Need some help with lighting over the table

16 years ago

Here's the problem...I didn't put any thought into the location of the light fixture for the eat-in area of my kitchen. I just told the electrician to put it in the same spot where it had been when our kitchen and dining room were separate rooms. I knew that it needed to be centered in front of the window, but it should not have been centered in the room. It did not occur to me that the fact that I was orienting the table perpendicular to how it had been would be a problem. Where the hole for the light fixture is now, it will not be centered over our table. It will be, instead, over about the one-quarter mark of the table.

Now, if I had plaster ceilings, it would not be that big a deal to move the hole. But I don't. I have tongue and groove pine ceilings and there is no way to repair the cut out area without a major ordeal. That simply is not an option at this point.

So, I need another solution. Ideally, the hole would be about 16-20" from where it is now. My first thought was to look for a fixture that had a rectangular ceiling mount that would cover the existing hole. So far, I haven't found one like this that would fit in my kitchen. The pic below is the fixture I had picked out from Rejuvenation. Has anyone seen something along those lines with a rectangular mount?

Here's the kind of mount I'm talking about (but NOT this style)...

I also thought about doing multiple, separate pendants over the table, but with three over the island and one over the sink, it just seems too much.

Thoughts? Ideas??

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (9)

paperbirch
16 years ago
We are using three pendants over our kitchen table, with one larger one and two smaller either side (they are all those adjustable height PB Porter pendants, so we can play with raising and lowering to suit the occasion/table expansion/etc). Maybe the differing sizes/heights would help distract from Yet More Pendants?

I remember in England it was quite common to have hanging fixtures which were then looped up again and reattached to the ceiling a little distance away from their original fixture site, presumably to allow flexibility in where the light was centered over time? I tried to do a search for a picture to better explain, but in so doing stumbled across this site below with lots of options similar to the sample you show above... is Mission your style by any chance??

I think you will find a creative solution which you may end up liking even more than your original plan - some of the quirks end up being the favourites, don't you find?!

Cheers,
PB

Here is a link that might be useful: another hanging fixture with broad base
saskatchewan_girl
16 years ago
Have you seen the monorail style of lights. They can be straight, curved, have spot lights or pendants. Try googling monorail lighting images and they might be an option.
Here are a few pics I have of some.
HTH

{{!gwi}}
{{!gwi}}
Related Discussions
Need some help over this plant/flower
Q
Comments (2)
Torenia, I believe. Here is a link that might be useful: images
...See More
Lighting over the dinning room table vs led can lighting Help
Q
Comments (1)
If you don’t use the door then center the table
...See More
Need some help with island lighting
Q
Comments (1)
You should look into island ventilation that is more decorative in nature. There are plenty that would blend with your current lighting setup and look very decorative. One such company that produces these is Futuro, and I wish I could remember others, but if you look around long enough on some appliances websites or in showrooms, you'll find examples of what I mean. They can almost look like lights themselves even if they don't have lights on them. I wouldn't give up on keeping lighting over the island, as I think you'll need it. Another consideration if you live in a warm climate is to do some of your messiest cooking on an outdoor grill or cooker. That will keep the majority of the smoke at bay.
...See More
Dining Room Starting Over--Need table and Lighting Advice
Q
Comments (3)
Thank you, Patricia. I am trying to find a place for the cabinet. I like your idea of putting it in a closet. It was hard downsizing and losing 1500 square feet of space. I got rid of a lot of furniture! Below is a sideboard that I still have in another room which I can use in the dining room if I need something to "ground" the picture. (Sorry for the picture quality.) I still have the Marge Carson dining room chairs (one seen in the picture), so I don't need chairs. I put in another outlet in centered on the picture wall so that lamp cords plugged in the wall won't show like this one does in the picture. Even though my dining room is open to the kitchen, I want something dramatic for this dining room. It deserves a statement chandelier (thinking about a gold/gilded one. The room was previously painted BM Van Deusen Blue. I remodeled the kitchen and took down the wall between the two rooms to let in more light. Then I changed the color to BM Ballet White. I miss the blue... I like your idea of a round table. Would you suggest that I use a round or square rug? I just need to be mindful of the passageway from the foyer to kitchen that goes down one side of the dining room. This area of circulation is used a lot. Below is a shot of my living room to give you an idea of the space near the dining room. I hope this helps to spark some ideas.
...See More
ci_lantro
16 years ago
You're looking for what is called a canopy mount. Lots fewer choices w/ canopy mounts now vs just a few years ago.

The simple thing would be to fasten a 1 x board to the ceiling of sufficient length to cover the hole & balanced relative to the table. A pseudo canopy. Then mount the light where you want.

You can get a little fancy and trim the patch out with cove mould or build a shallow box vs just a board.
holligator
Original Author
16 years ago
paperbirch, those Mission fixtures might provide a viable solution. I'll have to see if I can convince DH to go for them.

saskatchewan_girl, those "monorails" are very cool, if a bit too contemporary for my kitchen. I wonder if they make something with that kind of function and a more traditional look?

Thanks to both of you! Any other ideas??
kitchenkelly
16 years ago
Can you cap over the hole in the ceiling and use sconces instead?

That is what I did. I was so sick of not having a light fixture in the right space (over the table) in every place I ever lived - Living room or dining room.
dd70
16 years ago
Do an online search for billiard lights or kitchen island lights. That looks to me like what you need. I did post a link for a few that I found. Here is another site but they are in the craftsman style, not sure thats what your after.
http://www.fiverivers.com/arroyo-craftsman-chandelier-lighting.html
HTHs

Here is a link that might be useful: lights
holligator
Original Author
16 years ago
ci_lantro, that's a great idea! I'll have to explore the option with my carpenter. kitchenkelly, I was tempted to just get them to replace it with a recessed can and add another few to balance things out. That may still be a last resort option for me.
mamadadapaige
16 years ago
I really like ci lantro's idea... not sure the recessed can will give you the ambience of that pretty rejuvenation light.

If you put the wood canopy up there and trim it out nicely, it could look like a really nice deliberate design decision.

good luck. I really love that light fixture you showed and i do think with a rectangular patch you would want something to mimic that shape in the fixture you choose.
ci_lantro
16 years ago
Was browsing around for lighting ideas & I stumbled across this gizmo. Possible solution except that it ties you to pendant lights.

Here is a link that might be useful: ''Flexible Bar'' pendant mount

Need some help with lighting over the table

Comments (9)

paperbirch

saskatchewan_girl

Related Discussions

ci_lantro

holligator
Original Author

kitchenkelly

dd70

holligator
Original Author

mamadadapaige

ci_lantro

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Need some help with lighting over the table

Comments (9)

paperbirch

saskatchewan_girl

Related Discussions

ci_lantro

holligatorOriginal Author

kitchenkelly

dd70

holligatorOriginal Author

mamadadapaige

ci_lantro

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

holligator
Original Author

holligator
Original Author