How To Choose The Best Light For Above Your Medicine Cabinet
On a search for the perfect light for above your bathroom medicine cabinet? I have been there!
Actually, just recently I found myself in exactly that situation when helping a client. Their bathroom had extremely limited space and they wanted the extra storage that a medicine cabinet would offer. '
With the way their space laid out, doing a recessed medicine cabinet wasn’t an option because there was electrical and plumbing in the wall behind.
Medicine cabinets, specifically the surface mount type, can pose some extra complications when you also want to have vanity lighting above them.
Especially if your only bathroom light will be the one over your medicine cabinet.
Affiliate Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. You should assume the owner of this website has an affiliate relationship and/or another material connection, to any suppliers of goods and services that may be discussed here and may be compensated for showing advertisements or recommending products or services, or linking to the supplier's website.
* To shop the light shown in the image above, click HERE. *
Why Is Choosing A Light For Above A Medicine Cabinet More Difficult?
Compared to a typical bathroom mirrors, surface mount medicine cabinets stick out from the wall a considerable amount to allow for space inside for storage. The projection away from the wall means that a light fixture should ideally project past the medicine cabinet to allow for a good amount of light to reach the front of the mirror.
Types Of Bathroom Lights For Above A Medicine Cabinet
There are a few different styles of lights that can be installed above a surface mount medicine cabinet. Choosing the right one for you space will most likely depend on your design aesthetic and the other lighting options you have in the bathroom.
Sconces And Single Bulb Lights:
Sconces and one bulb fixtures, such as a gooseneck barn light, can be installed above a medicine cabinet. These tend to look best with smaller width bathroom vanities or when centered over each for sink when used with a double sink vanity. Because there is only one bulb, these fixtures put out a limited amount of light and are best used when limited light is necessary for the space or you have other light fixtures in the room.
Bathroom Vanity Light Fixtures:
This is what most people typically think of for a bathroom vanity light. Bathroom vanity fixtures generally have two or more bulbs with the lights set in a row along the fixture. They will have individual bulbs, often each having their own shade separating them. Vanity light fixtures are great because they come in a wide variety of sizes, styles, and numbers of bulbs to ensure you get the amount of light and design you prefer. These must be installed horizontally above, although some can be installed with the shades going either up or down.
Bath Bar Light Fixture:
Bath bar lighting fixtures often can have multiple bulbs, similar to a typical vanity light, but the way the shade is installed it will look like a solid bar of light when turned on. This style of light fixture can be installed horizontally above a medicine cabinet or could be installed vertically on either size of the medicine cabinet. Bath bars are often thought of as a more sleek and contemporary look, although all different styles of bath bar lighting are available from glam to traditional. There are many size options available with different amounts of bulbs offering more or less light as you prefer for your bathroom.
Choosing The Right Size Light For Above Your Medicine Cabinet
Finding the right size light for your medicine cabinet is incredibly important to make sure you get the best outcome. You are going to want to know your numbers to get it right!
1. Calculate The Light Needed For The Bathroom:
First, you’ll have to consider how much light you want in the bathroom
Think about this: Do you have other lighting in the room? How bright will you want the room to be? Do you plan to apply makeup with this light or is it mostly decorative?
To find the recommended number of light bulbs, you can follow this process -
Calculate the square footage of your bathroom by multiplying the length of the room by the width of the room. For example, a standard bathroom in a home is 8 feet long by 5 feet wide.
8x5= 40 square feet
You will then use the recommended “foot-candle” measurement to calculate how bright the room will need to be. A “foot-candle” is the measurement of light intensity suggested, depending on how a space will be used. A bathroom needs 70-80 foot candles.
You will use the square feet of the room and multiply it by 70 and by 80 to get the range of lumens needed.
40 x 70 = 2800, 40 x 80 = 3200, Lumens: 2800-3200
To obtain that number of lumens needed, you can either have fewer fixtures with brighter bulbs, or more light fixtures with less bright bulbs. The right choice for your bathroom depends on you - your goals, budget and your personal preference.
