11 Frugal Modern Bedside Lighting Tips for an Innovative Look

Let me guess. You’re tired of your traditional, old lighting and FINALLY looking for a bedroom lighting upgrade. I have the perfect solution for you: frugal modern bedside lighting tips.

I wrote this blog post for people just like you, who realize that modern lighting is trending. To stick with the trend, the best place to begin is your bedside table and make sure that it looks as modern as possible.

Why trust me? I’ve been writing about home decor and home gadgets for the past 3 years. So it’s safe to say I have a few budget tips and tricks sitting in my back pocket.

With these ultimate tips, you can improve your bedside lighting while sticking to your budget. I promise you will not spend a dime over your budget as long as you follow these modern bedside lighting tips.

Understanding the Importance and Benefits of Bedside Lighting

Bedside lighting itself is one of the best additions to your overall bedroom lighting. Why? Because it gives more aesthetic to your bedroom by creating warm, dim lighting.

Bedside lighting also has many purposes that make it worth your money. For example, you can have a nightstand, reading light, or any other light fixture for pure decoration. Whatever suits you and your bedroom the best!

My favorite part about bedside lighting is that it’s easily accessible from your bed. Kinda common sense, huh?

But the feeling of rolling to the side of your bed and turning your light on and off is unbeatable. You no longer need to get out of your comfy bed sheets on a cold night. Simply roll over and the job is done.

Modern Bedside Lighting vs. Traditional Bedside Lighting

I’ve had many people ask me “why should I pick modern bedside lighting over traditional bedside lighting?”

Here’s my answer: it’s trendy, it’s more aesthetic and luxurious, and it may increase the resale value of your home.

The appearance of modern vs traditional bedside lighting comes down to your personal preference. Some people prefer the look of traditional lighting over modern lighting, and that is completely OK.

As you probably guessed, I’m not one of those people. I prefer modern bedroom lighting because it gives a more luxurious bedroom look. And in my past 3 years of writing about home decor, my readers have largely agreed.

Plus, modern lighting is trendy, meaning that more people are likely to want a bedroom with modern lighting over traditional lighting. This will only increase the value of your home by a slight amount, but remember, every penny counts on a budget. That’s what I always stick by.

What Are The Best Modern Bedside Lighting Tips on a Budget?

If you’re wondering how you can get the best modern bedroom lighting look on a budget, don’t worry. I guarantee that it is certainly possible. You can save a lot more money than you think.

All you need to do is follow along with these frugal modern bedside lighting tips to improve your lighting style and give your bedroom a unique design.

Tip 1: Use Pendant Lights for Greater Aesthetic

Pendant lights are the best type of light fixtures to create an aesthetic in your room almost immediately. They have a stylish and minimalistic design that makes them well-suited for modern bedroom lighting.

Honestly, they’re basically a sophisticated mini ceiling light for your bedside table. Plus, they provide great lighting for your bedside table without taking any space.

But there are many types of pendant lights, so you may be confused as to which one is best for your bedroom design. Don’t worry, I was SO overwhelmed when I first started.

To achieve the most modern lighting design, I highly suggest that you invest in pendant lights that cast a warm glow directly underneath it or around it.

Pro tip: Make sure the pendant light you choose does NOT light up your entire room. This will ruin the purpose of bedside lighting.

My Favorite Pendant Light Ideas for Modern Bedside Lighting

Keeping all the details in mind, I’ve come up with my top 3 favorite pendant lights that work with any bedroom (or even living room). Oh and don’t worry; they’re all budget options.

1. Adjustable Height Gold Pendant Light (Check current price on Amazon)
2. Modern Design 2-Light U-Shaped Pendant Lighting (Check current price on Amazon)
3. Black Geometric Modern Pendant Light Fixture (Check current price on Amazon)

Tip 2: Use Wall Sconces for Cozy Bedside Lighting + Bonus Purpose

A big part of modern interior design is sophistication, and wall sconces are one of the best light fixtures to give your bedroom a rich and cozy ambiance.

As I said earlier, bedside pendant lights are great to illuminate your bedside table. However, wall sconces don’t do that job as well as pendant lights do. But what wall sconces are better for is task lighting.

Task lighting is any type of light fixture that shines directly at one area to help you do some sort of task.

So what exactly do wall sconces help you with? Reading. More specifically, reading in your bed. Note the cozy ambiance once again.

Now, here’s where the “budget factor” comes in. By investing in reading wall sconces, you hit 2 targets at once.

