Nothing says the holidays like an inviting and warmly lit table set for your family and friends to enjoy. So, if you’re looking for a simple way to add elegance and charm to your dining room for the holidays, a recessed light conversion kit may be just what you need.
A Small Change with a Big Impact
Want something more elegant, stylish or modern? Does your existing light cast dark shadows or have a harsh glare? Update your existing recessed light to a chandelier or pendant and completely transform your space. It’s easier than you might think using our recessed light conversion kit. Wow your dinner guests with a sophisticated statement chandelier or convert a recessed light to pendant lighting for a warm and cozy vibe. It’s completely up to you.
Whether you’re hosting a holiday dinner party or enjoying family game night, our recessed light converter lets your dining room and your personal style shine! You can change the entire look and feel of your dining room in just a few hours—and a recessed light conversion does not have to be expensive!
Chandelier vs. Pendant for Your Recessed Light Conversion
When choosing a light fixture to use with your recessed light conversion kit, the most popular options are chandelier and pendant lights. Both offer many styles to choose from but there are a few important differences to consider.
Style
Want more sparkle in your dining room? Convert a recessed light to a chandelier for instant glamour and a shimmering glow. Chandeliers are generally more formal with ornate and intricate designs that use crystal. If you want to add elegance with your recessed light conversion, it’s hard to beat the stunning sophistication of a traditional chandelier. If your style is more modern, don’t worry. Chandeliers also come in a wide range of looks from industrial vintage to farmhouse—all of which can be used with our recessed light conversion kit.
Pendant lights are typically seen as more casual. But with so many beautiful glass and metal designs available to use with your recessed light converter, they can be just as much at home in a formal dining room as a traditional chandelier. However, if your style is more minimal, you might choose a hanging light fixture with clean lines and a sleeker design for your recessed light conversion.
Maintenance
MaintenanceAnother important consideration when choosing a fixture for your dining table recessed light conversion is maintenance. When you’re done installing your recessed light converter, do you want the care and cleaning of your new light to be simple? If so, a delicate crystal chandelier may not work well for you. Pendants, on the other hand, are less challenging to maintain.
Type of Light
When planning your recessed light conversion, remember that chandeliers and pendants provide different types of light. While chandeliers give off ambient light that illuminates the entire room, pendants are better suited for accent or task lighting. If you’d like to use your recessed light conversion kit to improve your general lighting, a chandelier may be your best choice. But if you’d like to add depth to your lighting design and have other light sources, consider pendants for a more intimate and cozy atmosphere.
Size and Shape of Your Table
When updating your dining room light fixture with a recessed light converter, consider the size and shape of your table. Is it round, square, or rectangle? Large or small? A chandelier works well over almost any table shape. But if the table is very long, you might want to consider using two recessed light conversion kits to ensure adequate light. You could also use linear pendant lighting. A single pendant or mini chandelier complements a small round table nicely, while a group or cluster of hanging lights works well over a larger one.
Choosing the Right Size Fixture for Your Dining Table Recessed Light Conversion
Now that you’ve settled on the right style of fixture for your recessed light conversion kit, it’s time to consider a few more technical things.
The unofficial rule is “the larger, the better” but be careful not to install a fixture that is actually wider than the table. One rule of thumb when planning your recessed light conversion is to make sure the light fixture is at least 12” smaller than the table on all sides. If you’re going to use multiple recessed light converters over your dining table, it’s best to span lights between one-third to two-thirds the length of the table.
The Perfect Height for Your Dining Room Chandelier or Pendant
Before purchasing a new fixture to use with your recessed light conversion kit, determine how low you want the light to hang. For most people, the ideal height will be between 30” to 36” above the table. Keep in mind that rooms with higher or lower than average ceilings may have different needs.
One helpful planning tip is to hang a balloon on a string from your ceiling. If you’re installing multiple fixtures with recessed light converters, simply hang as many balloons as you need. Then, you can see if the height feels right experienced from different locations and angles. You can also experiment with hanging lights at varying heights for a bit of added drama.
The size, shape, and type of light fixture you want to use for your recessed light conversion will also play a part in the height at which you hang it. If you end up worried that your ceiling is too low for what you had planned, you can still elevate the style of your dining room lighting with a semi-flush chandelier that’s just as impressive without crowding the space.
Make Your Dining Room an Inviting and Memorable Place for the Holidays and Every Day
Gathering around the dining room table at the holidays with family and friends is a hallmark of the season. But it’s also a place where we eat our everyday meals, work on our family finances, and do school projects. Why not brighten all of these moments by adding a chandelier or pendant using our recessed light conversion kit?
A recessed light conversion is an easy way to dramatically enhance the overall feel of your entire dining room. Just swap out your old recessed light for a new fixture! In fact, our recessed light converter is a great way to get creative with your décor and express your personal style for any home lighting project.
Need some inspiration or ideas on how to update your dining room lighting design with a recessed light converter? Explore our Before & After photo gallery to see how others have used our recessed light conversion kit for their own DIY projects. We also have plenty of helpful lighting design guides to learn even more about different light fixture options. Once your recessed light conversion project is complete, be sure to submit a photo to our Project of the Month Contest for a chance to win a cash prize of $50!
