One of the commenters on my last post noted how bright with natural light my family room is, and how she wished she had known more about natural light when she bought her first home. I agree with her. Having plenty of natural light really does make a difference, and we often only realise this when we are forced to live in a dark house.
Our last house was very, very dark. There were few windows and the rooms were painted in dark colours. Of particular note was the windowless, blood-red dining room. While by candlelight that room could be atmospheric and dramatic, the rest of the time it was off-putting.
Frustratingly, there was nothing I could do about the paint colours because we were renting. However, one of the things I was looking for when we bought a home of our own again was natural light.
Looking to buy in an old, established area with many 19th and early 20th century homes, good natural light was not a given. Many of the old houses we inspected were very dark - a combination of a Victorian unwillingness to bring the outside in and a natural reaction to Adelaide's hot climate which led to wide eaves and wide, shady verandahs.
I am so happy that the house we eventually bought has plenty of windows, and many of those windows are large. As you can see, our family room has huge windows which provide wonderful natural light. Those windows extend right across the back of the house and mean that we don't need lights on in the daytime even in midwinter. The pergola outside will hopefully provide some shade in summer whilst still letting light in. The room faces south east, so gets morning sun (we're in the Southern Hemisphere so the north-western side is the hottest part of the house.)
Every time I enter this room I feel like smiling. I'm sure it's the light brightening my mood.
