Mine have an open bottom and it bothers me for a few reasons. First, they are hung too high, so the bulbs are very visible. Second, the bulbs are the twisty types and not attractive. My fixtures are verrrrry open on the bottom.

If the bulbs will be below eye level at most times, they are usually fine to be open, especially if you aren't using fluorescent bulbs (LEDS look respectable enough). If some tall guy says "these need to be above my head so I don't bang them", don't allow it! Think about where they are located and where seating is going to be--that's where they will be seen.

I tried to do a crouching test in the showroom, but it was hard to get an idea since the shades were clear glass. There won't be island seating, but the lights (and maybe bulbs) will be visible from the EIK table.

The Feiss Hobson is the deepest/tallest one of the first batch; the bulb sits highest in that one.

We will be using LED bulbs, and will try to find nice-looking ones.

Here's mine with the bottom lens. Replaced to update kitchen for selling the house. My old ones were open and had lighter colored globes but very dated. These are a major pain to change the bulbs. It's a two man job to get the lens off. The lens limits you to a smallish bulb.

The clear or white glass put out much more light as well.

i will do the open ones next time.

I'm glad you started this topic - it reminds me how much I disliked seeing the bulbs in the fixtures at our old house and I need to keep that in mind for this build. ILoveRed's comment about bulb changing being a pain when there is a lens is important, although with LEDs supposedly that's a non issue anymore.

Of all the lights you linked, I like the Feiss Urban Renewal the best because it's a cleaner look and wonder if that small turn-in of the shade will be enough to shield the bulb and reduce glare at least a bit.

I'm going with lenses. I went with this version of Hatteras Bay (not installed yet), and I was able to get them for about 20% less than I could find online through a local lighting store. Granted, I bought an entire house worth of lights through my GC, but you might want to ask around locally.

https://www.houzz.com/products/kichler-43765pn-hatteras-bay-polished-nickel-1-light-pendant-prvw-vr~35186080

I struggled with this decision for a long time and decided the lens, wattage, and cost were critical at the time. I went with these from pottery barn. I love the diffused light and the amount of light on the island is perfect.

In our previous house we had pendants without a filter. While the bulb was more decorative, I was always looking at it since I'm short. We chose RH Benson pendants in our new home. Our island is ~9'x5' with two 13" pendants. Love the lens and do not find it difficult to change bulbs. If you can find lighting with this feature in your price range, certainly do it.

Treehugger and bbtrix...those are very pretty. The light colored globes are probably better choices than mine.

Do you find two pendants enough for your 9' island? If so, doing only two pendants would increase our budget for each.

Given the size of our pendants, two have been fine. I debated going with three smaller ones, but advice received on GW made me opt for two larger ones.

Oh boy, there's another wrinkle. I stopped at an antique/reproduction lighting place, and fell hard for some shades there! One is a white waffle-texture reproduction glass, and the other is signed Holophane. Both are open on the bottom. They can make a rod/canopy/etc. to our specs to go with the shades.

I'm only concerned about seeing the bulbs when sitting at the EIK table a few feet away from the island. I'm tall enough that I wouldn't see them while standing/prepping. The guy at the antique store said they can use a fitting that makes the light bulb sit way up as far as possible, too.

And a new question:

My husband thinks we need to find an exact match chandelier for the kitchen table. I think we can find a coordinating one. From the options in my first post above, only the Quoizel has a matching chandelier that we both like, but the pendant is open on the bottom. I don't want a chandelier to dictate the pendant style, but want to make sure we can find something that will work over the table. Thoughts?

...however, for ~1100, I can have them make a matching 4-arm chandelier with smaller versions of the reproduction shade. (I think a version with Holophane would be unaffordable. I didn't even ask. ETA: I mean completely unaffordable, as even that reproduction shade version is not within our budget!)

To recap what my kitchen will be:

• Medium quarter sawn oak
• soapstone-lookalike granite, leathered with white veining
• Fireclay "Basil" tile -- gorgeous med/dark green crackle
• Red oak flooring, no stain

Thanks for the photos! I still love that one, but my husband doesn't like it at all. I'm still taking him to a shop that has one on display, in case he likes it in person.

Pendant. How about this Minka Lavery light?

My pendants are open on the bottom. I bought squatty bulbs so they don't show as much and the bottom half is frosted to eliminate glare.

Is anyone in your family myopic? I'm nearsighted and glare makes my eyes very uncomfortable. I would never consider a fixture without a diffuser because I have no interest in seeing bulbs, they get filthy in a kitchen and they're hanging over my food prep area, and the light bare bulbs give off makes me squint and gives me a headache.

Is the glare a problem on the counter? Or around the bulb itself? My husband is trying to figure out what exactly the problem might be. He doesn't think there will be one.

I chose my pendants based on having a diffuser because I'm sensitive to glare. I went with the Hudson Valley Haverhill, purchased from Wayfair. Love these lights!

Oh definitely the problem for me is primarily with the light source, bulb, LED, headlight, etc....

There can also be issues with glare reflecting off the island top or counter, which is more prominent if it is a polished or dark surface.

Coincidentally, I had the same style fixtures in my old kitchen that nhbaskets had in her previous kitchen. They were pricey ones from Hubbardton Forge. The workmanship in the metalwork was beautiful, as were the opal shades. But they were cone shaped and without a diffuser the light hitting my med. tone granite made big round spots. Especially at night, my eye was often drawn to those spots. They didn't hurt my eyes, but they weren't visually pleasing.

amck2 -- what size is your island? My husband likes the Feiss Urban Renewal in person, but we left the store thinking they were too small at 8" wide for our 111" island. The guy at the lighting store also felt they'd be too small. We're thinking about the 11.5" Kichler that I linked above, but I really love the look of the Feiss better.

To anyone reading:

• Would three 8" pendants be too small for our island?
• Would three 11.5" pendants be too much?
• Are we better off trying to find two 13" pendants?

Thanks!