Curio cabinet lighting
The variety of curio cabinets is almost as diverse as the many types of curios themselves. However, in basic terms of construction and operation, all cabinet styles can be grouped into two broad categories: mirrors again with wood paneling and back paneling. Both require different lighting and techniques in the curio cabinet to optimize the display of the contents. Choosing the right light for a curio cabinet that may have been imported or custom built can be very difficult, if not impossible, especially when shopping online.
Generally speaking, the most difficult hurdle to overcome when custom lighting glass curio cabinets are back reflections. Any light source above the eye is a potential bomb glare. Curio cabinets for solid wood lighting, the problem is the shadow of your pockets as a consequence of the uneven distribution of lighting and the specific size and shape of collection. Anything that casts a shadow, as they say, to try to get rid of all shadows requires multiple fixtures, often causing an eyesore when more than two fixtures are installed.
Many cabinet lighting manufacturers try to find a compromise between brightness, shadows, illumination, and distribution by installing one to three lights above large curio cabinets. These lights shine through a series of glass shelves, lighting stored in the collection process. The reasoning behind this is simple. Cross-platform lighting to eliminate most shadows, and if reflecting a rear end happens to be present, the reflection rather than scatter lighting.
Frankly, this isn’t a bad approach to lighting a curio cabinet, as long as it’s a medium-sized permanent wall cabinet and where the shelves are made of glass. Recessed light passes through the lower shelves and is reflected in the mirror, enveloping the collection process. However, those who visit the safe side of an angle or sitting position do too much glare which blocks out the details of the subjects presented.
This is almost an unavoidable drawback when turning a screen on in front of a mirror of any kind.
In a wall curio cabinet made of dark wood, General glass will pass light to the floor of the cabinet without the bother of reflections. However, each object casts a shadow beneath itself, so without a secondary LED accent lighting source of some kind, there will be more pockets of darkness as the eye moves up and down.
If the shelves are made of wood, which of course blocks the lights, something completely different must be implemented instead.
To generate a lighting display source for your curio cabinet, you may want to go further and consider any of the traditional curio cabinet lights and invest in low-voltage Phantom linear strips instead. These unique, patented lighting strips offer two things no other lighting fixture does: precise fit in the horizontal, vertical, and radius plane, including dimensions, and a low-profile design that hides from normal viewing angles.
Of the six unique Linear Band designs, three offer optimally illuminated curio cabinets with specific features that work to get you through obstacles sooner. The key is the innovative cable technology and the ability to hide and shield the light source itself so the viewer sees the light, not the media.
Ghost Strips can be fitted with incandescent, xenon, or LED lights, each offering unique advantages to the particular type of curio cabinet that light and nature of the collection on display. Curio cabinets with wooden interior mirrors do not need the brightest light possible, so we generally recommend incandescent bulbs to produce white light. You can set the slider to switch to a higher setting when they’re active clients throughout the house, then turn the light down to leave them at lower levels after most people have gone to bed.
Xenon lamps are low voltage lighting for the best choice for a curio cabinet displaying glass, china or silver items. In the world of lighting design, xenon is considered the most sophisticated light source, generating a slightly golden aura that works to enhance detail in more expensive ones.
Considering extreme cost consciousness, Phantom LED lamps now have the ability to provide color at levels roughly equivalent to xenon. Only a lighting expert can really tell the difference, so he or she may want to consider using LED bulbs if your cabinet is on display in an office, library, or special room in the home for more than 20 hours at a time.
Lighting an all-wood curio cabinet offers greater flexibility when lighting a curio cabinet that reflects a backplane(s.) You can use up to three different types of Phantom Linear Strips, all of which remain concealed in any viewing angle. Our Majesty (horizontal) series mounts to the rear of the horizontal frame or to the lower front of a shelf or cabinet top. The VM (Vertical Mount) series mounts to any interior vertical surface. A variety of combinations of the two sets can be used to create a sourceless shelf-life “field” that seems to come from multiple directions. This is shadow free and tends to create an effect that enhances the less expensive and refined shroud look for more sophisticated ornamental curios.
In some wall mirrored curio cabinets, HM series linear strip lights are some of the best curio cabinet lights to use. The depth by forces the light through the mirror surface, and then outwards around the collection. While mirrored panels have the greatest potential for displaying reflections of the cabinet’s linear strip to seated guests, the feature of wall-mounted cabinets closer to the bottom surface actually helps create the optical illusion that the lights are made on top of the box. .
A significant source of lighting effect can be achieved in curio cabinets with our mounted molding (CM series) to fit any round or half round cabinet top. These strips are specifically designed to fit any radius, and can literally move a circle of light down a series of glass shelves, without shadows or drops in lighting levels. The interior is reflected in the mirrors, the field of light they generate is truly radiant and seems to come from within and around the exhibits.