Design Tips for Hiding Ceiling Lights

To make recessed lights disappear, match their trim to your ceiling color.


A key aspect of any room's design, lighting creates a mood, provides concentrated illumination for tasks and can even highlight artwork or architectural features. But sometimes you don't want a big chandelier or large lamp pulling focus in a space. Ceiling lighting is a way to illuminate a room with hidden fixtures that allow other elements in the decor to take center stage. But it's important to use ceiling lights in the right way or you'll only wind up calling attention to fixtures that you want to hide.

Match Fixture Trim with Ceiling

Recessed lights are usually your best bet if you're trying to hide lights in your ceiling. Because the fixture is fitted into the ceiling itself, only the trim shows, making it very discreet. If your ceiling color contrasts with the recessed lighting's trim, however, you'll only wind up calling attention to a feature that you're trying to hide. Since white is one of the most commonly used ceiling colors, opt for recessed fixtures that have white trim instead of a black or metallic finish. They'll blend with the ceiling and disappear into the room.

Consider Placement

While recessed lights are discreet, they can become more obvious in a ceiling depending on the way that you position them. Placing them in a single line or other rigid pattern creates a look similar to an airport runway that naturally draws the eye – but not in a good way. They'll be much less noticeable if they're spread out across the ceiling. To keep the lights hidden, use recessed lights strategically by placing them in certain spots where they can emphasize a piece of artwork or architectural detail in the room or provide focused task lighting.

Use Directional Fixtures

Using too many lights is another way to make recessed ceiling fixtures become more obvious in a room. You may feel like you need to install several in a specific area where there's a painting or vase that you want to highlight, and a single recessed fixture doesn't cast enough light because of its position. Adding another light closer to the artwork may seem like an effective solution, but instead opt for a directional recessed lighting fixture. These lights have an adjustable elbow that allows you to point the light in a specific direction or at a single object. You won't need as many lights, but you'll still be able to highlight the items that you want. Directional recessed fixtures are also a discreet way to widen the look of a hallway or room.

Hide with Crown Molding

While recessed fixtures may be one of the more common ways to hide lights in the ceiling, they aren't your only option. Rope lighting is an ideal alternative because it's flexible and easy to tuck in a variety of places. One of the best ways to use rope lighting for a ceiling is to hide it behind a piece of decorative molding at the top of the wall. The light creates a halo around the room, but the fixture itself isn't visible at all. When installing your crown molding, leave it unattached at the top and use support blocks to hold it in place. Doing so creates a trough between the wall and molding where you can place the rope lighting so it washes over the ceiling. You can use a similar technique to hide lighting in a tray ceiling as well.

About the Author


Photo Credits

  • Goodshoot/Goodshoot/Getty Images
Suggest a Correction