Can you believe the holidays are already here? Before you know it your relatives will be coming over to celebrate the season and your kitchen will become the headquarters for all the festivities! Pendant lighting or lighting that hangs from a chain or pole from your ceiling is a perfect asset to your holiday kitchen. It not only is decorative with gorgeous finishes but it can illuminate a seating area for your guests eating at a breakfast bar and provide additional lighting for multiple cooks in the kitchen. Here are a few creative pendant lighting ideas for your holiday kitchen this season.
Choose lighting that compliments multiple task areas.
At the holidays your kitchen is like Grand Central Station! From multiple recipes being cooked to family hanging around enjoying festive eggnog, kitchen pendant lighting fixtures with both function and style should be able to compliment multiple task areas. If you have a larger open kitchen that opens into a dining room or a great room, choose lighting that can throw a wider beam of light to illuminate more area. Choosing pendant lighting that has a glass or reflective shade around it can help throw light further.
These pendant lights from In Detail Interiors (above) are a good example of fixtures that will illuminate multiple areas at once. Stay away from dark down lighting that only beams light downward, as it won’t illuminate adjoining spaces as well. If you’re looking for a more dramatic aesthetic to your kitchen then darker shades could be the perfect fit for your kitchen area.
Choose metallic finishes to bring out your holiday decor.
Once you’ve decided how much light your kitchen needs, how about brightening your holiday home with metallic inspiration for the season? Whether you love copper, like these Benson-style pendant fixtures above from Witt Construction or you prefer a more subtle satin nickel or deep bronze finish your holiday decorations won’t be complete without some reflective inspiration. The beauty of pendant lights is that they can be the focal point of your kitchen with sparkle or take on a supporting role amongst other kitchen finishes.
Place pendant lighting in nontraditional places.
Traditionally pendant lighting used to find its way over the dining room table and over the breakfast bar, but this holiday think of new ways to maximize your kitchen lighting. Do you have a sink that always seems dark to stand over as you clean vegetables for holiday meals? How about a center island in your kitchen that lacks a visual focal point? The holidays can be a great excuse to install a few more pendant lamps in your kitchen for function and for visual inspiration to accentuate your holiday kitchen. These two pendant lighting fixtures in Ellen Grasso & Sons’ kitchen (above) will help that center island become prime real estate when it’s time for holiday cooking.
Whether you are looking to bring more illumination to your holiday kitchen for cooking, entertaining or just enjoying more festive sparkle – use these ideas to brighten your kitchen with pendant lighting fixtures. Be careful, once you start in the kitchen – other rooms of your home are sure to follow!
Image credits: In Detail Interiors, Witt Construction, Ellen Grasso & Sons, LLC.