Pendant lighting is the most important fixture in dining rooms and kitchens

Small pendant lighting is really a lot of fun to decorate your home with. It can have a colorful modern look or a contemporary feel to it.

Hanging pendant lights are commonly referred to as chandeliers or pendant chandeliers, meaning they hang from the ceiling. and They are a very decorative lighting fixture, depending on the style you buy.

Don't settle for an ordinary ceiling fixture

Examples of the different shapes you can buy

• View these designs and others from Hinkley lighting, Murray Feiss, Hunter Kenro and Quoizel.

The pendants above are only examples of the different shapes you can use throughout your home. Be creative in your placement and colors and you will give your home a completely different look.

Pendant lights used as a decorative fixture can give you direct or diffused light depending on the style you buy. The best way to use this lighting is to add a dimmer switch to control the amount of light you need at certain times of the day or night.

Size is the most important factor when installing these lights. A pendant used over a  table needs to be at least 12 inches narrower than the table itself or you will bump into it when moving around. This consideration is mostly for chandeliers.

Kitchen pendant lights

A mini-pendant chandelier for above a kitchen table makes a perfect lighting accessory for small or large spaces, you can group several together to illuminate a seating area.

Pendant chandeliers for the living room

Normally you don't use these here unless you have vaulted ceilings or your dining room and living room are one large area. Many new homes are built this way.

Lighting for the foyer - enter your home with a splash of color

A bright light here very important. The brighter the better this area welcomes people into your home and needs to look it's best. Stay with a single light either ceiling mounted or one that only hangs about 12 inches down. It should match with your stair lighting.

Hanging pendant lighting for other areas

A small contemporary hanging pendant is a great look as hallway and stair lighting when you have vaulted ceilings. Single light, two rod pendant lamp in a black finish with a glass surround and ribbed accents. This color will match just about anyone's wall and floor colors.

Most of these ceiling fixtures take one 150 watt halogen bulb. Although this would probably be too bright for stair wells. You can control the amount of light shining on the table by buying the proper sized light bulb and by using a dimmer switch.

If you can't use a pendant light, a swing arm wall light would be a better choice. More about ceiling fixtures on this page.

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