A Well-Lit Kitchen Photos 12

Kitchen Remodeling Photos :  A Well-Lit Kitchen Photos 12

THIS PATTERNED STAINLESS-STEEL DOOR LIFTS UP to display an array of small appliances.A ribbon of tiny lights illuminates the interior for easier access.The cabinet also holds a bank of receptacles .

DOWN LIGHTS WERE NOT PART OF THE DESIGN PALETTE in this Craftsman-style kitchen, so surface-mounted, period-style fixtures fit the bill.

Lighting Inside Cabinets

CABINETSWITH GLASS DOORS always benefit from inside lighting-use glass shelves,too, for extra sparkle. low-voltage light fixtures, suchas puck lights and rope lights, work well inside cabinets because they are small. low-voltage fixtures can be operated by a touch switch or with wiring affixed to a hinge or hidden metal strip sothat lights turn on automatically when the door is opened. Another candidate for cabinet lighting is the notoriously dark and difficult-to-rummage-through corner base cabinet.

THE MINIATURE STRIP LIGHTS IN THESE GLASS CABINETS and the strip halogens in the toespace provide a dramatic glow in the evening, after kitchen work is done.

A Well-Lit Kitchen Photos 11

Kitchen Remodeling Photos :  A Well-Lit Kitchen Photos 11


Undercabinet Lighting

UNDERCABINET LIGHTING can provide the brightest task lighting on countertops, as it's situated directly over and fairly close to the work surface. Halogen puck lights or thin tubes, flexible rope lights, and pencil-thin fluorescent tubes with or without lenses are popular choicesfor undercabinet fixtures. Some fixtures allow for the first unit to be hardwired while adjacent fixtures plug one into the next. Maintaining a low profile is important, and a valence added to or designed into cabinets will help hide fixtures. Keeping the fixture close to the front of the cabinet helpsconceal the fixture and will cause less glare on the countertop.

HIDDEN LIGHT SOURCES ARE THE KEY IN THIS KITCHEN, The ceiling grid adds texture and a place to tuck panels of tiny lights, while undercabinet and over-sink lighting is concealed by cabinets and valences.

LIGHTING IS BOTH SUBTLEAND SHOWY in this high-ceilinged kitchen. A two-light pendant brings light to the island countertop. Range-hood lights illuminate both cooking tasks and a decorative tile backsplash, Adjustable recessed halogen downlights highlight the bay-window wall.

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Kitchen Remodeling Photos :  A Well-Lit Kitchen Photos 10


Dimming Lights

DIMMING LIGHT FIXTURES CAN CHANGE MOOD, make lighting options more flexible, and reduce energy use (on occasion, halogen lights should be run at full brightness for a few minutes to preserve lamp life). Different scenarios have different lighting needs, easily handled by dimming light fixtures. At dinner the center of the table should be lit, as if from a campfire. When you are making dinner, light the perimeter of the kitchen so that work can be done. Integrated dimming systems allow you to preset various lighting scenarios that can be called up with the touch of a button or with a remote-control device.

WINDOWS CARVED INTO THE STAINLESS-STEEL BACKSPLASH brighten an urban kitchen, while low-voltage halogen lighting supplies sparkle.Alow-voltage monorail track system holds adjustable fixtures. The suspended plate over the cooktop and matching ledge atop the wall cabinets hold individual halogens. Undercabinet fixtures boost task lighting .

AN ARCHED TRELLIS MAKES A STYLISH SCREEN BETWEEN kitchen and dining room, and it's a clever place to hang halogen lights. During the day light streams in from kitchen and dining room windows.

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Kitchen Remodeling Photos :  A Well-Lit Kitchen Photos 09

Halogen bulbs are relatively expensive but put out more light than incandescents and have exceptional color rendition and beam control, making them all-around candidates for ambient and task lighting. Halogen bulbs are available in line-volt fixtures (120 volt) or low-voltage fixtures (12 volt). Low-voltage halogens, found in miniature recessed down lights and undercabinet lights, require a transformer to step down from line voltage. Xenon lamps, the new kids on the block, are touted as being cooler and longer lasting than halogens, but they still run warmer and are lessefficient than fluorescents.

Don't be tempted to ignore that little label inside a recessed light fixture that indicates the maximum wattage. It's safer to have more fixtures than risk the fire hazard of using a bulb that's too hot for the fixture.

THESE PETITE HALOGEN PENDANTS ARE HUNG by black wires that mimic the black cablestying the roof together. Although these are low voltage, halogen bulbs provide a powerful amount of light for their size,and their color mimics daylight.

