How to Use Layers of Light to Light a Game Room

Want to give your rooms that “decorator” look? Learn how to use layers of light to set the stage and easily change the feel of your space!

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Today, I’m so excited to share my game room with you!

We’ll be taking a look at how using layers of light, or light from multiple sources in the room, helps you to create different moods in your rooms.

I recently shared my plan to make over my game room.

Let’s take a look at where this project started!

Dining room with dark green walls and ceiling with a pool table and bad lighting

This room is technically a formal dining room, but my husband and I have never entertained that way.

We’re more kitchen table kind of people when we have friends over to eat!

So we chose to turn this space into a game room, but never took the time to finish the space.

Even though it’s visible from both our front door and the kitchen.

But for a long time, decorating my home just wasn’t a big priority.

Weekends were filled with soccer games, basketball games, practices, and baseball tournaments.

Now that season of my life has come to an end and I actually have time to tackle more projects!

Which is kinda bittersweet.

And also a silver lining.

But that’s a whole different topic, isn’t it?

Dining room with dark green walls and ceiling with a pool table

Transforming a Dark Game Room with Layers of Light

After giving my game room a fresh coat of paint, I wanted to make the space even more inviting with new lighting that was appropriate for the room.

Woman standing next to a pool table in a home game room holding a pool stick.

It was so easy to choose the best lighting options thanks to Lamps Plus!

The filter option on their website helps with narrowing down their huge selection! And did you know, they have so much more than just lamps!

So let’s take a look at how I lit my game room using different layers of light.

Overhead Lighting

I started by choosing an overhead light to go over the pool table.

Pool table in a game room with bronze pool table light, wall sconces and floor lamp. A black painted buffet table with mirror is on far wall reflecting the pool table light. Pool balls are racked and ready to play.

This is the Richardson 36-inch wide Bronze Kitchen Island Pendant.

It has seeded glass cylinders for each of the lights, and can be installed with a dimmer switch to give you even more options for how you light your space. Just be sure to choose light bulbs that are made to be dimmed.

Since overhead lighting generally fills a room with light, many people stop with just an overhead light source.

Pool table in a game room with bronze pool table light, wall sconces and floor lamp. A black painted buffet table has a table lamp on it with leather counter stools. Pool table light and table lamp are illuminated.

But if you want your room to have the look you see in magazines? You’re gonna wanna add some additional lights.

Accent Lighting

For instance, try adding wall sconces. They’re considered accent lighting and can create beautiful and interesting pools of light on your walls.

This is the Casa Mirada Vintage Bronze Outdoor Wall Light.

Close up of bronze wall sconce with seeded glass illuminated in a game room

I love that the finish is the same as the light over the pool table, and it also has seeded glass cylinder shades.

Just because a light fixture says it’s an outdoor light doesn’t mean you can’t bring it inside!

Isn’t the butterfly pattern the light makes on the walls so pretty?

Task Lighting

Table lamps are great for task lighting, and this lamp does a beautiful job illuminating the buffet table in my game room.

Black painted console table with a rectangular black and gold mirror hanging over. The table holds a tray with beer and snacks and a lit table lamp. Leather bar stools flank the console.

This is the Andreas Industrial Night Light Table Lamp and it even has a USB port! I love that you have so many options for the amount of light this one lamp puts out!

I often just turn on the night light when we’re not using the room to help the front of my home not look so dark.

It has the same bronze finish as all the other lighting in my game room. And the burlap lamp shade adds such great texture.

Multi-purpose Lighting

Floor lamps are super versatile, because not only can they work for task lighting, they can also provide general room lighting.

Can you believe only my floor lamp is turned on in this picture?

This is the Menlo Lane Black-Bronze 3-Light Seedy Glass Floor Lamp.

That name pretty much sums up all the reasons why I chose this lamp! It coordinates perfectly with all the other lighting in my game room.

Game room with a 3-light floor lamp in the corner next to a potted tree. Shelf hangs on the wall holding pool table accessories. Window has wood blinds.

And its foot pedal switch makes it so easy to turn on when my hands are full of snacks on game nights.

I decided to add this floor lamp to my plan when I moved the buffet out of this corner and onto the long wall.

Another great selling point for floor lamps is how they can brighten up dark corners like this one in my game room.

Layers of Light Let You Change The Mood of Your Room

The lighting in this room really wouldn’t be complete without all these different lights working together.

It’s so easy to create different moods for the room with the flick of a switch.

Whether I’m just using the night light on the table lamp, or any of the other combinations of lights.

All the layers work together to light my game room beautifully.

And since there’s nothing like a good before and after, check these out!

This is the view from my kitchen:

side by side comparison of a dining room turned into a game room with a pool table

And here’s the view from my foyer:

Do you use layers of light in your home?