20 Dreamy Bathroom Lighting Ideas

Discover how top designers choose and combine fixtures to create a lighting plan that's as efficient as it is flattering to the space and its users.

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By: Carrie Hamblin

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Choosing Bathroom Lights

The key to excellent lighting design in a bathroom — one that provides both beauty and functionality — is a layered approach, incorporating different types such as task lighting, ambient lighting and accent lighting.

Natural light is often at a premium in bathrooms, which is why choosing efficient lighting is especially important. Learn how designers take bathrooms from blah to brilliant with the use of chandeliers, decorative wall sconces, hanging pendants and even mirrors with integrated lighting.

To complement the faucet and hardware in this radiant primary bathroom, designers chose a trio of gold swing-arm wall lamps for above the mirrors and a delicate beaded chandelier above the tub.

Learn More: 3 Basic Types of Lighting

From: Kirsten Holmstedt

Smoky Sconces

Dial up the drama in your neutral bathroom with smoky, bell-shaped sconces. Designer Brooke Wagner shows how it's done by matching the color of the glass to the smoky quartz backsplash — which instantly makes the room seem both intriguing and expertly tied together.

See More Photos: 40 Wow-Worthy Bathroom Decorating Ideas and Tips

From: Brooke Wagner

Up to the Task

In this cheerful bathroom, three simple globe sconces with black hardware affably punctuate the angular pattern of the wall tile and serve as task lighting (lighting focused on illuminating a specific area) to the vanity. The lights are positioned for excellent cross-illumination and provide even light to the face. Include task lighting in your shower and toilet areas, too.

From: 2to5 Design

Changeable Moods

Tipping its hat to transitional design, this powder room's marble console vanity is overseen by a pair of stately black-and-brass sconces. An important factor in bulb selection is color temperature. In this bathroom, high-temperature bulbs would confer blue on the subway tile. Instead, the vintage-style bulbs selected contribute warmth to the tile's gorgeous emerald greens and make the space feel cozier overall.

See More Photos: Our Fave Bathroom Tile Design Ideas

Lighting Serenity

This paradisical spa bathroom incorporates low-level recessed wall fixtures to bathe the floor in a relaxing glow. Copious daylight from the patio and the warm radiance of the chandelier offer ambient light to the space. There's no task lighting in this tub room; it is purely for relaxation and enjoyment.

See More Photos: 75 Dreamy, Spa-Inspired Bathrooms

From: Deborah Wecselman

Radiant Reflections

Metallic arboreal wallpaper in this stunning powder room increases the light of the space through reflection, even adopting the coral of the vanity to deliver an exquisite color change on lower portions of the wall. Light colors and glossy finishes reflect more light, whereas dark colors and matte finishes absorb light.

Hanging Pendants

Full-width mirrors work to make this bathroom feel larger while also maximizing the natural light flowing in. Asymmetrical hanging pendants were chosen as an unexpected element and provide dimmed task lighting so as not to compete with the generous amount of natural light.

Layered Elegance

This Corona Del Mar bathroom is a gorgeous example of the layered approach. The natural light provided by the French doors and ceiling cove's window is unobstructed by a distinctive gold pendant cascading over the tub. Sconces in a complementary finish flank the mirrors to provide task lighting for the vanity.

See More Photos: 30 Freestanding and Pedestal Bathtubs

From: Lindye Galloway

Style Unrestrained

A small bathroom is the perfect place to get dramatic with design. In this powder room, ceramic antler sconces offer a touch of whimsy against dark gray wallpaper and complement the space's natural textures and tones.

See More Photos: 50 Small Bathroom Design Ideas & Solutions

From: Dustin Gerken

Inviting Ambiance

Ambient light includes natural light from windows and skylights as well as the fixtures we use in our spaces to mimic that light artificially. Good ambient light illuminates the space gently, in a way that is both warm and inviting. In this stylish bathroom, two glass-globe wallchiere sconces join a gorgeous starburst chandelier to supplement the sun's work. In small spaces, mirror-mounting the vanity lights will save room and amplify their impact.

