Kitchen Lighting Plan
We are nearing the final stretch of our kitchen renovation and now it’s time to talk about the fun stuff! Colin is taking care of everything important, like making sure the house is structurally sound, walls, floors, etc. Meanwhile I get to pick things like a kitchen lighting plan. Although it has been a lot of fun, it is also quite hard to decide on coordinating lights for two full rooms! Bravo to designers who plan an entire house at once! It took me about a month to finally decide on our kitchen lighting plan, but I’m excited to share it today.
Those who have been following along with this renovation on Instagram may know that our kitchen renovation also includes the dining room. We had to move a tricky staircase that separates the kitchen/dining room, so both rooms are getting renovated. Each room previously only had one light, so we have been accustomed to a pretty dark house. Our goal with the kitchen lighting plan was to add layers of light, rather than replace just the single big light. In addition to layered lighting, they will also be on dimmers. I love the idea of setting the mood with light and these options will allow for that!
Sink Light
The hunt for this light brought me into the new century as I finally learned how to use google image search. A few months ago I fell in love with a light fixture in a home designed by Reath Design. When my keyword search failed, I decided to give google images a try and wow! It was so easy! Why haven’t I used it before?! Unfortunately the search produced a very much out of my budget option. The fixture I had fallen in love with was designed by Otto Muller in the 1940s and was available for purchase on 1stDibs for over $1,000. Although I love the light, I didn’t think it was worth blowing our budget for (we already did that with another light, more on that below). Luckily, 1stDibs had a very informative description of the fixture and I was able to use those keywords to find a light of similar style. This one is not quite as magnificent as the original light, but it will work for us! It is available from DecoCreation Studio on Etsy.
Buffet Lights
As we spend more and more time in our 1958 house, I have come to realize that I am drawn to early mid century design more so than the late 50’s and 60’s styles. I even prefer the short-lived streamline moderne look to the more atomic look that was adopted in the 50’s. For this reason I have started to search for more streamline and 1940’s style finishes. That search brought me to schoolhouse lights. Although they were popular long before the 1940’s, it was still a fashionable look in early mid century houses. Schoolhouse lights feel so timeless to me and I am excited to introduce them in our house! I love the hint of seafoam on this light and think it will go well with the kitchen backsplash. We will put a pair of these over the new dining room buffet.
Island Light
Remember when I mentioned blowing the lighting budget. Well, here it is! Dutton Brown has been on my radar for a few years and I’m stupidly excited to use one of their pieces in our kitchen. This semi-flush mount will go over our island. When I started the island light search, I just assumed we would end up with two pendants. Pinterest and other home decorating websites seem to only feature islands with multiple pendants. Since our ceilings are only 8 feet high, statement pendants would have been difficult to use, especially for Colin. With pendants out of the question, I began the hunt for an eye-catching semi-flush light. It turns out there are not many options for large semi-flush lights. Many are understandably made for smaller spaces like a bathroom or hallway. Which brings us to this beauty by Dutton Brown. It was hard to pick a color, but we landed on Slate Blue as it will pair nicely with the wood cabinets and light green backsplash.
Countertop Light
To be transparent, this light is most likely a placeholder until I find something I love. The lamp is fine, but it feels a little cold for a kitchen. At the same time, it would be a breeze to clean! See why I have such a hard time making decisions?! I’ll likely wait until most of the other kitchen fixtures are installed before pulling the trigger on a countertop lamp. Maybe I’ll want a pop of red or orange by the time everything is installed! Countertop lamps are super popular right now and I absolutely love the look. I’m all about setting the mood and a countertop light feels so cozy. Let me know in the comments if you have a countertop lamp in your kitchen!
Now that we talked about the statement lights, let’s address the recessed lights. There seems to be a trend on the internet where people are absolutely bashing overhead lights. While I agree to an extent, you really can’t beat a few recessed lights in a kitchen. Speaking as someone who had a single pendant in her kitchen for the last 3 years, I can’t wait to cook in a kitchen with nice lighting. They will all be on dimmers and we will have the option to just use the sink light or the island light. We decided on recessed lights in the dining room because the table will not always be in one spot. It would have been hard to center a light on the room. Also, the buffet is in the dining room and that will have the interesting lights! I hope you enjoyed this kitchen lighting plan roundup. I can’t wait to show you them installed soon!
