I LOVE my motion-triggered light in my pantry /laundry room. It does exactly what you'd want it to do: When someone approaches carrying a load of laundry or an armload of groceries, it turns on automatically. Less evident, but also important: It turns OFF after ten minutes or so. Prior to installing this, this light was left on all too often, and no one'd notice it 'til we sat down to watch TV and realized that it was causing a glare from across the kitchen. The only problem we ever have is that occasionally someone turns off the lightswitch, and then the lights won't turn on. When that happens, I stand there like an idiot waving my arms, trying to get it to "notice me" . . . then I realize what's happening, and I reach over to turn on the lights. I don't think I"d be happy with a door jam style. Our door isn't always closed, so I think I'd run the light needlessly. I don't know which type costs less, but my husband installed ours himself, and I don't think it cost more than $25-30 . . . though I am guessing. He didn't act like it cost much of anything. In our new house, we will have motion-sensored lights in several places: - Garage - Hallways - Closets - Laundry - Pantry - Bathroom night lights, if that's possible -- I don't really want the master bath light to come on automatically because I wouldn't want the light to spill into the bedroom during the night - Maybe some outdoor lights? Uncertain.

I agree, those are not bare bulbs. You will/should be able to use the pendants. If anything, change to something cheap/required for the final inspection then change to what you want. I brought the foyer fixture from our last home, an old piece, for our pantry. Love it. I have two small 3 light chandeliers in the MBR closet - put up after final inspection. In the other walk-in's a bought inexpensive light bases and used vintage glass globes to cover. It really can depend on the inspector too - in the powder room, for example, I brought antique sconces from our last home. Put 2 in the foyer and 2 in the powder room. Even had those rewired locally and put on a ground wire. Inspector said they were not okay for a wet location. (WTH is going to splash water 5ft up and 2ft over? ??? So I had to change them out to the fugliest cheapest outdoor UL approved for wet space fixtures you've ever seen. ;D Then took them down and returned after final. DH replaced with sconces. Can't wait to see everything pulled together.

Thanks for your responses everyone! I appreciate each and every one. Kippy -- looks like your pantry will be super functional! Unfortunately can't add any more width to our pantry. Stan -- thank you for your input. I think I agree with you on the 8" counter. No can do. Also thanks for your suggestion on the 4" shelves just on one side. That might do the trick! Practigal and Looklake -- the 18" pull-outs sound dreamy, but I really really really want a 36"x24" countertop. Those appliances need to be out of my way. I would leave them out if I used them consistently at least once a week, but there are times when I use them every other day, or not at all for weeks at a time. And Looklake, the size of the pantry is hardly ideal...we are turning a coat closet into a pantry and the size cannot be changed. Karenseb -- when you say pull-outs, do you mean drawers or roll trays? The roll trays would waste more space, right? And any idea what the weight limits might be? Also would it be ok that the pull-outs couldn't fully extend? Since I only have 45" total pantry depth minus the 24" depth of the base cabinet.

Consider using the vertical drawers idea: Create a pair of storage units that fit in the center of the closet but roll out -- one with shelving for kitchen pantry items and one with both shelf and hanging for mops and brooms ( hanging over your mop bucket for cleaning items. Creating individual roll out storage for two different types of items for which you need storage space could keep those kinds of items separate but in the same closet -- and do so while eliminating the need to physically step into the closet to get the items on either of those rolling units -- thus, leaving more room for you to include any built in items you want on each side/end of the closet -- items that you can more easily reach with the two rolling units are out of the closet. You could create just one roll out cabinet for your cleaning items, enabling you to move your cleaning closet room to room with you for cleaning or to a garage otherwise out of the house as needed when you don't want those mop smells in the closet.