Lighting & Your Kitchen - Two of the Best Decorating Tips for the Stylistically Impaired!!

Hey let’s face it: there are just some things that we are not the best at. Maybe we excel at running businesses or teaching children how to better understand the world—no one said we had to be blessed with decorating skills as well! But truthfully, a poor decorating taste can be a near constant source of embarrassment and leave you cringing at the most inopportune moments! So for those of you blessed with talents other than decorating, here are five simple steps to help bring a little life into your decor.

Fixing the Fixtures
One thing that definitely separates the pros from the rest is lighting. Frankly, this is one area of the home that adds a subtle touch of sophistication and style if done properly. If done poorly, the illumination will be inadequate, the fixtures won’t complement one another, and the entire effect will be a disaster. In every room possible, all try to include at least one source of:

Ambient Illumination: This is the general or overall illumination in a room and is typically provided by: ceiling fixtures, pendants, chandeliers, and floor lamps or torchieres in some cases.

Task Lighting: This is the more concentrated illumination used for completing tasks like homework, work, or food preparation. Sources of task lighting include: desk lamps, table lamps, hanging pendants (downlight).

Accent lighting: This low level illumination helps highlight keepsakes or art, brighten dark spots, and even out the lighting in a room. Examples include: wall sconces, accent table lamps, and track lighting.

Quick Kitchen Makeover
The kitchen is most likely the busiest room in your home and therefore the most cluttered. It always seems like you are fighting for prep space and the area can be an embarrassment during social events. While you would love to spend the thousands it would take to completely renovate the space, here are five easy things you can do without breaking the bank:

Paint
Fresh flowers
Table cloth/linens
New cabinet hardware
New light fixtures

While not the new cabinets, flooring, windows, or new appliances you would love to have—these simple additions will add new life and vitality to your kitchen and will tide you over until you can properly renovate the space.

These simple ideas will help bring a sense of unity, style, and sophistication to your home. Whenever you invest time and energy into your home, just remember to keep things unified and consistent and you will quickly have a home that is the envy of friends and family alike!

Pamela Tice writes on behalf of several home decor websites focusing on Contemporary Chandeliers and helping you to find that perfect Pendant Lamp. Discover your very own Stained Glass Hanging Lights to light your home in style today!