Light up, light up! {Review of Lights&Co.}

In the first week after we got the keys to our new place, there was nothing much we could do after the sun had set. It was hard to do any cleaning or unpacking of any sort though I seriously would have loved to. And why is that? Well, that was because we had no lights yet, of course. It dawned on me on the importance of lights and more than just aesthetically pleasing, they are one of the most functional and indispensable appliances in the house.

This is especially so for me, a mum who loves to take pictures and videos of her kids in their growing up years and I just can't imagine how my pictures will turn out if my house was not well-lit enough. When it comes to lights, I look for practicality, affordability followed by design. Yup, chandeliers are never for me. For our new nest which has a Scandinavian theme, I knew from the start that I wanted track lights in the living room and preferably a Scandinavian styled pendant dining light. So, it thrilled me when I was given the chance to work with Lights&Co., a Singapore lighting company which strives to furnish designer home essentials that exude design and quality.

The product range at Lights&Co. includes industrial, minimalist, modern and scandinavian lightings as well as bath fixtures. Being an online store, the disadvantage is that you don't get to see and touch the lights and what you imagine them to be when you see the catalogue can turn out to be a little different in real life. For instance, the dining light I chose turned out to be bigger than I had expected and you can say that it was because I overlooked the dimensions (which were clearly given on the website).

However, the plus side is the pricing is competitive and the products are generally affordable. Moreover, all you have to do is shop online and the lights get delivered right to your doorstep (delivery is free for orders above $250 and costs $15 for those below). Yes, you still have to get your contractor or electrician to install them but at least it cuts down the hassle.

The online catalogue is easy to navigate and very comprehensive. You can browse by the type of lights, take a look at the best sellers or browse through the collections one by one. For every product, you can read up on the product information at a glance - measurements, cord length, bulb fittings, warranty etc.

So, let me show you and give you a closer look at the lights that are now in our living/dining room. Read on our living room tour here.

Yes, that was what I had pictured in my mind when planning for the renovation and I'm just so glad that we managed to achieve it. There was a time when I thought I had to give up the track lights because we only had two electrical points on the ceiling and I knew the dining light and fan were here to stay. Also, we didn't want to add a false ceiling this time round due to the lack of time and also because we wanted a change from the previous house. So, what happened was the electrician fought a war that day as he helped me to drill a line across the ceiling so that we could add in an extra electrical point. The whole house was covered in white dust and there was quite a lot of touching up to do, but we managed to pull it off and I was absolutely relieved. 

I chose MEGAMAN LED Track Lights in Black because I thought they looked sleek, modern and the clean lines were perfect for our Scandinavian theme. See? I loved how the black lights matched our television and contrasted well with the wooden feel of the feature wall and curtains. One of the best things about track lights is that they can be repositioned along the track and each light can be tilted to an angle that suits your needs for focal point lighting. Very handy and user-friendly, right? 

The bulbs come in three colour temperatures - Warm White (2800K), Cool White (4000K) and Daylight (6500K). The first two are more for ambience lighting while the third is for task lighting, so you can mix and match according to your needs and wants.

Besides the track in the living room, I also installed tracks in the kids' study area and in my dry kitchen too (I will be bringing you around the tours soon, stay tuned!). So I picked Daylight for the study and Cool White for all of the rest. Since the bulbs can easily be removed from the bulb holders, you can switch the temperature when you replace the bulbs too.

The only thing I don't like so much is that the glare can be quite intense if you were to look up at the lights so I try to spread out the lights and tilt them at different angles so that the glare will not be in your face. Other than that, I am definitely loving these lights and the fact that they are simple, straightforward yet functional suits my personality to a tee.

As for our dining light, we went for the SCANDI Woody Pendant Light which features a black coloured cord tied to a wooden cord base and comes with matte white finish. There are three different designs so I decided to get one of each and fix them side by side using the rectangular panel, which enables them to share one electrical point.

As mentioned, they turned out a little bigger than what I expected but still fit our 1.5-metre dining table nicely. The electrician let me decide on which lamp to put where and how tight or loose I want the cords to be, so I'm not sure if you like my arrangement but I think it worked out nicely. I love that the lights are both traditional and modern at the same time and the element of wood ties in perfectly with our LOVE cabinet. Read more on our dining room tour here. 

So yes, considering this is the first time we have purchased lights online, I think it has been a very pleasant and satisfying experience. I personally appreciated how prompt Light&Co. was to reply every query I had, how the staff was friendly and ready to assist and how the goods came in perfect working order eventually. Thanks for helping to light up our Scandinavian home and turning dream into reality.

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This post is part of the "A Happy Home" series where I share all about our new Scandinavian-themed house, the renovation process and some tips and thoughts. Moving is never easy but it comes with an indescribable sense of joy in building up the house of your dreams. Remember, home is where the heart is and nothing is more important than being able to build memories with the people you love.



Disclosure: This is a sponsored review and the above mentioned lights were kindly sponsored by Lights&Co. All photos and opinions are my own.