Can you put a piece of trim over the front of the fluorescent light you have now (or a better one if it's an old one) before you paint and just ignore it? You know, bring the valance down enough to hide it?

I could do that and live with it, but I was hoping I could add a little character to my teeny kitchen with some new lighting. But maybe it's not possible.

Is that light wall mounted or ceiling mounted?

It's wall mounted but tight up against the ceiling.

Take a look at the Rejuvenation.com site. They have a LOT of wall bracket lights including some that might suit...certainly a lot of vintage ones. It's hard to tell exactly what would work with the current flourescent in place...can't tell how far out the bracket could/must extend to not hit the valance, etc.

Rejuvenation is costly, but one of the wonderful things about it is the ability to switch shades from the one they show, so you can pick a shade that's shallow, keeping the height short. When you do that (under customization), it will give you (under specifications) the height including whatever shade you've picked.

I particularly like the Ford's and the Halfway for a vintage look. And once you figure out something that would work, you may be able to find a less -expensive version elsewhere.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rejuvenation wall bracket

frmrsdghtr: And if it's worth it to you, an electrician can probably relocate that mount a few inches lower to clear the valance. You'd need a blank plate on the old fixture box, but it wouldn't show under the valance. Then you could pick a bracket which mostly swooped UP or straight out rather than down and a shallow shade to keep your depth within your range.

Very helpful - thank you! I love the look of that halfway light. I never considered that style for in my kitchen and over my sink - but I don't know why it couldn't work. I think I can picture it looking just fine there!

Look @ buehls clippings he has some sort of track lighting for inside his cabs but maybe this would work for this space...he has his on a dimmer also...if you cannot fnd it lmk.

Have you look at bathroom lighting? There is a huge variety of over the mirror lighting or sconces that could probably work.

Here are a few ideas from Restoration Hardware. (Many can be mounted vertically or horizontally. And most are offered in different finishes.)

Thank you much! I've been searching kitchen lighting and above sink lighting all along and that's what has narrowed my finds. I'm leaning towards some type of sconce or double sconce design now. Thanks!

Hey there - we ordered ours from Rejuvenation and just love it! It's from the Ford's Mill collection...

The photos dont do it justice - please excuse the cruddy photos and the kitchen which is STILL a work in progress.. /sigh.

~ D ~