Recessed lighting is an excellent addition to any home. From a design standpoint you can't beat its versatility. It can highlight a single piece of art, a specific sitting area, or be installed en masse to generally light up a room. It's also an energy efficient product since recessed lighting usually runs on a lower voltage than other options and can be purchased with energy efficient housings. Taking all this into consideration, it's easy to see why this design feature has become standard fare in both new and older homes.
A Solution for Just about Everywhere
There are three main types of lighting that come into play when you design any room or living area. One of the most attractive aspects of recessed lighting is that it can be used to address all of these lighting needs.
Ambient Lighting—Ambient lighting is just another word for general lighting in a home or room. By rimming a room with recessed lights you can create warm and inviting ambient light without worrying about glare or shadows.
Task Lighting—Task lighting refers to light directed towards a particular task oriented area. A recessed light, or group of lights, that illuminate the cutting board and stove on a kitchen island would be an example of task lighting. Another popular use of these fixtures for task lighting is to highlight stairs and entryways.
Accent Lighting—Accent lighting is light that is meant to enhance decorative aspects of your home. Recessed fixtures are excellent answers for highlighting a piece of art, a unique architectural area of your home, or for lighting up grandma's china cabinet in all its glory.
Just Scratching the Surface
Amazingly, the examples above only begin to touch on the benefits of recessed fixtures and their possible uses. Other ideas include recessed bathroom lights over showers, bathtubs and mirrors, task lighting over dining room tables or game areas, and recessed lighting on porches and in landscaping. There's really not a place where recessed fixtures won't fit the bill.
Other Benefits
Besides creating excellent lighting, there are other benefits to going this route when you design the lighting in your home. For one, they are very energy efficient. Most recessed lighting is low-voltage lighting, and in turn will use less electricity. You can also spend a little extra for insulated fixtures, saving you even more money on your energy bills in the long run. Finally, because this type of lighting is tucked away (recessed) into the ceiling or wall where it's installed, it gives a room a larger feel than if other lighting solutions were used. For this reason it has becomes a very popular solution to small hallways, tight corners, bathrooms and the like.
Whether you're designing a new home or just improving on the home you have, check out recessed lighting for all your lighting needs. 
Matt Goering, formerly a carpenter and house painter, is a freelance writer for the home improvement industry who has published over 600 articles.
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