Designer, Shane Inman
Layers of Light
Task. This lighting illuminates work spaces, such as countertops where you are prepping food or inside a pantry closet so you can see what goods are stocked on those shelves.
Accent. This highlighting adds depth and dimension to the environment. Examples include recessed adjustable fixtures and track lights.
Decorative. This is the eye candy in a kitchen, or what Whitehead calls, “architectural bling.” The purpose of decorative lighting is to add interest to a space. Examples include chandeliers and candlestick-type wall sconces.
Ambient. This gentle light fills the room and bounces off the ceiling. You’ll get this effect from pendant-hung indirect fixtures, opaque wall sconces and torchieres. “You want that opulent layer of light—an even pool of light that gives you a base layer,” says Jeff Dross, director of education and industry trends at Kichler Lighting, referring to this as “general lighting” or the opulent layer. Can lighting can accomplish this as well.
Light Up the Mood
Think outside the kitchen. With today’s open floor plans, your kitchen lighting is important to adjacent areas of the home. Whitehead suggests asking: “How does this fixture relate to the other rooms you see from the kitchen?”
Pendants that pop. Forget dinky pendants over the island. “Fixtures are being more overscaled,” Whitehead says. He recommends a layout for two larger pendants or one statement pendant over the island.
Translucent fixtures. Rather than opaque fixtures, Whitehead says fixtures with a lens on the bottom hide the bulbs underneath while providing a glow.
Different shapes. Beyond the traditional oval fixture design, Whitehead says rectangular box-shaped lights and drum-shaped fixtures add interest to the kitchen.
Lighting art. “We are seeing art being placed on the walls and recessed, adjustable fixtures lighting that art,” Whitehead says. As the kitchen becomes more of a living/gathering space for homeowners and as smart storage allows for more wall space, canvases, framed photographs and other pieces are being incorporated into the space. Lighting is critical for bringing this artwork to life in a kitchen, as with any space in the home.
Adding glow to cabinets. Glass-front cabinets or open shelving with displays of pretty pottery or favorite china are lit inside. “This creates more dimension and more of a glow at that level of your sight line in the kitchen,” Whitehead says. “And, it creates a little more visual interest and depth.”
Include toekick lights. Installing lights underneath base cabinets to illuminate the floor beneath adds ambiance and serves as a functional night light. “It allows you to walk in the kitchen after dark and see the floors without stumbling,” Dross says.
Under-counter lighting. By creating a groove under the lip of a countertop and installing lights in that groove, when you open dark drawers you can see inside, Dross says.
1. Color temperature. Look for a bulb that is 2700 to 3000 Kelvin. “That is going to match the color temperature of incandescent lamping and it will blend well with the rest of your residential environment,” he says.
2. CRI rating. Color rendering index (CRI) is important because it is how color is interpreted. In other words, a low CRI light looks more gray. “The higher the CRI, the better you will see the colors rendered,” Dross explains. He recommends a CRI of 80 or higher.
3. Energy Star. This certification ensures that the light bulb went through longevity testing and has a minimum of 80 CRI.