A pendant light may seem like a 1970s nightmare at first thought. In fact, a trending question on Google is “is pendant lighting out of style?” If you’re wondering the same thing, no worries! Pendant lights can be a timeless choice because of the unique focal lighting they provide in a space.
Pendants lights, as a type of lighting, won’t ever go out of style because they are the best choice to illuminate a focused area from above, like a kitchen island, kitchen sink, or dining table. In fact, my husband just installed THIS pendant light we purchased from Target, and we installed it over our dining room table.
We love the look, because like all lighting, pendants can complete a look or even offer a unique or fun contrast to the room’s style for a statement piece. I think of lighting like an outfit’s shoes. It can complete the room depending on how it speaks to other pieces, colors and styles in the room.
When I was searching for the perfect pendant, I did plenty of research on this topic, and I thought I would share it on the blog to help answer common questions when choosing the perfect pendant light for a room.
What is a Pendant Light?
A pendant light is a light fixture that hangs from the ceiling by a cord, chain, or rod. Also a pendant light has one solitary light bulb. While I’ve seen some options with multiple bulbs that are categorized as pendants, hanging lights with multiple bulbs are typically called chandeliers.
What Styles of Pendant Lights are There?
There is no shortage of styles for pendant lights. Some of the most common pendant lights you will see if you are browsing on Pinterest are monochromatic, Victorian, neoclassical, afro-modern, classic, minimalist, and maximalist. In the next several blog posts, I will cover some amazing choices for each of these styles. However, as you would expect, there is certainly fusion of styles that can make selecting a pendant light fun and flexible, and therefore hard to perfectly categorize.
In addition to styles, pendant lights can be hard-wired into your ceiling or plugged into an outlet. If you have your eye on a pendant light, but you don’t have wiring for a light in a specific space, there is an excellent trick online known as the “magic light trick“! I’m considering using this trick in my living room to hang in the center of the room. Our house is old, and a hard-wired light fixture in the living room wasn’t a thing in the 1940s, I guess!
What are the Best Rooms to Install a Pendant Light?
Like I mentioned above, using a pendant light is best when you want to illuminate a specific area from above. Not only does a pendant light give much needed light for a concentrated space, like a kitchen island or kitchen sink, it also helps designate a special area. The single hanging structure helps focus the eye’s attention on a space and section it off as a focal point in the room.
Because of pendant lighting’s effects, they are best suited for unique areas of a room that you would like to especially illuminate for work, like above a kitchen sink or kitchen island. A pendant light would also look great above a desk in a small library or office room as well. How about above a vanity or window seat? Yes and yes!
Also, people often install multiple pendant lights in a row over a workspace, like a kitchen island to make even more of a visual impact.
A pendant light (or lights) should not be the single source of lighting in a room, however. This is because the hanging bulb will cast large shadows around the room without another light source to provide enough light. Make sure that the room has lamps, recess lighting, or sconces, for example to help the room not feel empty and shadowy.
What Size of Pendant Light Should I Buy?
I’ve heard it said that it isn’t a good idea to buy a pendant light for a ceiling that is 8 feet or shorter. I don’t agree necessarily. A pendant can still be used depending on the diameter of the pendant, or how wide the actual fixture (shade, globe, etc.) is.
When you are shopping for pendants, you may notice that there are size options for a particular style that catches your eye. For example, you may find a globe pendant in 18 inch diameter size or 12 inch diameter size. West Magnolia Charm has a very helpful formula to figure out the ideal size pendant light for your room. They write, “To find the ideal size diameter light fixture for your space you will want to take note of your room’s height, length and width.
Add the length and the width of your room (in feet) together. From there take the total and switch it to inches. So 10 feet is now 10 inches. The sum, now in inches, is your ideal diameter for your light fixture. Use this calculation for living room, bedroom or foyer light fixtures”.
I would take this advice with a grain of salt, and I would also round up to the larger option closest to your room’s dimensions.
How Do I Install a Pendant Light?
If you have a plug-in pendant light, simply plug it into an outlet, and install using a hook. Usually, all you need to install a plug-in pendant comes with your purchase.
If you have a hard-wired pendant, first decide on how much you want the fixture to hang from the ceiling.
Once you’ve decided on the length you want, you will have to shorten the electrical cord of the pendant so that the chain isn’t bunched and folded over on itself. This may need an expert’s touch, especially if you live in an old home. My husband and I used THIS tutorial to help us shorten our electrical cord on our dining room pendant light.
Pendant lights are not going anywhere, and you can find so many options to suit your style or give a room a new look! Stay tuned for the next posts where I cover my favorite styles of pendant lights based on Pinterest categories!