You love your basement, but sometimes lighting is an issue. Certain areas of your basement are dark, and artificial lighting isn't illuminating the space correctly. Your basement's ceiling may be the reason why the space is dark and gloomy. You should paint the ceiling a light color so light is reflected and not absorbed. A dark colored ceiling absorbs light, so repaint it with a high-quality paint to make the space brighter and appear larger.
The Best Ceiling Color
Paint your basement ceiling a shade of white like an egg-shell, a faint beige or Onyx White. Visit a paint store or home improvement center, and pull several paint chips of various degrees of white paint. Bring the paint chips home to see which shade of white works best with your basement's decor. Over 100 different shades of white are available. For example, Benjamin Moore Paints has over 130 shades of white in its palette. You don't have to paint the ceiling "pure white," but paint the ceiling with a light color based on white.
Accessories to Enhance the Ceiling Color
After painting your basement's ceiling a shade of white, use artificial lighting to enhance the space when natural lighting is not available. If the basement is used as a playroom, office or shop space, use task lighting that has bright energy-efficient bulbs. If the space is a home theater, a bedroom or other living area, use soft energy-efficient lighting. Also use track lighting, stoplights and other lights that focus light on a certain area to bounce light off the ceiling and make the basement brighter. If the basement only has one window, use artificial lighting on the opposite end of the space to brighten it. If the basement has a window or another source of natural lighting (like a door with window panes), use thin curtains to cover the light source so the natural lighting can flow into the area.
Other Ceiling Colors
If you don't find a shade of white you like, pale pastel colors will also work. Choose a pale blue, a faint green and other colors that are light. Stay away from reds, blacks, browns, purples and other colors that absorb light. Use dark colors as an accent, but keep them off the basement ceiling.
Tags: shade white, your basement, artificial lighting, basement ceiling, natural lighting