-
Track Lighting System, Modular GU10 Rail Spotlights -
30cm Rattan Hanging Pendant Light, Bamboo Shade -
Adjustable Ceiling Spotlight in Black with Bulb -
White Track Lighting, Adjustable LED Ceiling Spotlight -
Black Spotlights, Adjustable LED Surface Downlight -
Industrial Black Hanging Light -
Marble Style LED Kitchen Pendant Light -
Kitchen Island Linear LED Pendant Light -
Under Cabinet Motion Sensor Light, Rechargeable LED Bar -
Industrial Kitchen Pendant Light -
LED Flush Mount Ceiling Light, Warm to Cool White
A kitchen asks two things of its lighting at once. It needs an even spread across the floor so the room is usable, and it needs a brighter, closer light exactly where food is cut and cooked. One ceiling fitting almost never does both, and that is why pendants ended up over the island.
The other reason to light a kitchen in layers is that it is a room used at very different hours. The same space is a breakfast bench, a homework table and, at nine at night, somewhere to sit with a glass of wine. Separate lights on separate switches let one room do all three.
What's in this range
This collection holds 11 products, priced from $50 to $170 in Australian dollars. Listed heights run from 5.5 cm for a slim surface mounted ceiling fitting up to 170 cm for a hanging pendant measured with its cord, and shade diameters run from 14 cm to 30 cm. Listed wattage sits between 12 W and 40 W.
Metal is the most common material, with aluminium bodies on the spotlights and one shade woven from bamboo and rattan. The range splits into two families. Pendants hang on a cord over an island or a table, and several of them take an E27 lamp, with one product page stating a maximum of 60 W per lamp and two noting that lamps are not included. Spotlights and track systems mount on the ceiling surface or run along a rail, and use high output COB chips or GU10 lamps, one of which is supplied with the fitting. Colour temperatures listed include warm white, and two products that switch between 3000K, 4000K and 6000K or 6500K. Kitchens and kitchen islands are named most often on these pages, followed by dining areas, hallways and bedrooms, since the surface mounted fittings suit more than one room.
How to choose
Decide what each light is for
A pendant over an island is a working light and a visual anchor. A track or surface spot is a working light only. A flush ceiling fitting is the general light that makes the room usable when nobody is cooking. Most kitchens want at least two of the three, and mixing them is the point rather than a compromise.
Drop length over a bench
A pendant has to hang low enough to light the surface and high enough to see across the room and to clear anyone standing at the bench. The listed height on each product page includes the cord, and most cord pendants here can be shortened at installation. Measure from the benchtop to the ceiling before you order, not from the floor.
Shade diameter against bench width
Shades in this range run from 14 cm to 30 cm across. A narrow shade throws a tight pool and suits a row of two or three pendants along a long island. A wider shade covers more surface on its own and suits a single fitting over a small bench or a round table. The diameter is listed on every pendant page.
E27 lamps or an integrated LED
Several pendants here take an E27 lamp that is not included, which means you choose the colour temperature and the look of the globe yourself and replace it when it fails. Fittings with a COB or integrated LED arrive complete and need nothing. Neither approach is better, but the E27 route needs a globe ordered at the same time. See light bulbs.
Colour temperature over food
Neutral white around 4000K keeps the colour of meat, vegetables and fabric honest, which is what a preparation area needs. Warm white is easier to sit under and suits a pendant over a table where people eat rather than chop. Two products here switch between the two, so the same fitting can serve both.
Frequently asked questions
Do the pendants come with globes?
Some do and some do not. Two product pages state that the E27 lamps are not included, and one spotlight is supplied with its GU10 lamp. The light source line on each page says which applies, so check it before you order.
How many pendants over an island?
That depends on the length of the island and the diameter of the shade you choose. The usual approach is to space them so the pools of light meet along the working surface, which means measuring the bench first and reading the shade diameter second. See pendant lights for the wider choice of shapes.
Can I install these myself?
No. Ceiling pendants, track systems and surface mounted spots are hardwired, and fixed wiring work must be carried out by a licensed electrician in Australia.
Will these fittings dim?
Two product pages state that the fitting does not dim, and one notes that dimming depends on the globe and the switch used. If dimming matters, choose an E27 pendant, fit a dimmable LED globe and use a dimmer rated for LEDs.
What lights a bench that has cupboards above it?
A pendant cannot help there, because the cupboard blocks it. That job goes to an under cabinet light or an aimed spot. There is a rechargeable under cabinet bar in this range, and the aimed options sit in spotlights.