Many people expect more than just a haircut when going to the hairdresser; it’s as much about the whole experience as it is about the procedure they are having done. Customers usually pay a lot of money for work such as cutting and dyeing their hair, and they expect to be able to have this done in a relaxing environment. For many clients, this is a rare opportunity to just sit back and let someone pamper them, so comfort is essential.
Lighting is an essential part of creating a comfortable salon environment. The lighting should match the feeling of a good hair salon experience–pleasant, comforting, elegant and relaxing.
The light should not only make the salon look aesthetically appealing, but also make the customers look as good as possible too. Lighting should be a top priority in these applications; it is a key ingredient in a successful salon business.
Products
Pendant Lighting for Hair Salons
Linear pendants can be used as an additional light source in hair salons, especially in larger applications where they can be put above walkways. The pendants are also perfect to use in waiting areas or near cash registers, and can be custom-cut to fit your application. You also have the option to make them in any colour imaginable, allowing you to match the decor of the room.
Another option is to install up/down pendants, which shoot light up toward the ceiling as well as toward the floor. These can help larger salons with high ceilings achieve sufficient illumination.
Linear profile pendants are great in salons where you want to create an elegant and slightly architectural touch to the interior design. It’s important to remember that the entire salon experience should be pleasing to the customer, from the waiting area to the final steps out the door.
Track Lighting
Track lighting is perfect for hair salons, as it offers a modern aesthetic while allowing you to turn the light in any direction, as well as moving the lights up and down the track. This flexibility makes it easy for you to adapt the light to the rest of the interior even after the fittings have been installed.
In hair salons, 15W LED track lights with a 3000K (warm white) colour temperature should be used, to achieve sufficient lighting that’s not too bright and feels soft and relaxing. The sleek cylinder-shaped design in black or white will easily blend in with the surroundings and give any salon a high-end feeling. The tracks come in standard 1, 2 and 3 meter lengths, and can be joined together to create any shape; even round and bendable tracks are now available.
Track lighting creates the opportunity to customize a design to suite your personal style as well as the shape and size of your salon. The cheaper and lighter single circuit track format is perfect for salons, as it allows dimming all the light fittings at once from a light switch.
Beware of the following traps when lighting a hair salon.
Shadow Effect: Putting downlights directly over customers’ heads leads to large, unattractive shadows over their faces.
Cool White: It is common to see salons using a 6000K colour temperature. Lights this cool can easily give the room a clinical feeling, and customers don’t want to feel like they’re at the hospital or in a supermarket. Cool lighting also makes the skin look pale and dull, which makes it ill-suited to these applications.
Dimming: Many salons forget what a huge difference dimming can have in achieving that warm, relaxing feeling they are after. It’s all about creating the right mood, and having lights that allow you to experiment with different light levels. Dimming also helps to control unattractive glare, which is something nobody wants to experience in a salon environment.
With the right budget you can achieve great results by putting lighting around salon mirrors. This removes shadows from the customers’ faces and makes their skin look nice and even. However, this is a high-end alternative.
A cheaper option is to install two profile lights on each side of where the customer sits and aim them toward the shoulders. This will also effectively remove unwanted shadows from the face.
CRI And Colour Matching
Perhaps the most important consideration in hair salon lighting is colour matching. If the CRI levels of the salon lights are far from those of natural light sources, problems will result when the customer leaves the salon. This is especially the case when it comes to hair dyeing. Hair colour can change appearance under different types of light, which is why it’s very common for people to get home from the salon and feel that the colour is different from what they saw when the dye was applied.
A low CRI level will also create an overall dull and washed out appearance on everything in the room. This is obviously far from ideal when you want to make the customer look and feel as attractive as possible.
By using a high CRI light, you will make colours look alive and radiant, and allow customers to see the true colours of their hair. Fittings with a CRI as close to 90 as possible are highly recommended for hair salons.
Creating Mood With Lighting
Dimming and glare control are important in controlling the mood and creating emotion within salons. Dimming allows you to control light levels, which are also known as lumens or LUX levels.
Within a salon space you want certain areas darker and others brighter. This creates a nice contrast, and will contribute to a more luxurious, high-end feeling. A common mistake is to install lights that spread the same amount of light all over the room, which will make the salon look very dull and plain.
It’s important to control the light levels on the walls to create a comforting feeling, as well as to keep glare levels down, which depends on the quality of lenses used within the fittings themselves. Poor quality fittings have very strong glare which is off-putting to customers. Choosing lights with excellent glare control will greatly benefit the look of the salon as well as the customers.
Lighting Design For Hair Salons & Nail Salons
To help you get started with your project, LED World can complete a 2D lighting plan for you within 5 days. Electricians understand how to install lighting, but most of the time lack the detailed knowledge that has such a great impact on the final outcome. Our lighting plans can be handed directly to your electrician, telling them exactly where to install the fittings.
Our 2D plans will give you the calculations and the positioning of the light fittings. The calculations show where the lux output of the lights will appear on the floor, while the positioning tells the installers the correct locations for the fittings. The price of a 2D plan is $99, which is a small amount to pay considering the highly professional outcome it will help you achieve.
If you are looking to create that professional look in your hair salon, you’ve got nothing to lose. Contact LED World today for quotes, lighting plans and expert advice from a lighting designer with years of experience in the lighting industry. Call (02) 8091 2950 to get a 15 minute free consultation or email us on [email protected]
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