Mention during lighting to most people, and they immediately think of the light that hangs suspended from a kitchen ceiling above an island countertop on a coiled cord. However, the truth is that a pendant light is good for most rooms in the house, if you know what type of pendant light would work well there.
A bedroom for the kids, maybe a guest bedroom – wherever space is at a premium, lighting can be a great idea to help you gain a little extra space. The great thing about a pendant light is that even when hanging from the ceiling, it gets close enough to offer the kind of lighting effect that a nightlight that was parked on your nightstand would have. Not to mention, the pendant lighting can be controlled via a dimmer for lighting effects suited to the situation at hand.
Pendant lighting is especially suitable for the kitchen. It goes well over a kitchen island, over a dining room, over the sink, or over the breakfast bar. They are a great way to bring task lighting throughout the kitchen area. In your dining room or kitchen dining area, unless you have a really small dining table, a single pendant light will rarely be adequate. What you do is hang two or three full-size or five or six mini-size pendant lamps to cover the entire dining room and dining table area. Experimenting with mixing lights of different pendant lengths can create an interesting effect that can certainly be more high-tech than a chandelier could.
You’ve seen how pool tables are often lit up with lights, haven’t you? If you have one in your rec. room, you know how to light it. Speaking of a rec. room, how about a couple over the bar that I could have at the base? Anywhere you have a table or desk in your home, in the living room, bedroom, or family room, a pendant light can be a way to bring light up close without a lamp getting in the way. Some people like pendant lighting for stairs (where they look particularly good, one might add), or in a bathroom. Hung low over a bathtub, the lighting effect can be particularly powerful.
If you’re a bit handy around the house, installing a pendant light around it might be a good DIY project to undertake. Pendant lights are not that expensive to buy. You could probably buy a name-brand light for around $50, and a full-size pendant for around $100 or less.
