ADVICE NEEDED! Kitchen Island Pendant Lighting Dilemma

5 years ago

We are just finishing up our new kitchen install. Originally, our island was set to be 98" long (that includes 1" granite overhang on each side). However, last evening when we saw the cabinets comprising the island (before they were installed) - felt that it was overwhelming for the space and decided to have the installer not include one of the 30" cabinets, thus reducing our overall island size to 68". We have 8' ceilings.

I had already purchased our kitchen pendant lights (2 of them - shown below) months ago. Dimensions are 12" square and 18" long and I REALLY wanted the look of 2 lights! I would like others' opinions on using the 2 lights rather than just one (which is where my husband is leaning). I did some figuring and if I had them installed 12" in on each side of the island, I could space them 20" apart.

Thoughts on 2 vs. 1 or abandoning these lights (which I absolutely love) - for something altogether different?

Thanks!

Featured Answer

chicagoans

5 years ago

Good stuff from Beverly above. If you're a visual person (like me) you can also try the balloon trick. Blow up some balloons to be the same size as the lights (as close as possible.) Or you could mock something up with cardboard which would work well since your lights are rectangular (and very cool by the way.) Then hang your mockups on strings from the ceiling. You can play with positioning and length of string to see what you think. Stand by them to check your sight lines when working at the counter, and check them from further away to see how they look.

I did this when I replaced a light in my kitchen with a light that has 3 separate globes that can be hung at different heights. I moved my table under the mocked up "light", sat the kids down for dinner, and fiddled around with the strings until I was happy with the heights of the balloons compared to the table. Then I kept the mockup hung nearby for the electrician to follow as a guide.

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Comments (11)

PRO
RL Relocation LLC
5 years ago
YOU ARE CORRECT. That being said you will only have about 6 inches of chain because the ceiling are low.
Kimberly thanked RL Relocation LLC
PRO
Cabinets by Design LLC
5 years ago
We feel that two pendants will still work well in your space; one would look a little odd. If you mount them 33" off the counter it will leave you 9" of chain which might look a little better than 6".
Kimberly thanked Cabinets by Design LLC
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Hello, there are plenty of examples with 3 pendant lights with chairs lining up underneath. I think it looks quite professional. You can always personalize the kitchen that commercial spaces cannot do.
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The way we fix this problem when making our custom lighting is to make our top canopy large enough to go in the center, but to be able to cover the junction box. You can use any of our pendant lights and we can put multiple ones on a single canopy to go over the island. A single long canopy would probably look best. You can make it with about 2 or 3 pendants for a simple look, or multiple pendants for a full chandelier, or a single long pendant depending on the style you like.
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Chrome is a great choice for a modern look. I'm in America, so I converted 30cm to inches so I could find you some possible ideas. Please note that our website does not ship outside the US, but hopefully these can at least give you some nice ideas. 1. http://www.lightsonline.com/product/george-kovacs-bling-bling-pendant 2. http://www.lightsonline.com/product/kichler-stella-1-light-35-mini-pendant-in-chrome-42216ch 3. http://www.lightsonline.com/product/golden-lighting-harland-1-light-mini-pendant-in-chrome-wclear-glass-3086-m1l-ch 4. http://www.lightsonline.com/product/kichler-reynes-1-light-mini-pendant-in-chrome-42123ch 5. http://www.lightsonline.com/product/et2-frost-halogen-mini-pendant-in-polished-chrome-wclear-white-glass-e22000-10 6. http://www.lightsonline.com/product/et2-teardrop-1-light-mini-pendant-in-polished-chrome-e24055-pc 7. http://www.lightsonline.com/product/fredrick-ramond-globe-2-light-mini-pendant-in-polished-chrome-finish-fr38510pcm 8. http://www.lightsonline.com/product/elk-lighting-modern-organics-pendant8
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I am putting in a new kitchen in a large open plan room. I wI'll have an island that is 2.4 X 1.1 and will be moles breath colour from farrow and ball and a grey quartz worktop. I am wondering what type of pendant lighting to put over island. I intend to have three pendants but cannot decide what will work. Thanks
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PRO
Design Directives, LLC
5 years ago
The pendants feel a bit big given the ceiling height. I think recessed lights would be better
Kimberly thanked Design Directives, LLC
pgsd
5 years ago
I agree on using two pendants and, pretty lights! I think they're a bit big for an 8' ceiling but, if you want it, go for it. Pendants are easily changed later (unlike your island size).

Besides, if you bought them months ago, you probably cant return them anyway so, use them :)

One more thought, were you thinking of centering each 12" from the sides of the island? At 12" square, that only gives you 6" from the pendant sides to the sides of the island. Anyone else think that might be a problem?
Kimberly thanked pgsd
PRO
RL Relocation LLC
5 years ago
Yes people often over look the height of the ceiling when sizing pendants and the spacing should try to be in 1/3 for three and for 2 I often take the length divide it 2 and then center it to the sub divided slot
Kimberly thanked RL Relocation LLC
PRO
BeverlyFLADeziner
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
Taking out the 30" cabinet is a HUGE game changer. Are you absolutely sure that is the right way to proceed? The reason I ask is that you new island is really really small.

Here is your situation laid out on graph paper illustrating the original size of your island and what you plan to reduce it to.

Of course what is missing is how this island relates to the cabinets you currently have in the kitchen. Be careful and don't screw this up.

Here is the typical info regarding hanging lights over islands and counters
Kimberly thanked BeverlyFLADeziner
PRO
BeverlyFLADeziner
5 years ago
Chicagoans, She already has the fixtures, the island and the electrical boxes in the ceiling. All she has to do to visualize it is hang the fixtures by a hook or twist tie.
Kimberly thanked BeverlyFLADeziner
Kimberly
Original Author
5 years ago
BeverlyFLADeziner,

Yes, unfortunately we absolutely had to lose the extra 30" cabinet. We did a complete house renovation and removed all interior walls. This space is a kitchen, dining room and living room and the extra cabinet overwhelmed the space and somewhat protruded into the walking aisle. Removing it REALLY changed the overall feel, and it is now much more to scale for that space. While I hated to lose the extra cabinet - seeing them installed without it made me happier than I can tell you. It now "fits" the feel of the room.

Thank you so much for the graphics showing where were were at and where we are now. I am going to do exactly as you suggested, and somehow hang the actual fixtures to see what I think. (Wires are all covered by ceiling drywall - as it's all new and so cuts will happen after I choose lighting location).
PRO
RL Relocation LLC
5 years ago
The simple solution is to cut out the size on cardboard or paper and attach string, then tape it to ceiling, that will give you a good estimate.
Kimberly thanked RL Relocation LLC
jeremyandrebecca
4 years ago
Hi Kimberly,

Saw you used Fabuwood kitchen cabinets in a separate post. Sorry tried to write you to get your thoughts on it but only able to figure out how to post in a discussion board. We are also considering galaxy frost cabinets from fabuwood. Are you ultimately happy with them? Would you be able to share pictures of the finished product? Thanks!

ADVICE NEEDED! Kitchen Island Pendant Lighting Dilemma

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ADVICE NEEDED! Kitchen Island Pendant Lighting Dilemma

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