From: Minhnuyet Hardy

Fine Finishes

A brass gooseneck barn light accompanies a brass faucet to bring warmth and sophistication to this delightful black-and-white powder room. Designer Zoe Feldman chose to commit to a single finish for lighting, plumbing and towel hook, allowing the brass to stand out elegantly against the lively wallpaper.

See More Photos: 50 Black and White Bathrooms We Love

From: Zoe Feldman Design

Exotic Accents

Accent lighting lends drama to a space by highlighting an architectural element, piece of artwork or bathroom feature. Designers of this graceful transitional bathroom chose to underlight the client's vanity, adding to the ethereal effect of the floating vanity and providing a relaxing blue-hued nightlight for evening visits to the room.

From: Nicole White

Fluid Features

Designers of this 19th-century home couldn't resist giving the traditional clawfoot in the main bathroom the ornate accompaniment of a distinctive chandelier — and to great effect. An abundance of natural light flows in to the space thanks to two large windows on either side of the tub.

See More of This Home: Tour a Classic Southern Estate with a 21st-Century Sense of Fun

From: James Farmer

Powder Room Power

This fabulous powder room is bold in blue, with the Italian sconces and chandelier paying shimmery homage to the peacock in the oversized painting. A powder room benefits more from ambient and accent lighting that flatters the space and the person in it. The gorgeous chandelier uplights the ceiling, highlighting architectural detail before returning to the room.

From: Lauren Clement

New Revelations

To illuminate this small but swanky West Village lavatory, designer Pippa Lee selected a delicate triple-orb pendant in gold, giving it a double life as a vanity light by hanging the pendant near the wall and at eye level. Changing the look of the fixture is as easy as swapping the light bulbs, which are available in a vast number of shapes, filament styles, brightness levels and even colors.

From: Pippa Lee

Vanity Flair

In this coastal primary bathroom, three brushed-nickel and frosted-glass lights are accompanied by a pair of hardworking skylights to assure a bright, energizing morning routine. Skylights are smart additions to new and renovated spaces, often affording more privacy than windows and effectively using the space above so that the walls are available for larger shower stalls and double vanities.

See More of This Space: Main Bathroom Pictures From HGTV Urban Oasis 2020

From: Brian Patrick Flynn

Light With Mirrors

The clean lines in this serene, understated bathroom are uninterrupted thanks to vanity mirrors with integrated lighting. Providing high-quality light in an energy-efficient and unassuming package, LED technology has enabled us to incorporate lighting into our bathroom furnishings, furniture and architecture. It's also allowed for smart technology, where a room's lighting can be ultra fine-tuned and remote-controlled.

Learn More: Light Bulb Buying Guide: How to Pick the Right Light

Sweet Ensuite

In an ensuite, colored lampshades can be used to tie the space to its bedroom. Designer Bryan Patrick Flynn chose bold red glass for the chrome vanity lights in this guest bathroom, complementing its red bedroom and adding a punch of personality to an otherwise tranquil space.

See More of This Space: Teal Guest Bathroom From HGTV Dream Home 2019

From: Brian Patrick Flynn

Malleable Moods

Light dramatically influences our mood: bright light invigorates our morning routines and subdued light inspires an evening unwind. The designers of this beautiful main bathroom placed an elaborate hand-blown glass chandelier above the tub, offering occupants noonday sun at full brightness or a gentle twilight glow when dimmed.

From: Aspen Leaf Interiors

Chrome Charm

Soft blues join bright whites in this spa-like main bathroom that showcases three linear chrome lights with frosted glass shades at the vanity. Chrome fixtures are enjoying a moment, donning a cloak of invisibility in contemporary neutral bathrooms as they operate like mirrors to reflect light.

From: Alison Kandler