1. You accomplish modern bedside lighting through almost any wall sconces
2. You get more value for your money by using the wall sconces to help you read in your bed.

Pro tip: Be careful, not all wall sconces help with bedside reading. So if you read in your bed often, make sure to get reading bedside wall sconces.

Tip 3: Opt for Multi-Functional Bedside Lamps

The good part about modern home decor is that they usually have multiple purposes. Guess what this means for you and me? More value for our money. And that’s my goal of writing this blog post.

So my biggest modern bedside lighting tip for bedside lamps is making sure it works as a nightstand and a charger for your phone. Older versions typically have a USB port, but newer ones come with wireless charging.

Yes, it’s a really minor detail but trust me when I say it truly increases your comfort. Rather than buying a separate charger and wasting space on your table, all you need is one bedside lamp. Time to say goodbye to wires.

Tip 3 Bonus: Styling Your Bedside Table Lamps to Create Modern Bedside Lighting

You can spend thousands of dollars on lamps, but they’re going to serve your bedroom no real value unless you style them properly. And styling them isn’t even hard. It’s just a few simple tips that you need to follow.

To achieve a modern bedside lighting look, you need to match the lamps with the overall color scheme of your bedroom and/or your desk.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that you need the same color for every single home decor accessory in your bedroom. That would look terrible.

What I’m saying is to make sure the colors go well together. For example, if you have dark brown bedside tables, consider a white or a beige table lamp. The goal is to complement your colors.

Tip 4: Match Table Lamps

This modern bedside lighting tip goes hand-in-hand with tip #3. As much as I love bedside table lamps, I don’t want you to make this really COMMON mistake.

And that mistake is mismatching your table lamps. If you want the best modern bedroom design, you need to match table lamps. In other words, use the same table lamp for both bedside tables on both sides of your bed.

However, if you only have one bedside table and your budget doesn’t let you purchase another one, don’t worry. Make the most of what you have by decorating your bedside table for a modern look.

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Tip 5: Consider Floating Shelves with Integrated Lighting

Pay close attention to the lighting decor idea above. Notice how the floating shelf is placed above the bedside table? Notice how its integrated light shines onto the table beneath it? That’s the goal.

I call this your personalized 2-piece bedside table set. And no, that’s not an official name, so you won’t find it anywhere else on Google.

But the reason why I love this lighting style is because it eliminates the need for any other light fixture. In other words, it creates bedside layered lighting with as little money as possible.

Plus, in how many homes have you seen this combination? I’m guessing few to none.

That’s why it’s the most modern bedside lighting style that stands out.

Tip 6: Try DIY Modern Bedside Lighting Projects

The cheapest way to achieve any type of lighting is by doing it yourself. So it’s time to unleash your DIY talent and get the modern bedroom makeover you’re looking for!

If you’re thinking “I do NOT have artistic ability,” I still recommend giving it a shot. Trust me, it always turns out better than you expect.

To guide you, here’s my favorite step-by-step tutorial on how to create a simple DIY modern bedside lighting project even for beginners:

With this tutorial, you will still need to purchase a few items. However, it will be MUCH cheaper than buying store-made light fixtures. Here’s how I see it: a little hard work = lots of money saved.

Tip 7: Emphasize Minimalist Design Principles

Don’t fall into the trap of overloading your bedroom with tons of lighting and other decor accessories. You’re wasting your money and you’re not getting anywhere close to a modern bedroom design. It’s honestly a lose-lose.

So what do you do instead? You take a minimalist design approach. This simplicity creates a warm and welcoming environment that is much more modern than hundreds of colors and accessories.

The way you choose to style your bedroom, especially the area around your bedside, will have a huge impact on how modern your lighting will look. Here are some styling tips to enhance your modern bedside lighting:

Replace Bedding Linens with Neutral Colors

Vibrant bedding sheets immediately stand out…but in a bad way. Their brightness distracts from the lighting, ruining the elegance of your bedroom lighting.

I highly suggest that you replace any vibrant bedding linens with neutral colors, such as beige. These calm, warm colors will add to your lighting rather than take from it.

My favorite part about neutral bedding is that your bedside lighting will reflect off these colors and create a modern bedroom ambiance.

Ensure Clean Lines Throughout Your Bedroom Design

What exactly does “clean lines” mean? In simple terms, “clean lines” means to make sure that everything in your bedroom is aligned and creates straight lines throughout your bedroom.

