Lighting your kitchen properly can dramatically change the look and feel of your home. Since the kitchen is often one of the most versatile and used spaces in our homes, it’s important to light it properly in order to enjoy it to the fullest.

In this article we’ll be taking a closer look at a variety of modern kitchen lighting techniques and show you how to apply them to your home, which can help maximize the space in your kitchen.

Main Lighting types

There are three main types of lighting you need to know about when it comes to home improvement through lighting: Ambient, Task and Accent

1. Ambient Lighting: Ambient lighting will be your main source of light in addition to natural sunlight when lighting your kitchen.

The goal with ambient lighting is to cast as much light as possible, as evenly as possible from your kitchen ceiling onto your kitchen and its countertops.

The best way to do this is with a combination of pendant lights, recessed lighting, and flush mounts. Accent lighting fixtures such as chandeliers may also act as ambient lighting, as they hang from ceilings as well.

By having good sources of ambient light in your kitchen, you can be sure that your kitchen countertop installation will look its best all day long.

2. Task Lighting: While ambient lighting is used to light up large sections of your kitchen, task lighting focuses on those smaller sections that may be covered by shadows.

With the help of task lighting, work surfaces, cabinetry and kitchen countertops are properly illuminated so you can safely prepare meals, read recipes, and easily spot ingredients on a shelf.

Task lighting can be placed above appliances like stoves, or underneath cabinets via LED under cabinet lighting for areas where food is prepared.

Common kitchen task lighting options include strip lights, puck lights and pot lighting. The image below shows a fantastic use of task lighting in coordination with the espresso station design. Drawing attention to the feature while offering practicality and usefulness.

3. Accent Lighting: Consider these flourishes the cherry on top of your well-designed kitchen: toe kick lights, cabinet lights and any other light that might accentuate your favorite elements. Using lighting to draw attention to focal points of a room can really make the difference.

Try hanging lights above your kitchen countertops to highlight them as a main feature in the room.

Through lighting, you have the ability to direct attention on the things you want people to notice in your home, like a beautiful granite countertop. Proper countertop lighting can help make your home shine!

Bringing it all together

In order to create a highly functional kitchen, it’s important to incorporate all three types of lighting into your home: ambient, task and accent. By incorporating a variety of modern kitchen lighting techniques, we can properly light our kitchens in a way that is both efficient and visually appealing.

Lighting should be planned around maximizing the usability of your kitchen and brighten the overall space. However, it’s also important remember that the light fixtures you select for a kitchen can add an aesthetic element to the room. Therefore, always take into consideration how your lighting fixtures will affect the decor and design of your kitchen.

How to Properly Light Your Kitchen