A Pendant is an ornamental, hanging, ceiling fixture with no multiple arms (like that of a chandelier). Since it looks like an ornament for your home, it is known as a pendant.
TYPES OF PENDANTS:
There are three basic types of pendant lighting and they give you an amazing amount of flexibility:
· Conventional Pendant: First are pendants where the open side of the shade or glass faces down.
· Inverted Pendant: Second would be inverted pendants where the open side of the glass faces up.
· Mini Pendant: And third is a mini pendant which, as you would imagine means a smaller version of the pendant or ornament.
PENDANT USAGE:
Pendants can be used to great effect for 'general lighting' as well as 'task lighting'.
·Conventional Pendants: A pendant in the Foyer can be a great introduction to your home. If you have a Foyer window in your home, centering a pendant in the window also adds elegance to your home from the street.
·Inverted pendants: are also an excellent choice over the table in a breakfast nook, dinette or kitchen island. They can provide both general illumination or create focused task lighting depending on your need. For this reason, Inverted Pendant lighting is also a good choice over game tables or desks. Even over a bedside table, Inverted Pendants have an advantage over table lamps in that, they free up space on small or crowded tables.
·Mini Pendants: open up a whole new world of design options. A single mini pendant can be used to create 'ambient light' in an area or to provide 'task lighting' in a key spot. Using multiple mini pendants, either hung at the same height or staggered, can create a beautiful lighting display as well as provide excellent 'task lighting'. This is a good option over kitchen islands, counters or bar areas.
PENDANT STYLES:
Pendant lighting, whether it is conventional pendants, inverted pendants or mini pendants come in a wide variety of styles and colours. Pendants come in matching families, so coordinating the lighting in your home becomes easier.
PENDANT LIGHTING FOR KITCHEN:
· Besides the general lighting guidelines, the kitchen islands, areas over the sink and counter tops call for more concentrated lighting since they are essentially, work areas.
· To calculate the amount of wattage needed over these workareas, multiply the area’s square footage by 2.5. The product you get is the required wattage.
· A decorative pendant with 2 or 3 shades (depending on the size of the island) can be installed over your island for sufficient light and to add a decorative element to that area.
PENDANT LIGHTING FOR DINING AREA:
· Normally, a decorative pendant or a Chandelier with a downlight will do the job while providing plenty of light on the table surface.
·Use a dimmer to soften the light for mood dining when entertaining and to brighten for homework, hobbies, etc. when needed.
·The bottom of the pendant should be at least 30” above the table to prevent accidental bumping of heads and for the right amount and spread of light.
· Normally, 100 watts is sufficient for this area.
