Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
illinigirl_gw

is my foyer light too small for the space?

illinigirl
9 years ago

When I first saw it....it looked puny to me. It's 12" diameter and the foyer is 8 by 10.5. I had a lighting designer (certified) help me choose my fixtures so I would *think* she got the sizes right. But it seems small to me. What do you think?

Against the longer wall:
[img]

[/img]

Against the shorter wall:
[img]

[/img]

Comments (17)

  • chispa
    9 years ago

    What is the next size up in the same model? I would probably go with that if they have one.

  • illinigirl
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    the next size up is a chandelier that is 25" wide and 16.5" tall not including chain length. i'm not sure if that would be too large.

  • palimpsest
    9 years ago

    Up to 18.5" would be the guideline for a chandelier or pendant. You are looking at this in an unfinished empty space. You probably could have gone a bit bigger, but it's not super small for the room either.

  • lizzieplace
    9 years ago

    I read in an article that the guideline is length + width of your room, so in your case, 10 + 8.5 = 18.5 for the width. And then 2-3 inches high per foot of ceiling, so if it a 10 ft ceiling, 20-30 inches high light fixture. Hope that helps!

  • duvetcover
    9 years ago

    Palimpsest and Northpolehome gave you the right formula re size. Here is info re wattage:

    "Wattâ is the right amount of light?
    The amount of light you need depends on the size of the space as well as the visual requirements. So how much wattage do you need in a foyer?
    Just multiple the length and width of the room in feet, and then multiple that resulting number by 1.5 to come up with a guide for the minimum wattage you will need to move around the space safely.
    For example, in our 8-by-10-foot foyer we would need at least 120 watts of light
    8â x 10â = 80âÂÂ
    convert to watts = 80W
    multiply by 1.5 = 80 x 1.5 = 120W
    This could be achieved through one chandelier with 120W total or a 3-arm decorative chandelier with 30W bulbs plus a task table lamp at 60W.
    And finally, donâÂÂt forget to put your lights on dimmers. This will allow you to change the mood througout the day, and save energy when you âÂÂleave the light onâ for other members of your household.

  • ILoveRed
    9 years ago

    Is this a 9 ft ceiling?

    If so I think the next size up with the chain might hang too low, unless you have a tiny short chain.

    Honestly, I love this one. I think it looks great.

  • ILoveRed
    9 years ago

    PS. Loving the walls in your foyer!

  • illinigirl
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Yes 9 ft ceiling.

    There are 3 60 watt bulbs in the fixture for 180w total which is fine per the calculation from neighborgirl.

    I love the fixture and how it goes so well with the door stain. I wish it was a few inches wider in diameter. Not sure I could find anything else I love as much style wise though after already having to give up on the lantern I wanted to put up at first.

  • ILoveRed
    9 years ago

    It does go well with the door stain! I hadn't noticed that. But, that may be what makes it look so good in there.

  • laurensmom21
    9 years ago

    if you love it, leave it! I think once you get your furniture in place, it will be fine :)

    I love your trim & mouldings - very pretty!

  • Annie Deighnaugh
    9 years ago

    It looks small and too much like a bedroom fixture to me. For a foyer, I'd think you'd want something a little more dramatic and suited to a public space.

  • lizzieplace
    9 years ago

    Illinigirl, I remember you posting about that lantern you love that you found online. What happened to that? I imagine that is taller and thinner though?

    Neighborgirl, thank you for that information! That is very helpful. If you have recessed lights too, do those factor in? For example, the provision is for 5 recessed lights for the dining room but we will have a chandelier there too 6x60w candelabra, so thinking of maybe doing 4 recessed and chandelier in the middle. However, I am thinking it will be either the chandelier that is on, or the recessed lights. Not together. So in that case, recessed lights don't factor in the calculation?

  • duvetcover
    9 years ago

    I am no expert but had saved the article re foyer lighting because I was thinking of changing our foyer light and thought it might be helpful to you. Different rooms need different levels of light. You might find this link helpful - http://www.ehow.com/how_5534545_calculate-indoor-lighting-requirements.html

  • chispa
    9 years ago

    northpole home, you can never have enough light! Dimmers are your friend and allow for all possible adjustments. My dining room has 4 recessed lights and a chandelier with 12 x 60w. For parties they are all on but dimmed. To find that spider you just saw crawl behind something, then everything on full blast!!

  • lizzieplace
    9 years ago

    Chispa, I agree! I had a blast selecting our light fixtures. But we haven't done electrical yet (actually, there is no house yet, just a driveway leading to nothingness!). Wondering, how much does adding a dimmer cost? Crossing my fingers electrician's pricing is not too overpriced.

  • illinigirl
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Northpolehome- Our electrician is charging around 45/ per dimmer in our house. We had 4 included in our contract and we added a couple extra. One of the places we added a dimmer was the shower. I can't remember if it was GW or my lighting designer that gave me that idea but I thought it was a good one since our shower has 2 can lights and it may be nice at times not to get blasted with light in there. Other areas people tend to put on dimmers: island lights, anywhere you will be watching tv, dining light, master bedroom overhead lights if you have them (we did add 2 cans to the mbr)

    I'm debating putting the IC/UC lights on dimmers but the electrician says very few do that. Not sure if I should or not.

    As far as the original topic, I asked the opinions of a few people (besides GW) and they thought the light was fine for the space. Certainly we could go larger also. I love the fixture itself so I'm going to leave it. Northpole you correctly remembered I did originally want a lantern and we could not find one that would work because of height. It would have been too tall and hung down too low. I didn't care for other styles of flushmount bell jar lanterns.

    That fixture may not be as dramatic an element as it could be, but when people open the door their eyes are going to go to our huge window wall anyways. So I'm going to play the understated card here I guess ;)

  • carp123
    9 years ago

    if you are wondering if its too small....then its too small. Lighting is so important in design. If you look at the most visually stunning rooms, scale is always on target. Light fixtures are almost always on the larger scale.