How to Weave Magic With Skylights
Bring home some roof-side creativity and mood-boosting natural light with these windows to the sky
They come in all shapes and sizes. Along with the potential to make a bold statement, skylights can naturally light up an otherwise dark room, frame views of the sky, as well as highlight particular areas of a home, while still being energy efficient. From the days as an open oculus in the Pantheon of ancient Rome to its present-day glazed version, the skylight has been a dramatic design feature of our architectural vocabulary. So come, get inspired by the skylights featured below, and see how to bring this versatile element into just any part of your home.
Having a skylight above your shower can heighten the whole experience. Not to mention the fact that a bathroom well-lit by natural light can help avoid those nasty falls.
In this bathroom by Aamir and Hameeda Associates, the shower area is framed by a square skylight large enough to illuminate the entire space, while giving it that indoor-outdoor connect. As a further safety measure, they use a glass wall to separate the dry and wet areas without taking away from the voluminous feel of the space.
Tip: In case the sunlight is too harsh overhead, which can lead to heat gain, opt for a translucent or a stained-glass cover instead.
In this bathroom by Aamir and Hameeda Associates, the shower area is framed by a square skylight large enough to illuminate the entire space, while giving it that indoor-outdoor connect. As a further safety measure, they use a glass wall to separate the dry and wet areas without taking away from the voluminous feel of the space.
Tip: In case the sunlight is too harsh overhead, which can lead to heat gain, opt for a translucent or a stained-glass cover instead.
A play of light on the bedroom walls
A skylight’s location in a room can influence how you experience the space. It can shape the way you experience the light that connects the interiors to the outdoors, the house to the sky. While a skylight at the centre of a room creates a focus, one alongside a wall can be equally dramatic. For example, the skylight located behind the bed in this space, designed by Dipen Gada, allows the sunlight to graze the wall at certain times of the day, creating patterns in light. However, when opting for one in your bedroom make sure you’re not the type of person that needs a pitch-black room to fall asleep. Or else the reflections on a full moon night will surely keep you up.
See more ways to bring skylights into bedrooms
A skylight’s location in a room can influence how you experience the space. It can shape the way you experience the light that connects the interiors to the outdoors, the house to the sky. While a skylight at the centre of a room creates a focus, one alongside a wall can be equally dramatic. For example, the skylight located behind the bed in this space, designed by Dipen Gada, allows the sunlight to graze the wall at certain times of the day, creating patterns in light. However, when opting for one in your bedroom make sure you’re not the type of person that needs a pitch-black room to fall asleep. Or else the reflections on a full moon night will surely keep you up.
See more ways to bring skylights into bedrooms
Bring focus to the kitchen island
They are a great way to lend drama, accentuate the material of a wall or even highlight objects placed under them. Here, the kitchen island gets the full focus of this rectangular skylight, while the pairing of wooden slats and black lamp shades further complements the warm ambience of the kitchen. The slats and light fixtures serve a dual function – they are aesthetically pleasing and also act as a barrier, breaking up the direct rays of the sun.
They are a great way to lend drama, accentuate the material of a wall or even highlight objects placed under them. Here, the kitchen island gets the full focus of this rectangular skylight, while the pairing of wooden slats and black lamp shades further complements the warm ambience of the kitchen. The slats and light fixtures serve a dual function – they are aesthetically pleasing and also act as a barrier, breaking up the direct rays of the sun.
Celebrate with light in the dining room
Here is a unique idea – integrate a light fixture into a skylight like it’s been done in this space. You don’t just get a spotlight on the table, instead the textured spherical light fixture casts a kaleidoscope of intricate patterns, framing the entire dining. Plus, it becomes the highlight of the room.
Here is a unique idea – integrate a light fixture into a skylight like it’s been done in this space. You don’t just get a spotlight on the table, instead the textured spherical light fixture casts a kaleidoscope of intricate patterns, framing the entire dining. Plus, it becomes the highlight of the room.
You don’t need to be a genius to know that the more natural light in a room, the less the need for artificial lights and energy to power them. This dining room, encased in what is almost a glass box, makes artificial lighting redundant … at least in the daytime. With the retractable skylight, one has the best of both worlds – the stunning views and fresh air for when it is pleasant outside, enclosed and cosy when it is not.
Add character to recreational areas
Architecture Paradigm contemporises the underground water cave experience in this indoor swimming pool in Bangalore. Strategically placed skylights above the water create the entrancing phenomenon of the sun’s rays piercing through slits into a ‘cave’.
Architecture Paradigm contemporises the underground water cave experience in this indoor swimming pool in Bangalore. Strategically placed skylights above the water create the entrancing phenomenon of the sun’s rays piercing through slits into a ‘cave’.
Bring clarity to transitional spaces
Usually transitional areas like passages, foyers, landings and hallways tend to be darker spots. Having a few small skylights or one big one can add light and volume to these areas. Incorporating a skylight here is not only a good way of being energy efficient, but also subtly emphasises the importance of these transitional areas.
Rakeshh Jeswaani Interior Architects pairs a skylight with a water body in this foyer. The natural light seeping in through the skylight, the contemporary reflection pool, the rough stone wall and the small green tree all come together to create a sense of serenity and liveliness in the space.
Usually transitional areas like passages, foyers, landings and hallways tend to be darker spots. Having a few small skylights or one big one can add light and volume to these areas. Incorporating a skylight here is not only a good way of being energy efficient, but also subtly emphasises the importance of these transitional areas.
Rakeshh Jeswaani Interior Architects pairs a skylight with a water body in this foyer. The natural light seeping in through the skylight, the contemporary reflection pool, the rough stone wall and the small green tree all come together to create a sense of serenity and liveliness in the space.
Make a statement in the living room
A skylight need not be large or framed in colour to make an impact, as this roof opening above a living room, designed by Fisher Group LLC, attests. This space perfectly illustrates the drama that comes with having a skylight in your living area. Here, it is a small opening, but the flared white walls, with the ceiling opening much larger than the skylight one, increase the dramatic effect of natural light entering the room.
Read more:
Houzz Tour: An Ahmedabad Home Uses Nature to Combat Climate
Beautiful Inside-Outside Bathrooms We Love
Tell us:
Did we change your mind about adding a skylight to your home? Share your thoughts in Comments below.
A skylight need not be large or framed in colour to make an impact, as this roof opening above a living room, designed by Fisher Group LLC, attests. This space perfectly illustrates the drama that comes with having a skylight in your living area. Here, it is a small opening, but the flared white walls, with the ceiling opening much larger than the skylight one, increase the dramatic effect of natural light entering the room.
Read more:
Houzz Tour: An Ahmedabad Home Uses Nature to Combat Climate
Beautiful Inside-Outside Bathrooms We Love
Tell us:
Did we change your mind about adding a skylight to your home? Share your thoughts in Comments below.
If your bathroom is a gloomy space, devoid of any windows that can bring in natural light, and if you think that artificial lights are your only option, then think again. Brighten up your bathroom with a skylight instead! Look at how this one above the tub gives the whole room an ethereal glow.
Tip: Position the skylight in a way that it doesn’t cast a shadow when you look into the mirror. Also, as tempting as it may seem, resist the urge to have too many of them in one room. One strategically placed skylight can speak volumes.