Lighting for jewelry store

I am in the process of moving my studio to more of a retail
situation.

I will have a workspace in the back with a 6x14 area in front to be
used for display. I am having some wall cases made . There will be
lighting in the cabinets and I am doing track holagen lighting from
the ceiling. On the wall opposite the the display cases I want to
have mirrors and my question is… what would be the best
lighting for the mirrors ? most flattering for the human face and
the jewels that hopefully the customers will be trying on??.

Thank you
Kim Kershaw

We use halogen lighting throughout our store. We generally find it is
the most flattering to the metal and the stones. Because every
individual has different skin tones you will never be able to put in
a light system that will take all of the nuances into account, so try
to stick with what’s best for the jewelry.

Daniel R. Spirer, G.G.
Daniel R. Spirer Jewelers, LLC
1780 Massachusetts Ave.
Cambridge, MA 02140
617-2344392

When you consider lighting it is also necessary to pay attention to
the color temperature expressed in Kelvin units and CRI or the
efficiency of the light. I cover this fairly comprehensively in my
book but briefly: Different light sources have different temperatures
and therefore are of different colors and affect the look of the item
being viewed. Hologen light bulbs come in temperatures between 3200
and 4800k. Noon white daylight is approximately 6,000 kelvin. So,
3200 is quite yellow and 4800 begins to approach balanced daylight.
In my office I have created a balanced white daylight grading
enviorment because I sell all sorts of colored gems and although
different gems put their best foot forward in different sorts of
light, on average, they look better in white light. Flourescent
lights do come in balanced white daylight betwee 5500-6500 kelvin.
Unfortunately to much reliance on this type of lighting will make a
jewelry store look like the inside of a fishmarket. So, in our new
gallery we mix both types of light with the objective of getting as
close to balanced daylight as possible.

Richard
http://www.rwwise.com
For Information and sample chapters from my new book: