Lighting Selection + Ceiling Height: Kitchen Version
I wanted to talk specifically about the kitchen lighting in this blog post; especially the peninsula and/or island area. Style selection choices in the examples are from my design opinion. The biggest topic would be when to pass on pendants in the kitchen. Simply because there is an island present in a space it is always first instinct, or a learned habit, to go straight to picking out pedants to go above it.
However, you want to take a note at that ceiling height first. Often, it will be a standard clearance height of about 7.5’-8’ high—an average ceiling height. Now, subtract the 36” high counter, then subtract on top of that ~30-40” of space between the counter top and where the bottom of the pendant would start. That maybe leaves you with a 24” top to canopy length for a pendant drop (hopefully the canopy is under 2” in depth, too). If the ceiling height is under 8’, you’ll end up having what I like to call a stunted pendant that looks like it should have more length, but does not have very much of a drop. The effect of the stunted pendant also takes part of another design downfall, and that is when it visually pulls the ceiling height down towards the ground. Due to the fact every bit of given height is being crunched together, the entire kitchen seems low now. The ceiling height is too accentuated, too squished, and now it seems even lower than it is because your eyes are visually being pulled down. On top of that, the pendants are missing either full aesthetic potential because they do not showcase a full natural stretch.
If this is your situation, try instead to use what is called a can semi-flushmout or flushmount of some sort of aesthetic. Doing this makes for a feeling of greater height, or at the least does not take any height away from the ceiling by depiction of our eyes. You still get your light source and light direction to the island or peninsula surface. flushmounts can also be a more affordable design choice (depending on who makes the light of course). Also, this style of lighting choice can be perceived as more of a gentle sophistication all due to the nature of its thoughtful restraint in design presence. The restrain in design is nodding to the generosity it preserves for the perception of ceiling height and gives the other parts of the kitchen design more opportunity to shine and be a focal point.
A.
This is a beautiful modern contemporary example.
See how the restraint in drop, size, and even color gives that gentle kiss to design reservation? You could have put a pendant here, yes, but what would you be taking attention away from? The simplicity in of itself draws your eyes even to the flush mount cans. So perfectly executed by CG Design Studio.
Just because the opportunity is available in design, does not mean we always have to take it. Take only what you need, and you’ll be surprised at how much comfort it truly brings. Im even talking to my fellow maximalists out there! haha.
B.
Here is an example rendering from my studio using this concept.
This project was a high-rise condo building with incredibly low ceilings. In the end they would be 7.5’, which is the lowest ceiling height clearance height for commercial code.
(In residential you can go even lower in certain spaces of the residence. Depending on the jurisdiction you are in. but it’s safe to stick with more clearance always).
In this option I chose to use a small frosted globe. One of my favorite’s by Flos, the Glow-Ball Ceiling Lamp.
C.
Shown in Contrast. I could see a pop of color here too; maybe a dusty blue.
As you can see, even the design firm above talks about using this exact method in their caption. The result is very successful.
Using this method, you can gain the same visual illusions that help aid in small spaces or short ceiling heights, incorporated within any design style.
