When Maxwell and I went to the press preview for House Beautiful's re-creation of Ina Garten's country kitchen in Rockefeller Plaza last week, I was reminded by the lamps on her gigantic counter top how much I love counter top lighting in a kitchen.
In our last apartment, Maxwell and I had a tiny metal lamp with a paper shade painted by his mother on our little kitchen counter top. Now, you probably couldn't find two more different settings than Ina Garten's and ours but the effect was the same: taking a table lamp and using it to create warm, cozy light in a room that can often have lighting challenges.
Here's a dreadful photo of our old kitchen, but I have to include it so you can see how tiny our lamp was and in the hopes that you'll believe me when I say that this lamp gave the most wonderful moody light: perfect for keeping the kitchen lit but not blasting it out with bright over-heads.
Here is a much better shot of a counter top lamp in action from a kitchen in Paris we profiled in 2008.
Here is a shot from House Beautiful of Ina's kitchen island; see the lamp in the distance?
Nice, right?
Related:
• Lamps In the Kitchen: What Do You Think?
• What Every Kitchen Needs According to Ina Garten
• Good Product: Cupboard Lights
(Third image: House Beautiful)
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Hm. Yes, nice if you have the kind of counter space that Ina Garten has, and can keep it far enough from the stove to keep the lampshade from getting greasy/grimy build-up. Our kitchen counter space is too precious, though--I need to keep it as clear as possible so that it doesn't feel too cluttered to work. And if I had a little extra space, I'd devote it to the stand mixer or bread machine before a lamp, I think.
very nice idea. Any suggestions on how to accommodate cords?
We have a small galley kitchen with no windows and poorly spaced ceiling lights (I still love it). I placed a small halogen desk lamp on the top of the back of the electric range, so that I can at least see what I'm cooking.
My girlfriend (not a cook) uses it as "mood lighting" when I'm not in the kitchen.
I love the look. It's so cozy.
You can get the same effect with dim under cabinet lighting. Frees up the counter space and prevents gunky shades too!
i have a ikea red lamp on my countertop that match my red appliances :) , i leave it on at night if i have guests over