, low lighting ideal for a late night soak, shadow-free lighting for shaving or makeup through to a really bright lighting scene for the kids’ bath time or even cleaning.

"The bathroom demands multiple circuits that do specific jobs and can be controlled independently of one another," she continues. "Typical circuits might be dedicated mirror lighting, small accent lights at low level to provide gentle night-time lighting and then a circuit for lights in niches or behind shelves (as shown in this image), that provide focal points and interest."

With regards to the types of light switches you can use in family bathrooms, other than pull-cords, they must all be installed outside of a bathroom. However, dimmer switches can be another cost-effective way to incorporate changeable moods for different uses.

Extractor fans are also essential for modern bathroom building regulations, so remember to add a separate or integrated switch for control of this essential item to ensure you have adequate bathroom ventilation.

7. Install unusual lighting to add character

Although making sure the lighting you use is practical, in order to avoid the room becoming too clinical or characterless, it's also good to consider unusual and alternative bathroom lighting ideas.

Softening a space and adding a sense of individuality, different types of lights can serve as extra accent lighting to enhance the mood.

"Handcrafted fixtures made from durable materials like pewter and glass are an elegant and timeless choice for bathrooms," suggests Mara Rypacek-Miller, founder of Industville. "Matching these finishes across taps and doorknobs will also help maintain harmony throughout the design.

"Bathrooms are both functional spaces as well as places that we unwind at the end of long days," adds Mara, "whether that’s with a soak in the bath or practising self-care with skincare routines.

"So, when it comes to the design of a bathroom, remember the right lighting fixtures will do more than provide functional illumination, they will also contribute towards a sense of tranquillity in the space."

Mara Rypacek-Miller

Mara leads a creative revolution in sustainable interior design and is the industrious founder of Industville. With a keen eye for detail and a commitment to eco-conscious craftsmanship, Mara has propelled Industville to the forefront of the industry, where each design tells a story of timeless elegance and environmental responsibility.

8. Get your lighting temperature right

"When choosing the best bathroom lighting and bulbs, pay careful attention to the colour temperature of the bulbs you use," says Lee Lovett. "How do you want your bathroom to feel? Warm and cosy or bright and light?

"Allow this to lead the way in choosing the colour temperature to ensure you create the appropriate ambience for the room. Equally, for applying makeup you need your bulbs to be a high CRI (Colour Render Index)," adds Lee.

"CRI is the degree to which your artificial light represents true daylight, with 100 CRI being the truest form. The average UK bulb is level 82 CRI, but you need to ideally choose higher which is why ours are the highest available 95-97 CRI," explains Lee, "so you will not leave the bathroom with unseen toothpaste on your cheek or needless shaving cuts!"

9. Pendant lights work as bathroom lighting ideas too

Pendants are not just for kitchen island lighting ideas anymore, they are being seen everywhere from bedroom lighting ideas to bathrooms, and are no longer resigned to a central ceiling position either.

"If space allows, a pendant light can help to create a gorgeous focal point, whilst adding a welcome pop of colour to your bathroom," says Lee Lovett. "You might choose to use this in tandem with downlights or on its own if your bathroom has access to lots of natural light during the day."

Or, as David Amos suggests, and as demonstrated in this bathroom image, "if the wires in the wall are tricky to install, you can hang pendants from the ceiling adjacent to a mirror so that they act as wall lights."

10. Use mirrors in bathrooms to amplify your lighting

When renovating a bathroom, if your space is small, or has awkward corners (such as in loft conversion bathrooms) try to group lighting around a mirror to maximise illumination.

This simple trick won't just make the bathroom feel more spacious, but will also reflect the light into darker spots.

Take a leaf out of this bathroom's book and install a room-wide mirror with integrated wall lights. With a rooflight above the bath for an injection of natural light and the sconce materials matching the taps and other details, the finish is smart, elegant and undoubtedly practical.

11. Add as much natural lighting as you can

Although artificial lighting is an integral part of your bathroom lighting ideas, it's important not to underestimate the power of natural lighting in any space and how much getting your bathroom window ideas right matters.

"Integrating natural light into the bathroom reduces the need for as much artificial lighting and ensures the space feels fresh and bright," says Richard Ticehurst. "If both space and budget allow, consider installing skylights or additional windows to bring in ample natural light."

The large skylight above the shower in this bathroom scheme from Matki, not only serves to create ambient light, but also enhances the finish of the gold-effect fixtures and fittings against the large light white and grey marble tiles.

12. Double up on functionality for maximum impact

Looking for unusual ways to add light to your shower room? Look for fixtures and fittings that add light in unexpected places such as this shower head with integrated light.

Perfect for modern bathroom ideas, many shower heads also offer coloured light settings with proposed health benefits. Known as chromotherapy, it is believed that the different colours evoke different moods and can enhance relaxation, focus and well being.

For a range of modern shower heads with lights, take a look at these LED shower heads from Sanctuary Bathrooms.

Mara Rypacek-Miller also suggests one final measure for aiding relaxation and creating the right mood with your bathroom lighting ideas.

"Finish the look with candles placed on shelving to enhance the calming ambience. The soft glow of flickering candlelight, promotes relaxation and a sense of well-being.”

Now you're armed with the knowledge you need to get your bathroom lighting ideas right, make sure you avoid these other common bathroom design mistakes before planning your next bathroom makeover.