what can i use instead of cans?

November 4, 2005 9:46 AM

We are designing a semi-modern, semi-classic kitchen remodel in our 1922 Craftsman / Mission Revival bungalow. I am very much opposed to using cans in the ceiling for light, although I realize I may be in the wrong; my wife insists that they are necessary, even though there is a bright multi-light unit from Rejuvenation Hardware over the dining nook and various period-accurate pendants for spot lights on the counters and some under-cabinet over-counter lighting.

I just don't like the cans! They look too '70s to me, and I don't think they belong in a period kitchen - even a modern/period kitchen. What are our alternatives? Are low-voltage wire/track systems even less period looking (probably - plus I bet they get dusty easily)? We don't have a lot of room to fill up with ceiling-mounted fixtures, and I'd like to keep the ceiling bare anyway if I can, especially if we rip it out and have the beams showing, which we may do if we can afford it.

posted by luriete to home & garden (14 comments total)

I had a strong aversion to can lights until I saw how effectively they were used in Patterns of Home. Flip through a copy at the book store and see if it will change your mind. I ended up installing them in our living room, which has some strange dimensions and gets very dark at night, even with several lamps. They have made a huge difference in our enjoyment of the room. We used 4" wall washers. They're not very noticeable and the room just seems brighter.

But if you're still not convinced, I would suggest thinking about the materials you're going to use in the remodel. Shinier surfaces, like mirror, stainless steel and glass, will help throw light around the room and keep the room brighter. Undercabinet lighting would be helpful too. And don't forget, if you're using any glass doors on your cabinetry, you can wire lights inside the cabinets.

As for ceiling fixtures, I think the problem you may run into is if you need so many descending fixtures that the room looks busy. Check out Residential Lighting by Randall Whitehead for some ideas. (Maybe sconces would work?) Personally, I prefer cans to track lighting.
posted by Sully6 at 10:12 AM on November 4, 2005

I just realized--perhaps this book by Randall Whitehead would be more useful to you. The cover is of a bungalowesque kitchen with no can lights!
posted by Sully6 at 10:16 AM on November 4, 2005

Instead of recessed lights, we used indirect lighting. Can you use uplights and bounce light off the ceiling?

Sully is right -- beware of too many pendants. I made that mistake in my last kitchen.

I dislike cans too, but if they're used sparingly where thet're really needed, like over the sink, I stop noticing them. Often, designers get a little can-happy -- and often, they don't really know a lot about lighting, so you get that painful retina-piercing effect. Maybe you can get some advice from someone who actually knows something, and will come to your site.
posted by wryly at 10:29 AM on November 4, 2005

I would strongly suggest you find a quality lighting showroom, with a certified lighting designer. They have the experience to come up with ideas you'd probably never consider. Their service is usually free, and some will even make house calls. Of course their hope is that you'll end up buying your lights from them.

That said, under-cabinet lighting goes a long way to providing good task lighting in a kitchen, while avoiding cans.

Disclaimer: I'm married to a lighting maven.
posted by SteveInMaine at 10:40 AM on November 4, 2005

Cans are often used in museums, because they're very subtle. They recede into the lines of the kitchen when not in use. and they spot work areas and create atmosphere excellently. Get something in a tone that matches the ceiling color, and they should fade right out of view, cancelling that 70s impression.

The real advantage of them -- especially in a Craftsman house -- is that they don't interfere with your perception of the room's lines and moldings. They don't assert their shape. Many great period rooms were destroyed with 80s and 90s track lighting; the return to cans is a preservationists' boon.

I think the pendants are going to start looking datedly "oughts" to us in the next 10 years.
posted by Miko at 11:30 AM on November 4, 2005

I think you're right. Here's my current plan for the room and here is the lighting plan; I'll keep the pendants down to two - one in the cutout that leads to a dark hallway that needs the light, the other at the counter/eating area cutout to the dining room. Since the hanging fixture over the dining nook is going to be big/busy, I think any more than that will make the room too cluttered, as people here have said. So – cans, or indirect lighting on top of the cabinets (although that seems a little theatrical to me, so I'll need to see it firsthand), will be our path. Thanks everyone.
posted by luriete at 11:58 AM on November 4, 2005

I took a tour of the Robie House a few years back, and noticed that the study lighting was done by hiding strings of low-watt 'candelabra base' lamps in a crown-molding type of gutter just below ceiling level - You might want to consider that, if you're going to keep a light colored ceiling.

You want some sort of higher-intensity multipoint light for the work surfaces (sink, counter, stove) - Bad (Insufficient, single point) lighting and sharp knives... Bad idea.


Personally, I'd go with full-voltage fixtures - They're more reliable, and the bulbs are cheaper.
posted by Orb2069 at 12:18 PM on November 4, 2005

Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately, depending on your point of view), title 24 just went into effect last month here in California, which limits my lighting options DRASTICALLY and, unfortunately, makes a huge number of the fixtures I've looked at from Rejuvenation and Metro Lighting simply unuseable - that is, if I want to get a permit for this work.
posted by luriete at 12:23 PM on November 4, 2005

If you're worried about too many pendants, what about using lights that are flush to the ceiling, like some of these from Sue Johnson? (Other places to check out--Bellacor and Schoolhouse.)

Incidentally, there's advice here on laying out recessed cans.
posted by Sully6 at 12:49 PM on November 4, 2005

Edison Price was the master of discrete recessed lighting. That site is not much of a showroom, but his stuff is the best and can be invisible while still giving beautiful light.
posted by StickyCarpet at 4:04 PM on November 4, 2005

This link to a shot of our renovated kitchen, which was in a mint-condition 1918 Craftsman in LA, might be some food for thought. The challenge was to update the kitchen without completely betraying the period look of the rest of the place. Because unless you use only period appliances and fixtures, some updating is almost inevitable if you want a modern working kitchen. For me, the keys were keeping the original mouldings, using neutral, simple cabinetry, and choosing complementary colors and surfaces.

Here we used ceiling (recessed) cans, halogen pendants on a guywire, and undercabinet halogens, all of which were on dimmers. The only thing I'd definitely do differently would be to try up-lights on top of the cabinets instead of the recessed cans, not so much for the period ambiance, but because the light would be more indirect. (In our case, an uneven ceiling in a seismically active area worked against us.) There's a lot going on, but overall it worked, I think.
posted by rob511 at 6:11 PM on November 4, 2005

P.S. To prove that we were faithful to the Craftsman style in the rest of the house, you can see a few Flickr pics here.
posted by rob511 at 6:15 PM on November 4, 2005

I really like a single bright ceiling fixture, which is uncommon in American houses but the norm in Europe.
posted by fshgrl at 9:19 PM on November 4, 2005

rob511 -- beautiful house! Your fireplace surround is a treasure.
posted by Miko at 8:00 AM on December 11, 2005