Lighting is one of those design elements that can really elevate a space. It serves a purpose but can also add beautiful design. Depending where you live your lighting needs can be a little different. We live in Mesa Arizona where it can gets very hot from mid May to mid September. April and October are still hot but not as intense as the summer months. Because it gets so hot I find it necessary to have ceiling fans in the bedrooms and living spaces.
I am excited to show you some of my favorite lighting purchases I’ve made for our home. They have all been purchased with budget in mind but there are a couple that I spent a little extra on because I loved them so much. The ones that I spent extra on were on an amazing sale so I was getting a lot of value for the money I spent.
I’ll admit that a couple of my purchases didn’t work out after I lived with the lights for a while. Thankfully my husband is super patient and loves me and knows I sometimes get things wrong. And I was able to sell them on Offer Up so it wasn’t a complete loss. It can be frustrating when you think you love a design choice but after time you realize it isn’t working for you.
When we moved into our new build home the builder installed can lights in the kitchen and hallways. They also installed the cheapest vanity bathroom lights and walk in closet lights. The rest of the spaces are left with no lighting just the wiring to hang your own.
Master bedroom ceiling fan
For the master bedroom I wanted a unique ceiling fan and light. I didn’t want a basic boring ceiling fan. There are not a lot of options and anything unique can be really expensive.
I found this stunning ceiling fan and light from build.com. I absolutely love the way it looks. It is a MinkaAir brand and excellent quality. The original cost was $900 but on sale for under $400. The two fans can stay in place or the whole thing rotates. I don’t like to have air blowing directly on me so this works out perfect. It is stopped to blow on Monte. I feel the air circulation but it isn’t blowing directly on me. Our grand daughter loves this ceiling fan. She likes to come into our room and turn it on then lay on the bed and watch it while it blows her hair and spins around.
This exact light and finish are no longer available on build.com. It is available in a different finish and there are some similar great options.
Master hall and closet lighting
I absolutely love these wooden chandeliers that are perfect for our hall and closet. You enter then master bedroom through some double doors into a hallway. The bathroom is to the left and the bedroom and closet are to the right. There were two can lights in the hallway and a cheap light in the closet. I wanted some cute wooden and small chandeliers to hang in the hall and walk in closet.
I found these adorable wooden pendant lights in distressed white on overstock.com for under $100 each. They are perfect for the master bedroom. To switch from can lights to a different light requires an adaptor we pick up at Home Depot for $15 each. The hole where the can light was is larger then the ring for of the pendant light but the conversion kit comes with a ring to cover the hole. They sell more decorative options if something more ornate fits your decor. I was happy with the subtle ring included in the conversion kit.
Entry Lighting
The entry to our home is one of my favorite spaces. We’ve worked really hard to get it where it’s at. I was pretty sure I wanted an Orb chandelier in the space but had seen a lot of options that seemed super expensive.
On Overstock.com I found this amazing chandelier that was the perfect size and would work perfectly in my space. It was a beautiful wood chandelier that looks amazing in our entry. I was able to purchase the chandelier for $300. I loved it so much I purchased one for my son and daughter in law as a house warming gift for their new home.
Back Entry Light
The final light I want to share is a cute chandelier I purchased recently from wayfair.com. During the lock down due to covid 19 I spent some time hunting for a chandelier I would like in the back entry that comes in from our garage. I found this pretty wood chandelier with cute beads that add so much to the look of the light.
There was a can light that didn’t bring a lot of brightness to the space. Monte took down the can light then installed this recessed light converter into the hole. Because the can light leaves a larger hole then the ring on the new chandelier I also purchased a decorative ring to cover the hole.
The converter installation is pretty straight forward if you have some experience with electrical. After the converter and ring are installed we were ready to hang the new chandelier.
I had a few obstacles to work around in this back entry. There is a huge unsightly air vent that opens so the light needed to not get in the way plus two doors coming into the space so the light couldn’t hang down too far.
I found this light to be unique and super fun. It was $180 so a great deal for the quality. The wood on the light make it decently heavy. I absolutely love the decorative wooden beads.
Final Thoughts
Lighting is one of those things I would like to change more often then necessary. I hope you enjoyed seeing just a sample of the beautiful lights we’ve installed in our home. Lighting can be very expensive but with some patience and work you will be able to find lights that are not only beautiful but great quality.