SURFACE-MOUNTED INCANDESCENT FIXTURES with translucent lenses and low-voltage halogen pendants provide abundant task and ambient light, supplementing the ribbon of windows in this bright kitchen. Both incandescent and halogen bulbs are easy to dim, so the ambience can change with the time of day and task at hand.

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Kitchen Remodeling Photos :  A Well-Lit Kitchen Photos 08


About Bulbs

WHILE THE STYLE OF FIXTURE YOU CHOOSE influences the look of a kitchen, the type of bulb used
gives the overall luminescent effect. Use the following as a guide to choosing the best lighting sources for your needs. Incandescent bulbs comprise a large category that includes any type with a filament, including standard tungsten and halogen bulbs. However, the standard incandescent bulb, called an A-type bulb, is what we'll discuss here. Although it costs little, it's expensive to operate because it is inefficient and short-lived (only 10% of the energy generated from an incandescent bulb produces light; the rest is heat). Incandescents remain popular because the warm color is flattering to people and food and they are easy to dim. But halogen, xenon, and new, improved fluorescent bulbs are changing people's buying habits.

Fluorescent bulbs are cooler than incandescent bulbs, four times as efficient, and last ten times longer. Forget the ghastly green fluorescents in your elementary school classroom, or even that old 2-ft. fluorescent in an overhead kitchen fixture--today's residential fluorescent bulbs can be compact enough for use in recessed down lights, in lamps, and under cabinets, and, even better, they can make people and food look natural. Color is measured by the Color Rendering Index (CRI) figure, which rates how realistic objects will look under that light, or the Kelvin rating, which measures color temperature. look for a CRI of 82 or above or a Kelvin rating of 3,oooK or lower.

The compact fluorescent lamp (CFl) has been a major boost to saving energy. These bulbs are roughly the same size as an A-type incandescent, so you can relamp many incandescent fixtures with CFls. CFls are expensive, but many electrical utility companies offer rebates or fixtures themselves at lower cost. In any case, CFls can save 75 percent per fixture and they last ten times as long as incandescent bulbs.

A COMBINATION OF BULB TYPES MAKES FORVERSATILE lighting. Incandescent downlights and fluorescent undercabinet lights combine to provide task lighting and ambient light. White blinds help reflect light from wallwasher downtlghts, and the light stone tiles magnify the amount of light given off by the undercabinet lights.

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Kitchen Remodeling Photos :  A Well-Lit Kitchen Photos 07

THERE'S NO POINT IN HAVING A TALL CEILING without making use of that extra space above the cabinets. Adding this curved-top clerestory window makes the window at the sink extraordinary, while the windows above the cabinets on each side bounce light off the ceiling.

CORNER WINDOWS DOUBLE THE BRIGHTNESS in this kitchen by bouncing light off three surfaces. Each window has a complementary light above so that at night light will come from the same place. Copper pendants and wall mounted fixtures provide additionaI lighting. Undercabinet lights supplement task lighting.

THIS WOOD-FILLED KITCHEN GETS ABUNDANT DAYLIGHT, which is supplemented by several pendant incandescent light fixtures to ensure adequate lighting at night or on gloomy days.The undercabinet lighting is switched at the fixture rather than at the wall, which makes the switch lessvisible but also a bit harder to locate.

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Kitchen Remodeling Photos :  A Well-Lit Kitchen Photos 06

Supplemental Lighting

MAKE MOST KITCHEN LIGHTIN , TASK LIGHTING . Position task lighting in front of you by using under cabinet lights,adjustable wall mounted fixtures, or downlights 10 in. to 12 in. from wall cabinets. Ambient light is best when diffuse, as its job is to brighten the kitchen overall. It can come from a central fixture,downlights,well-placed and abundant above-cabinet fixtures,or several sources at once. Fixtures that bounce light off ceilings and walls are more efficient than recessed downlights, which can leave the ceiling dark. Accent lighting acids ambience.

Different sources of light make for a more versatile kitchen.Wiring groups of light fixtures separately allows a kitchen to multitask,especially with dimming controls. Be aware that dark surfaces absorb light and glossy surfaces make sharp reflections. Light, matte surfaces reflect light diffusely.

SEVERAL TYPES OF LIGHTS GIVE THIS KITCHEN the look of a train car. Surface-mounted ceiling lights add a decorative touch to the ceiling, while a smaller surface-mounted fixture punctuates the line above the door.More modest, small downlights provide ta sk lighting, supplemented by undercabinet lighting and a window.