Lighting Design & Specification
Light shapes how a space feels long before anyone notices a single fixture. We collaborate with architects, interior designers, and builders to develop comprehensive lighting plans that balance task, accent, and ambient layers, specify the right fixtures for every application, and stay involved through construction and final aiming. The result is a home where the light feels intentional, comfortable, and completely natural.
Our Process
Our lighting design service operates as a standalone practice, independent of our integration work, though the two often go hand in hand. We follow a three-phase approach that keeps the design team, builder, and electrician aligned from the first consultation through the final walkthrough.
In the design phase, we produce lighting plans on CAD backgrounds provided by the architect, develop a complete fixture schedule with specification sheets, and work through the details in a series of consultation meetings. During construction, we review submittals from the electrical contractor, coordinate with the design team on revisions, and attend on-site meetings to keep everything on track. After the fixtures are installed, we return to aim every adjustable fixture, walk the homeowner through the finished result, and coordinate with the controls team to program scenes that bring the design to life.
What Makes Good Light?
Designed to Be Felt, Not Noticed
A well-designed lighting plan does several things at once. It provides the right brightness for the task at hand, whether that's prepping dinner, reading, or getting ready for the evening. It renders colors accurately so materials, finishes, and skin tones look their best. It highlights the architectural details and artwork that make a home unique. And it eliminates glare with careful attention to fixture placement relative to seating and sightlines.
Getting all of that right requires more than selecting attractive fixtures. It takes an understanding of optics, color science, dimming performance, and how different light sources interact with the materials in the space. That's the work we do.
Light That Follows the Day
Our bodies respond to the color and intensity of light throughout the day. Bright, cool light in the morning supports alertness and focus. Warmer, softer light in the evening signals the body to wind down. This is circadian rhythm, and the lighting in your home can either work with it or against it.
Tunable white LED technology allows us to design lighting that shifts color temperature automatically over the course of the day, from energizing daylight tones in the morning to the warm glow of candlelight after dinner, all without changing a fixture or pressing a button. When paired with a lighting control system, these shifts happen seamlessly in the background.
We specify tunable fixtures from manufacturers like Ketra, Lutron, and DMF based on the needs of each space, and we work with your control system to ensure the experience feels natural and effortless. For clients who prioritize wellness and comfort, circadian-aware lighting is one of the most impactful decisions in the entire design.
The Fixtures Behind the Design
We specify fixtures based on performance, build quality, and long-term reliability. Every fixture in our plans is selected for its optics, dimming behavior, color rendering, and how well it disappears into the architecture. Our go-to partners include Lutron, DMF, and QTL, among others. Each brings specific strengths, and we match the right fixture to the right application rather than defaulting to a single brand.
Landscape Lighting
A thoughtful lighting plan doesn't stop at the foundation. We design exterior and landscape lighting to highlight trees, plantings, walkways, and architectural features using durable LED fixtures and quality cabling built to withstand Vermont's seasons. We can partner with your landscape architect or handle the installation directly. Either way, the design starts with us.
Meet Vermont Lighting
Our lighting division designs, supplies, and hand-delivers the fixtures for Vermont's best-designed homes. See the homes we've lit and how a lighting project runs.