The amount of lumens put off by a single bulb will depend on whether it is LED or incandescent, and it can vary by bulb manufacturer. But, to give you an idea, generally speaking the following are possible:
40 W Incandescent or 6-9 W LED Bulb: 450 Lumens
60 W Incandescent or 8-12 W LED Bulb: 800 Lumens
75 W Incandescent or 9-13 W LED Bulb: 1100 Lumens
100 W Incandescent or 16-20 W LED Bulb: 1600 Lumens
Using our example, of a 40 square foot bathroom that needs 2800-3200 lumens, if you wanted to have a single vanity light to light the whole room, you would want to choose a vanity light fixture for above your medicine cabinet with:
2 - 100 W (or 16-20 W LED) bulbs or
3 - 75 W (or 9-13 W LED) bulbs or
4 - 60 W (or 8-12 W LED) bulbs
2. Find Your Surface Mount Medicine Cabinet Depth Measurement:
Once you know how much light you will want or need for your bathroom, you can start putting together the pieces to find the right vanity light.
I recommend starting by finding the depth measurement of your selected surface mount medicine cabinet.
This number is incredibly important as it will impact the depth of the vanity light fixture you choose to put above the medicine cabinet and how functional it will be in your space.
Below is a picture of a surface mount medicine cabinet and vanity light we installed.
* To shop the light shown in the image above, click HERE. *
The medicine cabinet was 4” deep, and we knew that in order to have the light be able to shine down onto the sink, it would be important to have the vanity light fixture go past that depth.
We selected a 7” deep bath bar light fixture for over this medicine cabinet. The light was able to shine down and somewhat directly light the sink, which was just what we needed. As expected, there was still a shadow cast along the faucet, where the light was blocked by the depth of the medicine cabinet. Luckily, having the right depth for the vanity light, this was minimized and the amount of light in the room was maximized!
How much should your light stick past the edge of your medicine cabinet? That really depends on your preference. The farther it is past the cabinet and over the sink, the less of a shadow it should cast and the more light that should reach below.
* To shop the light shown in the image above, click HERE. *
3. Measure The Width Of The Surface Mount Medicine Cabinet
Next, you will want to measure the width of the medicine cabinet in order to find the best size width for your vanity light fixture.
Generally speaking, your vanity light should not be wider than the width of your bathroom vanity.
When selecting vanity lights for over a medicine cabinet, I like to choose a vanity light no wider than the medicine cabinet itself. I think that helps to keep the proportions of the space looking visually appealing.
When it comes to a double sink vanity with two medicine cabinets, I would recommend choosing two vanity lights so you can have one over each sink. If you have a single medicine cabinet over a double sink vanity, I would recommend one of two options for the lights. Either have a single vanity light centered over the medicine cabinet, with a width that reaches the center of each sink at a minimum. Otherwise, I would do two vanity lights, one over each sink, but have ensure that the width of each vanity light does not extend past the edge of the medicine cabinet.
4. Put It Together To Find A Vanity Light For Above Your Medicine Cabinet!
You found your ideal number of lumens/bulbs, then the depth measurement of your medicine cabinet, and the width of your medicine cabinet.
Using that information you should be prepared to start discovering the ideal light fixture you have been dreaming of for your space.
Below I have compiled a list of vanity lights that are a wide variety of widths, depths, bulbs, and styles! Many of them come in larger and smaller sizes, so if you see a style you love but need a different size, just click the link or image to learn more.
Sconces And Single Bulb Bathroom Vanity Light Fixtures For Above A Medicine Cabinet:
* Click the image or link to be taken to the seller’s site *
Bathroom Vanity Light Fixtures For Above A Medicine Cabinet
* Click the image or link to be taken to the seller’s site *
Bath Bar Light Fixtures For Above A Medicine Cabinet
* Click the image or link to be taken to the seller’s site *
Conclusion
It is possible to find the perfect vanity light for above your medicine cabinet that looks beautiful and still offers all the functional lighting you want! Taking the time to do some calculations will help ensure your vanity light fixture will blend well into your bathroom and still be the right proportion and brightness needed for how you use the space. I hope this helped you feel confident to choose the best vanity light for you!
Now I want to hear from you - Do you have a medicine cabinet in your bathroom? What type of lighting did you choose for over your medicine cabinet? Let me know in the comments below!
