Kitchen Lighting Guide

For many of us, the kitchen is the heart of the home. Meals are prepared and eaten, families gather and memories are made. The kitchen can also be a home office. Because there are a number of functions associated with the kitchen, it also means there are a number of design, style and lighting concepts to be considered.

Where To Begin?

Having trouble defining your style and narrowing down what you want your kitchen to look and feel like? Book a consultation with our lighting specialists to guide you! Bring plans, drawings, and/or pictures from Pinterest with your inspiration and let us nourish those ideas to life. Or come down into our showroom to gather some more inspiration.

What do you need?

There are three main forms of lighting within a home: ambient, accent, and task. The kitchen requires ambient and task, however it is the accent lighting that puts your kitchen into the next level. Basic lighting meets a need. Beautiful lighting creates a mood and evokes a feeling.

Let's break it down.

• Ambient lighting provides a consistent and even layer of light throughout the space. Think recessed lighting or flush mount lights. These are your main sources of light. Aesthetically, they may seem basic, but you have many options with this. If you are remodeling and not able to remove existing housings, you have your basic retrofits which will give you incredible lighting and a cosmetic upgrade. Or depending on the extent of your renovation or new build, you can have complete SMART home lighting which gives you the bright white light needed for tasks in your kitchen, as well as giving you the soft, warm feel of incandescent lights.
• Task lighting provides sufficient lighting to “complete tasks.” These are your kitchen pendants over your island and your sink. This can also be under-cabinet lighting if you do not have a kitchen island Of course, insufficient task lighting is a safety hazard with increased risks of cutting yourself with a sharp kitchen knife, burning yourself on the stove, or damaging your eyes from continual strain.
• Accent lighting completes your kitchen. Use accent lighting to take your standard kitchen and make it a safe and happy place, regardless of size. Use appropriate accent lighting to highlight your cooking, to set the mood for entertaining or to give your kitchen that beautiful glow at the end of the day when you are winding down.

How Bright Should Your Kitchen Be?

Your kitchen requires a minimum of 3,000 lumens. The rule of thumb is:

• Kitchen (general) 30-foot candles X the square footage of your kitchen
• Kitchen Stove 70-foot candles X the square footage of your kitchen
• Kitchen Sink 70-foot candles X the square footage of your kitchen

Of course, there are other factors that may change the rule of thumb. For example, ceiling height, open concept floor plan and the spread and intensity of natural light.

It is usually best to get some expert advice. Book an appointment with our lighting specialists.

Lighting Controls Guide

Controlling the lighting properly is just as important as picking the right light. Ensure your circuitry is simple with switching options for general, task and accent lighting. Not all dimmers or sensor lights are compatible with LED light bulbs or integrated LED fixtures. For more ideas, insights and inspiration, talk to lighting experts.

For the kitchen, we recommend dimmers (for accent lighting and general lighting), sensor switches for pantries (auto on/auto off or manual on/auto off) and even wave switches for when your hands are immersed in an at-home-top-chef moment.