LED backlit mirror, as modern and sleek as they are, do not tend to be ideal for makeup application as they lack direct, front-facing light. This tends to create shadows on the face and make details difficult to see. The majority of these mirrors also possess low brightness, which distorts the makeup colors and makes them more difficult to view.

Installing wall sconces above a mirror is a practical and effective answer especially for makeup users, by bypassing the limitations of LED backlit mirrors. Wall sconces provide direct, front-on illumination, reducing shadows and offering even light coverage across the face. Like these types of lamps:

You can never over-light a bathroom, but you can definitely under-light it and that's the path you are on. We are also minimalist and have 4 sets of lights on different circuits, all with dimmers (bathroom is large). Some are sconces, some recessed. We need a floor plan to give any useful help.

Sconces are best for grooming. Lights over mirrors cast shadows. As Jan says, 45" from the toilet to the vanity is a lot unless you're planning on having a tall linen cabinet in between. If so, not sure that would be the best location for it. A 36" space is sufficient for a toilet. Here are a couple double vanity examples:

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Downlights alone won't light your bathroom sufficiently. They tend to create pools of light on whatever they fall on. For general ambient lighting will suggest an ceiling mounted fixture. For task lighting at the vanity will suggest wall mounted sconces.

@JAN MOYER @BPMBA Hi JAN, BPMBA, and everyone. Thanks so much for your feedback!

Here is a 2D floor plan or layout for this bathroom. The dimension of this bathroom is 133" deep and 60" wide. The double sink vanity that we have decided on (plumbing is done) will be 60" wide.

Here is the current job site photo (under construction):

As you can see, there are total 5 recessed lights in this bath (one is missing in this photo, as it is directly above the bathtub which is on the left of the above photo). Among those 4 (4") recessed lights that are shown in this photo, two of them are directly above the two sinks.

Wife is thinking of having a large mirror above the 60" floating double sink vanity. The size of the mirror would be at least 60" (W) x 36" (H) or even larger, to make the bathroom feels bigger.

My concern for a vanity light on top of the mirror is that it seems to be placed very close to the two existing recessed lights on the ceiling. Should we consider to move those two recessed lights to other locations, or how would you re-arrange or design the light fixtures for this space?

And yes, for that 45" gap between the edge of the 60" vanity and the toilet, we are thinking of placing a cabinet or something to serve almost like a half-wall function (to hide the toilet in sight when entering the bathroom).

Thanks!

You have no dimensions to walls, what is width? 5 '? Length? 8?

What does the vanity look like? Where are sink centers, and that means, exact inches from the entry door WALL to faucet center.

Is this a HALL bath, or is access from a bedroom?

I mean ALL the context: ) as I stated above in earlier post

The drawing shows 3 recessed lights over the vanity up against the wall, 2 recessed lights in the main aisle, and an exhaust fan in the center.

Certainly I would suggest moving the fan (only, not a light/fan combo) to near the exterior wall between tub and toilet, and adding a wet-rated recessed light over the tub.

The vanity and general room lighting has choices. "Minimalist" style to me says stick with only the 2 recessed lights and an integral LED lighted mirror(s).

"Minimalist" to you may still want the decorative contribution from a wall mounted light (over the mirror or sconces at head height). So your mirror selection is one of the data points, e.g. too large a mirror would crowd sconces, or many LED mirrors cannot overcome the shadow of the main ceiling lights behind you and need additional wall/ceiling lighting.

"

@JAN MOYER Hi Jan, all very good questions here.

1. It is a HALL bath. The overall dimension of this bath is 133" L x 60" W (excluding the bathtub area).
2. It would be 14" from the entry door WALL to the first faucet center. Here is a dimension of the 60" floating double vanity (the vanity will be placed against the entry wall)

Since this is a HALL bath and will be shared between two bedrooms, we imagine that the user would mainly be children or teenagers (the master bedroom has its own luxury shower bath). That's why we are debating if we still need additional "above mirror vanity lights" or not (kids may not need to do "make up" as much?). Thoughts? Thanks!

A couple details:

- Your bathroom is 11'-1" long. With a 5' vanity against the wall, don't think of the 45" between toilet tank, think of having 6'-1" around the toilet, more than half the length of bathroom.

- A floating vanity would be better to float horizontally as well, especially when there is 6' open area. Also, adding a linen cabinet would essentially negate the concept of having a floating vanity, and hiding the toilet isn't necessary when only 1 occupant will use the room at a time.

- The 2 recessed over the sink would interfere with wall mounted lights above a mirror. Pick one or the other.

Kids grow into teenagers, who spend A LOT of time on hair and makeup. And then they are visiting you as adult guests. But aside from that, why spend the money and effort on a remodel and not light the bathroom properly? You can choose sconces that still give you a clean minimal look.

Ignore the plumbing (sunk cost) and consider a one-sink vanity. You can make it aysmetrical to use the plumbing as-is for one sink. If you've already ordered the vanity, you can use the second "sink" cabinet with some extra shelves or even off-the-shelf organizer inserts. You really don't need two sinks for a shared bathroom. But the extra storage and counter space will be really useful for two children's items, or even just for extra towels.

I also put two 4" recessed lights in all my showers and tub/showers. A few recessed lights in the bathroom area and sconces or vanity light over the sinks. Each grouping on a separate switch and dimmers for all. You want flexibility ... some dim light in the middle of the night or everything full blast when you need to find the spider you saw run across the bathroom!

Thanks for everyone's feedback!

How about having two (or three?) vertical sconces mounted on top of the large mirror? Something like:

or

or

Would such design clashes with the existing recessed light directly above the two sinks? I don't think we can change the two sinks vanity to just one sink now. Also I don't think we can change the recessed lights location now as the insulation has been put in (next step is to put up drywalls).

Our goal to create a SPA-like hallway shared bathroom for all ages. Thanks!

@3onthetree,

You mentioned that "Minimalist" style to me says stick with only the 2 recessed lights and an integral LED lighted mirror(s). "Minimalist" to you may still want the decorative contribution from a wall mounted light (over the mirror or sconces at head height).

I think we also like the idea of integral LED lighted mirror, but we just don't know whether they are durable and can really last for a long long time. My main worry is that if the LED light failed few years later, do we have to replace the entire mirror or can we just "repair" the LED light? Is it easy to repair such integral LED light? Thanks!

More than likely, you would have to replace the entire mirror just as you will any LED recessed lights. Insulation can easily be removed and put back, you are not ready for drywall if you don't have your electrical buttoned up for a mirror, sconces, or undercab strip lighting.