Cove lighting is a form of indirect lighting that emanates from fixtures placed on or near the ceiling of a room. Generally, linear cove lights reside within or alongside ledges, ceiling recesses, or valances and can be used to provide anything from general room lighting to accent lighting and ambient lighting. Linear cove lights may be fitted with any number of bulb types, and typically come equipped with dimmer controls that allow for lighting levels to be adjusted in order to fit the mood and purpose of the occasion.

Linear cove light strips offer the distinct advantage of being almost completely concealable. Because they are composed of fixtures made from thin strips of material, they can be fitted to almost any surface where there is a change in the ceiling plane.

This includes more places than you might initially think.

Almost every home today has some variation in ceiling height, and many custom homes have vaulted ceilings with large skylights or places to hang chandeliers. Hotels tend to have ornately designed lobbies, with the ceiling being equally decorative and possibly consisting of multiple “levels” of interior architecture. Office foyers also tend to have variances in the ceiling, and any lighting here can help set the tone for meetings with visitors and clients. All of these places can be illuminated and enhanced with linear cove rope or strip lights.

One of the reasons that linear cove lighting strips are so popular is because it is an indirect source of light. Indirect lighting relies upon reflection to distribute light rather than aiming the light directly at the subject. Because reflection disperses photons in all directions, indirect light tends to create a “wash” of light that cascades downward onto a room or along side of a wall. In the case of linear cove lights, this has the effect of causing the ceiling area to glow with a gentle luminescence that dispels shadows around beams, contours, and decorative fixtures. It also works to minimize glare because light that has already been reflected off of a ceiling or wall is less intense and therefore less likely to produce glare if it strikes a shiny surface in the room.

Cove lighting helps to accentuate elevation changes in the ceiling and to showcase keynotes of interior architecture. When fitted with dimmer controls, linear cove lighting strips can be turned down to create accent lighting for mood, or then can turned up to create a brighter level of general lighting that adds to a room's functional and task light.

Most linear lighting manufacturers use very thin pieces of metal or plastic to aid in concealing them from plain view. Any number of lamp styles can be fitted to these fixtures, ranging from incandescent and fluorescent to xenon and the new, power-saving Phantom LED strip lights. The choice of bulb depends mainly on the environment to be lit and the desired effects of the lighting on that environment. Incandescent lamps produce a very white light and make for excellent room lighting. Xenon light has a slightly golden aura to its tone that makes it ideal for decorative and ambient lighting. LED light bulbs can be used for both general or accent lighting and use only 20% of the electricity as other types of bulbs.

Today's linear cove lights are almost as diversified as the many interiors they illuminate.