Bathroom Lighting

Bathroom lighting is the one place in a house where bad light has consequences you notice every morning. A single ceiling fixture above a mirror casts shadows straight down — under the eyes, under the chin, into every hollow of a face. It's the reason so many people think they look worse at home than anywhere else. The fix is cheap and it's geometric, not aesthetic.

Light your face, not the top of your head

The rule is simple: light should come at your face from the sides, at roughly face height. A ceiling fixture lights the top of your head and leaves everything below it in shadow.

The best solution is a pair of sconces flanking the mirror, mounted at about 66 inches from the floor and roughly 36 to 40 inches apart. Light arrives from both sides, shadows cancel, and the result is even and flattering. It's what every well-lit bathroom you've ever been in was doing.

The workable alternative is a vanity light bar above the mirror. Mount it about 75 to 80 inches from the floor, or roughly 3 inches above the top of the mirror. Choose a fixture with shades pointing down or diffusing outward rather than a bare-bulb strip — a bar aimed straight down recreates the shadow problem it was meant to solve.

Width. A vanity bar should be about 75% of the mirror's width, or roughly one-third the vanity width if there's no mirror to match.

Wet locations and what's required

Bathrooms are damp environments and Canadian electrical code treats them accordingly.

Fixtures over a vanity in a normally ventilated bathroom generally need to be damp-rated. Anything inside or directly above a shower or tub enclosure must be wet-rated and, in most cases, on a GFCI-protected circuit. This isn't a formality — it's what your insurer and any future home inspection will look at.

Look for the CSA or cUL mark. An uncertified fixture in a wet location is a genuine liability, not just a technicality.

Colour temperature and CRI — the two specs that decide everything

Colour temperature: 2700K to 3000K. Warm white. It's flattering, and it matches the light you'll actually be seen in most evenings. Some people prefer 3500K to 4000K for makeup application because it's closer to daylight — but be aware that makeup applied under 4000K light can read heavy under warmer light later.

CRI: aim for 90 or higher. Colour Rendering Index measures how accurately a light source shows colour. A low-CRI bulb makes skin tone, hair colour and cosmetics all read wrong. This single spec matters more in a bathroom than in any other room, and it's the one most people never check.

Wiring and installation

Every fixture is built for 120V at 60Hz standard Canadian residential supply — no adapter, no transformer, no rewiring. Vanity lights and bathroom sconces are hardwired: swapping an existing fixture on a sound box is a reasonable DIY job with the breaker off, but a new fixture location in a bathroom is electrician work, and in most provinces it needs a permit.

If there's no wiring where you want a sconce, a plug-in model is a legitimate alternative — opening tiled walls is expensive and rarely worth it.

From a Canadian company that has stood under a bad vanity light at 6am.

Frequently asked questions

How high should a vanity light be mounted?

A bar above the mirror goes 75 to 80 inches from the floor, roughly 3 inches above the mirror top. Sconces flanking a mirror go at about 66 inches, 36 to 40 inches apart.

Are sconces better than a vanity light bar?

For lighting a face, yes. Sconces at either side of the mirror light from both directions and cancel shadows. A bar above the mirror is a good second option if the wall space doesn't allow sconces.

What size vanity light do I need?

Roughly 75% of the mirror's width. With no mirror to match, about one-third the vanity width.

What colour temperature is best for a bathroom?

2700K to 3000K for general use. Some prefer 3500K to 4000K for makeup, though cosmetics applied under cooler light can look heavier under warm evening light.

Does bathroom lighting need to be damp-rated?

Fixtures over a vanity generally need a damp rating. Anything inside or directly above a shower or tub enclosure needs a wet rating and usually GFCI protection.

What CRI should I look for?

90 or higher. CRI measures how accurately a light shows colour — the single most important spec for a bathroom, and the one most often ignored.