Q. I am building a new home here in Helena and I am confused about the lighting. How much light is enough?

A. At the Helena Home Show last weekend I had the opportunity to visit with many of you who are in the midst of building a new home.

There are a number of important decisions to be made during the construction process; one of the most important and very commonly overlooked is lighting. A lighting plan for each room should be designed before construction.

If you are working with an interior designer, she can do that for you. If you are on your own, enlist the help of a lighting store. We are fortunate to have some very high-quality lighting stores in Montana with skilled staff. If you don't see what you are looking for in their showrooms, ask to see their catalogs. They can order just about anything.

There are three things to consider when planning your lighting: function, mood and harmony.

The first step is to decide what type of activities will take place in the room. This will determine two things: the amount of ambient (general illumination) needed for overall light and task lighting (the light needed for specific purposes like reading, sewing, cooking etc.).

The second step is determining the mood of the room. A brightly lit room will feel upbeat where as a darker room will feel more intimate and romantic. Don't forget that dark wall colors absorb light so adjust your lighting needs accordingly. Mood is also created by the use of accent lights. This lighting is what adds the real drama to a room, like the uplight in the plant and the spotlight on that special painting.

The third step is harmony. The key to harmony is layering the lighting. Use a variety of light fixtures for task lighting. Plan to have your light flow in different directions such as downward light from recessed fixtures, upward from sconces and sideways from lamps. The intensity of light should also be varied.

One of the most important rooms in the house when it comes to lighting is the kitchen. Many of you spend thousands of dollars on your kitchen cabinets and a fraction of that budget on the lighting. Here are some tips to consider:

For most kitchens, recessed lighting is a must. Recessed lighting provides general overall illumination and will highlight the front of your cabinets and provide task lighting over sink and work areas. Placing the down lights between the front of your cabinets and the front edge of the countertop will give you the best work light without the shadows. Under cabinet lighting provides light on the work surfaces and can give new life to those dark corners.

If you have an island or an eating bar, pendant lights are ideal. These lights are decorative and they give an even down light onto the surface.

Something else to consider when choosing lighting is the type of light: incandescent, halogen or fluorescent. Incandescent light is a warm light that casts yellow and red into a room. Although it enhances your skin tone, incandescent distorts the color of your walls. Halogen is brighter and has a truer, crisper light, and is ideal for kitchens and home offices. Fluorescent light is a cool light, which will cast a blue or green light into your room. However, now there are new fluorescent lights that cast a warmer light.

The best advice I can give you is to plan your lighting as early as possible in the construction process.

Catherine Peressini is an interior designer withThe Design Group in Helena. Address questions you'd like to see answered in this column to thedesigngrp@hotmail.com.