Updated Kitchen Light Makes a Big Difference

[Paper Boy]

LAST SUMMER I decided to update my 25-year-old kitchen.

I say "update" as opposed to "remodel" because I did not change the beautiful 10- by 10-inch Italian tile floor, or the golden oak cabinets with glass door fronts or the 4-by-4-inch red ceramic tile counter tops and back splashes or the two walls that are bricked.

All of the above was in excellent condition and, frankly, I am a firm believer in "If it's not broken, don't fix it!"

But what this kitchen did need was new lighting. Knowing that aging eyes (mine were only 27 years old when I designed this kitchen's lighting, these eyes are now 54) need a better kind of light and more of it to be comfortable. Remodeling the lighting in my kitchen improved my comfort and made the kitchen appear larger and different.

First, we removed the two

6-foot long recessed fluorescent fixtures. They were framed in oak and had gray grid panels dropped in. They were situated in the middle of the kitchen ceiling, illuminating just what was directly underneath it which was the island.

This location created lots of dark shadows around the perimeter of the room. So we sealed up the recesses and spread evenly throughout the room 12 canned lights, each with a 75-watt halogen bulb in it. Voila, let there be light!

This change increased the size of the room visually and allowed me to point the light onto that beautiful brick wall, giving it a life and vigor it had never had with the old fluorescent bulbs.

Second, we added halogen task lighting under the wall hung cabinets above my counter tops.

Where before I was confined to always using the counter tops on the island because of the fluorescent light placements, now I could see to prep food on all my counters because of this energy efficient task lighting.

Third, I hung two pendant lights over the sink area and another pendant light over the kitchen table.

These fixtures are more of a decorative statement than a utilitarian light source. I put 25 watt bulbs in these. They are the jewelry in the room and each one is hand-blown Murano glass made in a bell shape.

One is red another blue and the larger of the three is green hanging over the table. In the evening when we are seated to eat our meals at the kitchen table I turn on only these pendant lights, turning off all the canned lighting.

It changes the mood so dramatically that you would think we were in a really nice romantic restaurant!

I was so pleased with the effects of changing and updating the lighting in my kitchen that I actually felt that I had, indeed, remodeled. But I had not, I just updated the lighting. I will confess, I also painted the walls and added new art and decor. But all the other elements stayed as is.

Now my eyes are good for another 25 years, that should make me about 79 years old the next time I update the lighting!


Source: Oakland Tribune
Publication date: June 2, 2007