Have you ever noticed how you can do a huge amount of real, fundamental work on an interior then visitors notice the tiniest of details like an ornament or a cushion etc.?

Sometimes, this can be a good thing; it means the room is just right and the minor details picked out by a visitor are the icing on the cake. Other times – this can be frustrating. If these minor details aren’t quite right for some reason, they can detract from the overall effect and all the hard work you’ve done.

Perhaps no relatively small detail has a bigger effect on the overall look and feel of a room as the switches. It’s amazing how the right switch can lend a real touch of style or elegance to a room – whilst the opposite is also very true.

Most notably; a rocker switch plate can become a room’s ideal finishing touch, complementing the overall design and feel of a room in a way that people either notice directly or simply take in as part of the overall ambience. Alternatively, a cheap or poorly selected rocker switch plate can have the opposite jarring effect on the design and feel of a room.

So, what is a rocker switch? Well this is familiar to most people as a standard light switch fitting. Rocker switches are usually placed flush to the wall, and are switched on and off through the rocking of the flat-shaped lever (unlike pushing the handle of a toggle switch etc.).

The covering plate and rocker switch itself are particularly important from an interior design viewpoint, though of course the underlying mechanism is crucial for safety and longevity and you generally get what you pay for in this regard. In other words; never be tempted to buy the really cheap rocker switches even for an area of your home where you aren’t too bothered about designs like a basement or garage etc.

Trusted online suppliers like Maplins, RS Components and others include full technical specifications with all their rocker switch options.

Rocker switch plates come in many different styles, finishes and materials such as brushed nickel, porcelain, clear and coloured plastics, wood, pewter, copper, bronze and iron. Designs go from modern to classic, and plain to ornate. So it’s important to get your selection right to complement the overall look of a room or even a whole house. So, for example, the right switches with identical rocker switch plates in all rooms can help pull together the overall design of a house, creating unity; a continual flow of design through the house if this is the desired effect.

Alternatively, different rocker switch choices can help create different themes for different rooms which can be a lot of fun. The only limits here are your own imagination and creativity. But getting the switch details right has an overall design effect far in excess of the cost, so it’s well worth investing a little extra time and effort here