Clean lines are key to any type of modern decor but are especially useful for modern bedside decor. This means making sure your two bedside tables are aligned with each other and the bed.

Yes, this tip is truly that simple and easy.

Don’t Overload Your Bedside Tables

A modern look means a modern approach to cleaning. So keep your bedside table as clean as possible and declutter often.

You should only have a few things on your bedside tables, such as your bedside lamp and 1-2 decor accessories.

As you probably guessed, the bedside lamp creates modern bedside lighting, while the 1-2 decor accessories create a warm ambiance. In turn, this warm ambiance contributes to the modern lighting look you’re going for.

Tip 8: Include Dimmer Switches

The great part about modern lighting is that it has high functionality. For bedside lighting, one of the most important types of functionality is dimming your light.

Dimming your lighting is so important because it opens up so many more bedroom lighting ideas. You can switch from low brightness and a darker bedroom style to high brightness and a bright bedroom style in the blink of an eye.

Many light fixtures already come with the ability to dim. However, if your light fixture doesn’t, don’t worry. You can install dimmer switches that work for all types of lighting, including LED lights.

Dimmer switches are typically only about $10, which also makes them a super affordable add-on for modern lighting. It’s what I call small money for a huge impact.

Tip 9: Harness Natural Light Whenever Possible

This tip is crucial for saving money. Artificial light is expensive, and it will run your electricity bill up. So what’s the alternative? Maximizing natural light.

Letting in more natural light into your bedroom has two main benefits. The first benefit is that you will save money, as I just discussed. The second benefit is that it will bring you closer to your primary goal: a modern bedside lighting look.

Natural light is ALWAYS key to any type of home decor design, whether it be for your bedroom, living room, or even dining room. As the sun pours into your home, it will reflect and illuminate everything much brighter than artificial light can.

That’s not even the best part. The best part is that natural light leaves a unique warm glow in your bedroom that no other artificial light source can make. That’s modern.

Tip 10: Explore Thrift Stores

A common misconception is that modern lighting has to be expensive. Modern lighting can only be bought from luxurious stores that overprice their products. I’m here to tell you: no it doesn’t.

You can purchase modern lighting from various other places, my favorite being thrift stores. If you’ve followed the tips above, you probably have a good idea as to what kind of modern bedside lighting fits your vibe the most.

Keeping some bedroom lighting ideas in mind, head to your local thrift store and just explore! You may find yourself a modern light fixture that fits your bedroom perfectly!

And don’t worry if you don’t. You could also find a part of a light fixture that you can use to create a DIY modern bedside lighting project.

Tip 11: Choose Energy Efficient and Long Lasting Light Bulbs

The type of light bulbs you use makes a much bigger difference than you might initially think. Here are 3 things to look for in a light bulb:

1. Long lifespan
2. Low upfront cost
3. Energy efficiency

For budget long-term maintenance, what you need to pay the closest attention to is its lifespan and energy efficiency. The most energy-efficient AND long-lasting light bulbs are LED light bulbs.

On average, LED lights have an 80-90% higher efficiency than traditional incandescent light bulbs. This means you won’t have to replace them every few months and you save money on your energy bills.

That’s why I highly recommend that you choose LED bulbs. Plus, they look more modern, bringing you one step closer to frugal modern bedside lighting!

Conclusion

Remember, modern doesn’t always mean more expensive. You can absolutely achieve modern bedroom lighting on a budget and make your bedside as unique as possible.

All you really need is a clear vision of the type of lighting you want, good styling techniques, and some frugal lighting strategies. As long as you follow the budget tips outlined above, you can achieve your frugal modern bedside lighting quickly and easily!

Also, never be afraid to create your own bedside lighting ideas. You can slightly change some of the tips I gave you above to fit your personal preferences and bedroom better.

For other budget home decor ideas and tips, whether it be for your living room, dining room, family room, or kitchen, follow my Pinterest page. I publish budget home decor ideas every single day for people just like you!

Meet The Author

Hi! I’m Anish, your budget buying guide! I’ve been reviewing home gadgets and accessories for the past 3 years, so it’s safe to say I know a thing or two about home products.

So why did I start writing these guides? Because I saw that people were spending WAY too much money on home products when there were SO MANY cheaper alternatives out there.

I want to help you save money on your home gadgets without compromising the appearance and functionality of your home. So what better way is there than simply writing about how I do it myself?

I want to show you how you can change the landscape of your home without spending a dime more than what is required. You can save more money than you might think!

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