LED strip lights  are a completely new form of illumination providing new solutions in lighting and interior design. Similar applications were the incandescent rope lights, yet those lights were solely for décor purposes and a hard to fix source of light with 360 degrees beam angle. The same rope light form of LEDs is also available, but in this article we wish to discuss the LED strip lights, which illuminate on one side only.

The major improvement with LED strip lights is that they are suitable for strong task lighting as well, not only décor or background lighting. Some LED strips are so bright that a metre can replace even a 60W incandescent light. There are also several advantages of LEDs, like the very low power consumption, long lifespan, durability, low maintenance or their eco-friendly features. So let’s see how these lights with exclusive features can replace many existing lighting solutions and provide new forms of decoration.

First of all, LED strip lights which are bright enough for task lighting are perfect replacements for under-cabinet fluorescent tubes in kitchens for instance. LED strips are flat and usually only 3mm thick, so they are easy to hide and require little space. Strip lights can also be dimmed, unlike fluorescent tubes, so they are an easy switch between mood and strong task lighting. The same strong local lighting can be used as an additional source of light around the bed, above any worktop or desktop. If you need a very strong source of light, you can use several strips running in parallel, in full lengths or cut into smaller sections too. LED strips, working at 12V are safe electronic devices and therefore can be placed even within the reach of children. An additional advantage of the LED strip lights is that they are available with various IP ratings, including submersible waterproof ones.

There is a couple of places where dimmable LED strips are frequently used – especially because these places might require strong task light at times and mood lighting at others. Such places could be a strip running along the stairways, or edges of furniture, behind mouldings (these can be good places to add some supplementary lighting to the room, within a cabinet illuminating shelves or under-cabinet light illuminating worktops, around mirrors or pieces of artworks, or in bathrooms for vanity lighting. With strip lights it is easy to make small or narrow spaces feel larger, like a hallway or a corridor, which are often windowless and can always use some extra light.

Accent lighting gains more significance in large spaces, like a living room, where downlighters always need some supplementary lighting in the corners, or near the walls, near sofas, furniture, etc. For this purpose LED strips for mood lighting are a perfect solution. These lights can be combined or opted as multi-coloured strips too, allowing you to switch between the simple white light and various colours according to your mood. To see the full range of LED strip lights and controllers, dimmers click here .