lighting | Bunches of Joy

Lighting Update

April 21, 2016 Leave a comment

Thank you to everyone who chimed in with their two cents on my lighting conundrum. The good news is that the lighting decisions have all been made and everything’s been installed! Of course, there were quite a few departures from my original post. But first, how about the ones that we stuck with, the outdoor lights:

And now the rest . . . All different from what I had originally posted about, but sometimes that’s just what happens. First, the kitchen pendant. I decided to buy the West Elm globe pendant but when I tried to get it online, I found out it was back-ordered until June! Womp, womp. But the good news is I found this one on Amazon for much cheaper ($47.99 instead of $99):

And then the sunroom. Also a last minute Amazon purchase:

For the entryway I decided to go, as planned, with the World Market pendant. But, once it arrived, I had to finally admit that it was too big. So a last minute trip to Home Depot led me to this beauty:

In the dining room I just couldn’t make a decision. I wanted something a little funky/different but mainstream enough that most renters could get behind it. In the end I found this industrial barn light for only $29.99 at Home Depot and I think it fits the bill perfectly.

I apologize for the picture quality, but taking pictures is an afterthought for me these days. I’m just trying to get as much done as I can each time I’m over there, and I always end up snapping a few photos on my way out and I’m always in a rush.

We finally found some amazing electricians to install everything and also finish off all the work from the prior guys. Our previous electricians did a poor job–they cut all the wires in the kitchen which led to almost nothing working in the rest of the house. Our new electricians, Dick and Rick (no joke), were able to finally sort it all out and installed new outlets and switches (all up to code) throughout the entire house.
One trick I learned from Dick and Rick that I thought worth passing along: install the outlets that are operated by a switch upside down so that you can easily find them in a room. Genius.

The kitchen counters go in tomorrow and we’ve already got some appliances in. Next big decision? Exterior trim paint. I’m thinking dark and moody–maybe something to tie into the dark bricks?

Think on that and let me know . . . I’ll post some inspiration photos soon and a little mock-up I did.

Lighting Help!!

March 28, 2016 2 Comments

I need help making some lighting decisions so I’m asking all of you for some opinions. We had electricians working on the house this weekend and they made some serious progress, but can’t get any further without lighting fixtures to install (they replaced every outlet with up-to-code child-safe ones and also put in new light switches everywhere). And that’s where I need help: we need new light fixtures for the side entryway, the sunroom, the dining room, and a pendant for over the sink in the kitchen.

We also needed new outdoor lighting, but Mr. Bunches and I bought some new fixtures this weekend (who knew Lowe’s would be open on Easter?). This light for the side entry door (it will be mostly hidden due to the awning; cost was ~$12):

And then two of these lights for $39.98 each right by the front door:

As a reminder, here’s what the exterior lights look like now. I especially like the upside-down one.

The only lighting decision I’ve made so far has been for the bathroom, where we went with this fixture:

Okay, so that leaves four more decisions. Oy. Here are my ideas, but I’m open to suggestions.

For the entryway by the garage (the main way the future renters and homeowners will come and go daily), this light:

It’s the same light that YHL put in their upstairs hallway. And I loved it when they did it two years ago, and I’m excited to have a place to use it. Now if only World Market could kindly put its lighting on sale in the next few days.
Next, I’m thinking for the sunroom ceiling light of doing this for $79 plus shipping:

Or this farmhouse light for $43 (it’s 16″ wide and can be hung close to ceiling–it’s also available in some fun colors in addition to brushed steel or black):

Just a reminder of what the sunroom looks like:

So that leaves the kitchen and dining room. The kitchen has four new recessed lights so all it needs is a pendant over the sink. And even though I still owe a post on the kitchen cabinets, here’s a sneak peek just so you can picture where the light will go:

I love this one, but maybe it’s too modern for what’s going on in the rest of the space? My new favorite blogger at Housetweaking used three in her kitchen. The small one is currently $89 but there’s a 20% off coupon code.

Alternatively, I just did a quick google search on “clear glass pendant lights” and came up with this similar, albeit different but much cheaper, option:

Or something more traditional but still in glass to keep it from being too heavy-looking, for $50:

Or lastly (at least I think lastly, but seriously one Google search for mini pendant lights turns up about 1,836 options in our price range), we could go with one of the lights that we used in our own kitchen remodel (and which we still love 4 years later):

Can you see how badly I need help?! And we haven’t even gotten to the dining room yet. I think in the dining room we’re leaning away from a chandelier and instead towards some sort of flush mount (or at least something you can walk under). Mr. Bunches doesn’t like the idea of forcing it to be a dining room by hanging a low fixture for a table, especially now that we’ve opened up the kitchen. So what do we do? Just a plain drum shade? Something more daring? I need ideas people!! Help!