If your flat feels flat in the evening, the problem is usually one bright light in the middle of the ceiling. Cosy rooms are lit in layers: several small, warm sources at different heights. Here are eight easy ways to get there, all of them under £50.
1. Turn off the big light
It sounds obvious, but it's the single biggest change. Overhead light flattens a room and makes it feel smaller. Aim for two or three lamps instead.
2. Pick warm white bulbs
Look for bulbs around 2700–3000K. Anything higher starts to feel like an office. Our touch bedside lamp comes with a warm 3000K bulb.
3. Light a corner, not the middle
Light bouncing off a wall makes a room feel bigger and softer. A slim corner floor lamp washes the wall in amber and takes up almost no floor space.
4. Add fairy lights at eye level
Coil battery fairy lights into glass jars on a shelf, or weave them through a garland. Battery-powered strings go anywhere, with no trailing cables.
5. Make the bedside easy
A lamp you can tap to dim, or one that charges your phone, means fewer cables and less fumbling in the dark.
6. Use a flickering glow
A flame-effect diffuser gives you the movement of a fire, with scent and no real flame, which is ideal in a rental.
7. Give the bedroom a night sky
A galaxy projector turns the ceiling into a slow-moving starfield: great for kids, and surprisingly good for grown-up film nights.
8. Automate the switch-on
Put a lamp on a remote plug socket so you can switch everything on from the sofa. Read our guide to lights that turn on by themselves.
Start with the first three and you'll feel the difference the same evening.