Lighting and your Kitchen – How to Design a Lighting Plan that Cooks!
Your kitchen, more than any other room in your home, needs a good well thought out lighting plan. Today’s kitchens have many more functions than just cooking a meal. For many families it is the most frequently used room in the house. Besides the obvious preparation of meals, kitchens today are also a place for the kids to do homework, parents to pay the bills, reading, eating and watching TV. For this reason it is important that the light not only be adequate but flexible.
The first place to start in any room when devising a lighting plan is to address general lighting. This is the light that will be used most of the time. In the case of a very small kitchen, one light in the center of the room will provide the general light. With most of today’s kitchens being larger, a single light fixture in the center of the room probably won’t satisfy your lighting needs. The most common solution is recessed lighting. Depending on what part of the country you are in they may be called high hats or pot lights or can lights. All these terms mean the same thing. Recessed lighting is a good way to provide general lighting in a kitchen in a neat and clean way.
The placement of the lights is very important. When designing a layout for the general lighting in a kitchen, we want to take into account the areas where tasks will be done. This includes counters, islands and tables. In most cases, by designing the light to illuminate these areas, the rest of the room gets a good spread of general light as well. Try to have the recessed lights fall out on the ceiling so that they are directly above the outside edge of the cabinets. The key here is getting the lights close enough to the work area so that you don’t create a shadow with your body. Putting the lights to far away from the counters is a sure formula for shadows. Don’t overlook any nooks that may be dark.
Islands can provide a great outlet for adding a decorative fixture or fixtures to the room. There are a multitude of pendants to choose from that can really enhance the room. I find it is probably one of the most commented on aspects of a kitchen lighting plan when the homeowner sees the finished product. Simply installing 2 or 3 pendants in line over an island can be quite stunning.
The next step is the task lighting. In a kitchen this is the light directly over the counters, stove and sink. Having one or two small recessed lights on a separate switch over the sink is both attractive and useful. The stove these days is almost always lit from a fan hood or microwave but if it is not it should be addressed. The way the counters are illuminated is with under cabinet lighting. This can be in the form of simple fluorescent fixtures on an economical level. A very nice effect is to use low voltage linear track. These can be dimmed and provide very good light to the counters. There are also xenon fixtures and halogen fixtures. If you can try and stay with xenon as they burn cooler and have a longer bulb life than halogen.
After you have your general lighting and task lighting covered the last thing to consider is any accent lighting. On some kitchens where there is a space above the cabinets, lighting on top of the cabinets can look spectacular. Tray ceilings with crown molding can also benefit greatly from this type of lighting. Using either a low voltage type track or rope light, you can add that extra touch that makes your kitchen unique. For more lighting tips and lighting design help visit the links below.
Paul Forte has been in the lighting and electrical field for over 25 years. He has helped countless homeowners across the country with their lighting needs through his website. He will be appearing on an upcoming episode of “It Takes a Thief” on the discovery channel installing some security lighting.
(c) Copyright 2005 Paul Forte. All rights reserved.
Home Improvements
One of the best ways to increase the value of your investment property is to undertake some home improvements. But where to begin? The following are a few tried and tested tips on what to improve in order to raise the value of your house.
1. Improve the property’s exterior
Always start with the outside of the house because that’s the most important part of the property. It is what potential buyers see first and it is usually what makes them decide whether they want or are interested in the property or not.
2. Dab fresh paint or set up new sidings
Would you believe that a simple paint job can increase the value of your property significantly? Only a few weeks ago, an effective re-painting job pushed the value of one of my investment properties to rise by ,000.
3. Landscaping
This is also related to upgrading exteriors. Some people simply find landscaped lawns magical, especially the woman of the house. There is really something about a nicely-manicured lawn that is adorned with esthetically arranged plants, rocks and ornaments that makes people stop and stare.
4. Parking areas always matter
Parking is so hard to come by these days in a lot of places that having a house with parking space automatically makes it worth more.
5. Interiors are what make the house a home
When thinking of upgrading the interiors, the most sought-after rooms are usually the bathroom, kitchen and master bedroom. Start on these first. Think of a new bathtub, shower stalls, tiles and the like. Put up a full-length mirror. Paint the interiors as well as the exteriors. Try to have lots of space in your kitchen that can fit in a table, lots of storage space, counter top, double sink, garbage disposal system and the usual appliances. Good carpeting and tiles are a must, and it would be ideal if they were new. Carpets that are good to the touch make a good impression. The kitchen and bathroom should have quality tiles or tasteful vinyl rugs. A hardwood floor can add a lot of value to the dining area.
Practical Sitting Room Design – 3 Tips
Planning one’s sitting room seems so easy on the face of it; you know what sort of room you want, and the type of furniture to put in it. The problem is, without proper planning you can find that you’ve bought furniture that’s too big (or too small), and various items of furniture that simply do not go together, either for design reasons or colour.
Because the sitting room is the heart of the house, where you go to relax, the room should reflect this. These days, the living room may also have to serve as a dining room as well, and therefore accommodate a wide range of furniture.
Design.
The first step is therefore to get some graph paper and make a scale plan of the room. Then you can measure all the items of furniture etc. that you want to put in the room and see if they fit.
Pay attention to the seating. This is often the most important and largest furniture you will have in the room. It should be arranged so that it is centred on the focal point of the room, be it the hifi, TV or fireplace. One you have determined the size and where it is to go, you can then move on to the smaller items, coffee tables, book cases etc.
Decoration.
Bright colours can add drama to a room, but think carefully before you get too dramatic! If you are in a pressurised job, bold colours can be less relaxing, and are often more appropriate for bedrooms and dining rooms. It is perhaps better to pick a neutral colour for the walls, but one that you like, then add the colour to the room by use of pictures, cushions, curtains and plants. Try and avoid the use of sharply contrasting colours, and choose colours that complement each other.
Flooring.
There are many different floor coverings these days, and one needs to be careful here.
If you like carpet, beware of cheap varieties. These are often nylon or polypropylene, and look great in store and when first laid. However, in high traffic areas, and in front of sofas and armchairs where your feet rest on the floor, the pile can often flatten out and distort quickly, ruining the look within a few months. Always go for a good quality carpet, something like a 20% nylon / 80% wool mix. At all costs avoid white. Not only does it show the dirt and stains, but even if you don’t wear shoes, when the pile wears just a little, it will appear dirty, as the light no longer reflects through the pile properly, making even slightly worn traffic areas look grey. Professional carpet cleaners call this “apparent soiling”.
Wooden floors have become very popular with the perception that they don’t trap the dirt and dust (not always a good thing as they can feel dirty sometimes – especially if you like walking around in bare feet – and they can feel cold). If you choose wooden flooring, make sure it is fitted correctly and again is good quality – creaking or sagging flooring can be annoying.