From Guest Blogger Brooke Chaplan: Six Steps to Add More Natural Light in Your Home

When you understand how to enhance your home with as much natural light as possible, you reduce the need for artificial light during daylight hours and a major benefit will be how much it saves on your electric bill. In addition, natural light is softer than what lamps produce, which means it offers its own special ambiance to a room. Giving your home a bit more natural light is great for making your home more sustainable and healthy, and here are some tips for helping you get started.

Hang Sheers Underneath Drapes
When you hang sheers underneath your drapes, you can open the heavier drapes to let more natural light into your home. Light will gently flow into the room through the thin material of the sheers, so you get all the light you need without the hot heat that follows.

Install Additional or Larger Windows
You can hire a professional company like Gilkey Windows to install additional or larger windows to your home. The benefit here is you can add more light, as well as get custom glass with better weather proofing and sun screen capabilities. Areas to add to might be the kitchen, living room, or smaller bathrooms.

Add a Skylight
If you don’t want to lose wall space to install windows, consider a skylight in the ceiling. Various models exist, including fixed, venting, and tubular ones. Fixed usually do not open, while venting models open to allow for airflow. Tubular skylights usually require less surface area for installation and can be great for remodels on a budget.

Avoid Solid Doors at Entryways
Avoid the installation of solid doors on entrances to your house. Utilize doors with windows to have sunlight to flow into the interior. A number of different styles are available from partial glass, to French, and many more. Find a style that suits your home design and allows a good amount of light inside.

Display More Mirrors
Mirrors will reflect natural light back into the room they are displayed in, and the amount of sunlight almost doubles. Think about where the windows are placed and how much sunlight will reach them at certain times of day.

Consider Your Outdoor Plants
Do not let your outdoor plants block open windows or doors, as this will diminish the amount of natural light let into your house. Trim or prune hedges and trees to an appropriate height and pull vines that tend to climb the sides of the house.

You will provide organic illumination by using these steps to increase the amount of sunlight in your home. Utilize nature’s power source to brighten the interior in every room.