The visual appearance of the kitchen should be special. That’s why so many of your neighbors rely on our showroom. Our sales professionals have the experience and knowledge to help create special spaces in your home and none should be more special than your kitchen. We always ask our customers how they want their kitchen to feel when the renovation is completed. At times, this question is received with a puzzled look. We explain that understanding the feel that our clients want to achieve helps us to recommend the materials, fixtures, cabinets and lighting that will achieve our clients’ goals. Some clients want a feeling of expansiveness while others may want to create a feeling intimacy, romance, efficiency or something else.
Lighting is critical to the successful outcome of a renovation, but too often lighting is an afterthought or it is left to subcontractors whose knowledge of lighting may be limited to installation only. Without the proper light, you compromise the entire project. Poorly designed and installed lighting can make your new kitchen look drab or create shadows on work surfaces. Lighting can help make smaller spaces appear larger by focusing lights to brighten vertical surfaces. Ambient light on ceilings promotes spaciousness and volume and can draw attention to architectural details such as exposed beams.
If our customer states that she really likes to make romantic dinners, we most likely will recommend fixtures that are dimmer controlled. If our customer has selected a beautiful stone countertop for the island, we may recommend a beautiful chandelier with dimmers or downlights with statement-making pendants.
Some of our customers make late night visits to the kitchen for a midnight snack. Occupancy sensors that turn lighting on at levels that allow for easy and safe navigation but are not bright enough to spread light throughout the home or possibly wake the dog best serve these customers.
The look and feel of the kitchen also will be influenced by the colors used for floor and wall coverings, countertops, cabinets, sinks and plumbing fixtures. If a customer chooses a light color scheme, we know that light will bounce around more than if a dark color is selected. Dark colors absorb light. Smooth, shiny materials will reflect more light than textured matte surfaces. Polished stone will reflect more light than honed black slate. More light will be needed in a space with dark and textured finishes.
The type and amount of light that you need for your new kitchen also will be dictated by the size of the space and the amount of daylight that the room receives from windows, doors and/or skylights. Electric light fixtures complement the light generated by Mother Nature. Mother Nature can be fickle, however. Clouds, rainstorms and other weather conditions can minimize the amount of daylight that enters the space. The possibility that the sun won’t shine brightly during the day needs to be accounted for in the lighting plan.
Generally, electric lighting supplements or replaces daylight, but man-made light can’t match daylight’s intensity or color distribution. Exposed lamps tend to look warm or even yellow compared to sunlight coming to the space through glass doors or windows. Recessed lighting may be a good option to create a color palette that works in the space.
Ambient lighting can also be provided by pendants or surface-mounted fixtures installed around the perimeter in a cove. Pendants can deliver light upwards or downwards or in a combination of uplight and downlight. Pendant options are almost limitless and a great way to influence the look of the kitchen.
What’s the right light for your kitchen remodel? That depends on how you want your kitchen to feel. Let us use our knowledge of lighting to help achieve your goals and exceed your expectations. Give us a call at 781-670-3909 or visit one of our showrooms at 14 Charles Street, Needham MA or 150-E New Boston Street, Woburn MA and we would be happy to demonstrate how good lighting enhances a kitchen renovation and perils that inadequate lighting can have on your remodel.
