New Pendants Over Our Kitchen Island


Before becoming a homeowner, I never really cared for lighting. Sure, I’d buy a floor lamp or a desk lamp…but beyond that I didn’t really understand why people put so much money into choosing the perfect light fixtures for their home. I mean why spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars for a chandelier when you have recessed lighting that works just fine?!

I now get it. I totally get it. Wow, I’ve hopped aboard the lighting train. In fact, my new kitchen pendants have officially made me the conductor of the lighting train.

Here’s why I changed my mind.

The kitchen- before the lighting update

When we moved in, there were two fairly dinky pendants hanging over our kitchen island. They were way too small for the large open space, and were certainly not proportionate to the large island. They also didn’t work very well at all. They barely emitted any light, and even though we changed the light bulb in the left one about 3x..it still cast just a teeny-tiny glow compared to the right one. Honestly, these lights were a pain in my side.

With our backsplash project happening, I figured now would also be a good time to swap out those pendants with some new ones. But being a newbie to lighting, I had absolutely no idea what I wanted.

Here’s what I did know…

  • I didn’t want to move any of the electrical. So I needed 2 pendants that would work with our existing configuration.
  • I needed larger lights that wouldn’t get lost in the kitchen space.
  • They needed to emit a fair amount of light.
  • They needed to be dimmable, so we could change the mood in the space easily.
  • I wanted lights that were a bit outside of my comfort zone, to pair with the classic look of the white subway tile.
Wayfair had the perfect pendant for our kitchen

With those guidelines in mind, I started to online shop. That’s when I found this beauty of a fixture.It hit everything on my checklist, and there were multiple finishes and sizes to choose from on Wayfair. Not wanting 2 ginormous globes over my island, I went with the small size in polished nickel.

While waiting for them to ship, I started to second guess my choice. Were they too trendy for me? Would they be too big? Would they mesh well with the rest of the decor in the room? When they arrived and I tore them out of the box, I was immediately relieved and my initial worries were pushed out of my mind.

Not wanting to live with our existing pendants another day, I asked the contractor who was doing our backsplash if he could also install the lights. He happily obliged (especially after noting my excitement over the fixtures).

Our kitchen, before lights and backsplash
Kitchen pendants- before the update

So in 1 weekend our kitchen went from this…

To this!

Updated backsplash and pendant lights- so happy!
New pendants- up close

The pendants are amazing. I’m in L-O-V-E. They’re high-quality, the perfect size, and the contemporary look works well with the style in this space.

We even put some dimmable bulbs in them, and Finn can control them using his iPhone. We’re on our way to having a smart house #techmaster

The new pendants give off so much light
Kitchen update- after
These pendants from Wayfair were just what our kitchen needed

They emit so much light. In fact, at night we typically just keep these on in the kitchen when relaxing in the family room. They create such a nice ambiance. 

Now that I’m officially aboard the lighting train, I’m wanting to change out every.single.fixture in our place. I’ve become a lighting diva, and I’m not looking back.

 [Disclaimer: I partnered with Wayfair to bring you this post. All opinions & photography are my own and are not influenced by Wayfair. Thank you for supporting the brands that help support this blog]

Casey


The Year of Casey

Hey there!

Iโ€™m Casey Finn, the voice behind The DIY Playbook. I’m a Chicago gal teaching you how to design, DIY, and maintain your home…by yourself! Learn more about me right here.