Summarize
SummaryClothing storage involves a variety of needs that call for different lighting solutions. When designing your wardrobe and walk-in closet, it’s important to consider both, the lighting requirements and the intended use of the space. In this article, we showcase lighting solutions implemented by our customers—from practical, storage-style spaces to luxurious walk-in closets.
Lighting intensity in walk-in closets and wardrobes
The key considerations for lighting in clothing spaces depend on whether the space is also used for dressing and how the rest of the room is lit. In spaces used for dressing or choosing shoes, the lighting should be at appropriate heights. This allows the accurate evaluation of the colors and condition of the outfit. It’s important to notice details like stains, wrinkles, or lint right when you put on the clothes, rather than only noticing them when you’re about to leave.
Clothes are always easier to find when they are properly lit. Dark garments, as well as dark cabinets, tend to absorb light. Lighting helps overcome the challenges posed by dark hues. Dark surfaces always require more light than light-colored ones.
In the image below, an LED strip is mounted under the clothes rack in an aluminum profile, directing light where it’s needed. Meanwhile, the LED strip under the drawer unit helps balance the overall lighting. This is especially useful for tasks like selecting shoes. Both LED strips in this setup offer adjustable color temperatures for a personalized lighting experience.
For tasks that require focus, it’s important to have the right lighting intensity, especially when dressing and choosing outfits in the walk-in closet. This ensures you can clearly assess the colors, materials, and condition of the garments before wearing them.
Lighting placement in a wardrobe or walk-in closet
A good way to light a wardrobe is to design the room lighting so it also lights the open closet. This makes it easier to see and find your.
A common issue with wardrobe lighting is that the ceiling light in the center of the room doesn’t reach the corners. While the ceiling light provides general lighting for the room, it can leave the cabinets at the edges dark. A solution to this is to use LED strips or smaller, more evenly spaced ceiling lights.
It’s a good idea to place lights both above the cabinets and in front of the mirror. This way, the light opens up between the viewer and the mirror, creating a balanced illumination. Wardrobes with a canopy above the cabinet can be illuminated by a led strip. By installing a recessed aluminum profile on the canopy.
If the walk-in closet is intended solely for clothing storage, it can be illuminated with LED strips installed on the shelves. In this case, it’s a good idea to place LED strips on the hanging rod and the baseboard. For the shelves, an optional solution is to mill a recessed aluminum profile vertically to illuminate all the shelves.
LED lighting can be recessed into the vertical or horizontal surfaces of the cabinetry. Shelves can be illuminated pleasantly and without glare using a shelf profile milled into the underside of the shelf. The light in the profile comes at a 45-degree angle and can be directed toward the back of the shelf. This prevents any glare from the light.
LED strips can be installed at different levels. Shoes are best illuminated with a LED strip mounted on the lower level. You can direct the light from the bottom of the cabinet or the baseboard either forward or downward. Clothes on a rack are typically best lit from above.
Color temperature of the walk-closets and wardrobes
Clothing appears different under different types of light. Hues and textures are highlighted in various ways depending on whether the surrounding light is warm, neutral, or cool. Some clothing stores even allow customers to adjust the color temperature in fitting rooms for this very reason, as the shades of the garment change with the lighting temperature.
At home, it’s a good idea to choose a light color in the wardrobe or dressing room that is either the same as or slightly cooler than the rest of the home’s lighting. A cooler tone creates more contrast, making color distinctions clearer and making it easier to assess how different shades of clothing work together. On the other hand, warm lighting creates an inviting atmosphere and pairs well with warm tones, like wood.
Color tunable and dimmable lights are an excellent choice for dressing rooms. They allow the ambiance and light levels to be precisely adjusted according to the needs of the space. Lighting is always part of a larger whole, so it’s important to consider the lighting of the rest of the room when choosing the light tone for a wardrobe in areas like the hallway or bedroom. The featured space is equipped with mobile-controlled smart lighting, ensuring that all the lights in the house work harmoniously together, with adjustable color temperature and brightness.
Color rendering of lights in walk-in closets and wardrobes
An important feature of LED lights is their color rendering ability. The full spectrum of a garment’s hues is best revealed when the lights are high-quality color-rendering products. Full-spectrum lights are a key component in LedStore’s selection. A high CRI value (Color Rendering Index) brings out the colors naturally, without shifting hues toward green or blue-violet tones. In the images below, LedStore’s 9W spotlights with a CRI of 97 are used. Thanks to this, the colors of the clothes are displayed as intended.
In the image below, the color rendering index measurement results are shown using LedStore’s ModLed spotlight as the model. The chart illustrates that the selected reference colors, R1-R15, are reproduced excellently, with values above 90 for all but one hue. Some manufacturers only report the color rendering index for the first seven shades (R1-R7), which results in a higher CRI average. The CRI is, in fact, the arithmetic average of the R-values.
The chart shows that LED light can also distort the colors of an object if the color rendering R-value is negative in the measurement. The goal in LED lighting production is to achieve true color rendering, similar to how natural sunlight would illuminate an object in daylight.
Walk-in closet lighting as a design element
Choosing the right lighting is always a design decision as well. The more sensory and pleasant the light is intended to be, the more it’s worth utilizing different levels, surfaces, color temperatures, brightness, and directions of light.
In the images below, the left side shows general lighting placed in front of the cabinets using Square Double spotlights, directed straight downward to also illuminate the inside of the cabinets. An LED strip installed along the baseboard adds both ambiance and functional lighting at floor level—ideal for trying on shoes. In the right-hand image, the LED strip is installed in a double-width recessed aluminum profile, providing strong illumination and a modern look. This space serves both as clothing storage and a home office, so high light output is especially important.
Choosing what to wear and getting dressed is always a form of preparation—for work, a movie night, a birthday party, a trip, a seminar, or a weekend at the cabin. It’s often about making an impression or dressing in a way that highlights your strengths. In a sense, choosing clothes is a kind of transformation—one that the right lighting can support. With well-designed lighting, it’s easier to find your clothes and put together the right outfit effortlessly.
Entryway wardrobe lighting
Hallways and entryways are often nearly windowless, making them naturally darker spaces. That’s why it’s important to consider clothing lighting in these areas as well. Wardrobes can be lit from the inside using motion sensor lights, making it easy to pop in and out. This saves energy, as the lights are only on when needed.
In a utility or mudroom-style entryway, sufficiently strong and well-placed lighting also supports clothing care and makes it easier to quickly find missing gloves, hats, or boots.
LED panel lighting is an efficient and cost-effective way to illuminate entryways. Panel lights emit light at a wide beam angle—typically between 110 and 120 degrees—which helps distribute light evenly throughout the space. For spotlights, any beam angle over 35 degrees is generally considered suitable for general lighting, meaning that more fixtures are needed to achieve even coverage. However, spotlights are an excellent choice for narrow and long spaces, where their narrower beam angle isn’t a drawback.
As a design element in entryways, even an open clothes rack can be stylishly lit. This kind of solution adds both convenience and elegance to the space. The lighting is typically implemented using LED strips and aluminum profiles. For a more striking look, you can highlight a favorite garment or a standout outfit on display.
Explore our reference images in the gallery to discover more great projects completed with LedStore products!
https://ledstore.pro/gallery/references
Welcome to Lamppukauppa LedStore’s showroom to explore lighting possibilities and design the perfect solution for your space. We serve a wide range of customers—consumers, resellers, and businesses alike. You’ll find us at Mesikukantie 16, 01300 Vantaa (Koivuhaka). You can reach us by phone at +358 45 251 4510 or by email at myynti@ledstore.fi.
