Judy, we have low voltage undercabinet lighting by SeaGull. It is on a dimmer switch. I absolutely love love love it. We are going to add a light rail to the cabinets, because I think it will make my cabinets look "finished". We did not have crown moulding before either. (Our perimeter cabinets are original, we painted them) My dh made that and installed it, and now I'm just waiting for the light rails to be installed. I have been doing a lot of looking, and it seems that they really can vary in size, I've seen 1" - 2+" in height, and lots of different profiles.

Our lights are at the front of the cabinet, and you can't see them, they are tiny little bulbs, but if you sit at the table you can see them. It's not a big deal, I think the light rail will eliminate this when it's installed, but even without it, I don't mind.

I also have plenty of other light in the room, but there is something special about these lights, they add a lot of warmth to the room.

Your kitchen is really beautiful, not to worry about lack of positive feedback from your bil--he's just not TKO and only sees what interests him. Maybe he's thinking he needs a new floor so that is what he is focused on.

Good luck, I say if your dh is willing to get the lights installed now--go for it. Even if you use them just when you are cooking, you will enjoy them.

beekeeperswife thanks for the encouragement : ) I am just so surprised that he didn't once say, "hey, I like your new kitchen". Instead he pointed out that our cans aren't lined up with our cabinets like HE would have done. He asked why we didn't make the eating area wider? He said the canopy of our RH Alexandria chandelier is too small and that we should install a medallion. And both he and my husband made it clear with all the eye rolling that they thought my using GW for friendship, advice and ideas was silly. *sigh* I wonder if other people feel like their DH's or DW's treat them differently when their family is around!

Naturally, he complimented my husbands handy work, but never complimented the function or beauty of the kitchen, and he clearly knew that I had researched and basically made all of the choices (my husband didn't want any part of the designing but was interested in the doing).
Oh well, you're right . . . I shouldn't let him get to me.

Are your lights led or fluorescent by Seagull? I wonder if certain lights are very low profile so as not to need a 1"+ light rail.

Judy-just have to ask--what does his kitchen look like? Perphaps he is not too happy that someone else did your electrical work....

I had a neighbor in not too long ago--he wanted to know when we were going to paint our cabinets.....perhaps he thought that the white cabinets that used to be dark oak were only primed?????

Again, your kitchen is beautiful.

Hummm Icequeen so are you saying they added a rail under the cabinet that is 1.5" deep and then recessed the pucks into that? Don't you still see the pucks without the light rail?

I've read that pucks don't give even light that's why I was looking in to strips.

Even though I'm not convinced I need under cab lights . . . I can tell that if I don't do it my DH will be unhappy with the decision. And since he really didn't give any input during the planning stages, I probably should make him happy and go for these, as long as I they don't end up being visible and as long as I don't have to go with a deep light rail.

One of our local lighting stores suggested an LED light stip by Kichler that is only 1/2" deep. He said if we install these in the back of the cabs we will still need at least a 1/2" light rail to make them invisible. Do light rails come that narrow? What would I do, order it through Cabico? Or do you just buy them elsewhere and paint to match similar to how we're doing our crown molding?

Beekeepers I haven't been to his kitchen . . . he lives in a rental. I don't think he expected us to give him the electrical because he lives in Palm Springs, CA and we're in CT.

I think Icequeen is right though, I have to remember that I love my new kitchen and that's all that matters. When people walk into someone else's renovation . . . there are all sorts of emotions that can be involved, hence the full range of reactions. Me? Even when I hated how my own home looked at the time . . . I was always very happy to see other friends and families beautiful homes. AND I quite naturally spewed my compliments. But I realize that's just me.

Yes, undercab lighting is very nice. However, first things first.

To BIL: "What great ideas! I'm sure you'll do a great job with your kitchen...when you can afford a house."

To husband (after the eye-rolling): "Will one blanket be enough for the couch, or would you prefer two?"

Be sure that you install your lighting at the front of the cabinet, not the back. At the front, it illuminates the counter. At the back it illuminates the backsplash and causes shadows.

Mine are xenon pucks. (If you get LED, make sure they aren't "blue," but a warm color. The first ones that came out were too blue. I can't help with brands, though) I suppose the pucks do give off uneven light, but it isn't something I notice. I probably would more if that's the only lights I had on. But I love light and I have them all on. The undercabinet lights have a beautiful color and everything looks so sparkley, even a drainer of dishes!

My cabinets had a false bottom put in and the pucks are in that, although they still do come below the bottom by not quite 1/2 inch. There's more stuff that had to go into that hidden space besides just the pucks - wiring, an electrical box, etc. I still have a light right, but it is very shallow. I can't see the pucks when I am standing, but from sitting at the kitchen table, I can, although like beekeeperswife, I don't mind that.

Sorry about your BIL and his comments and lack of compliments. And about DH not standing up for you or standing with you.

Yes, that's right a false bottom in the cabinet, so a hole is cut into the bottom of the cabinet where the puck sits hidden. My friend has no light rail and you can see about 1/4" or so of the puck but it looks good.

If I had my preferences, I would definitely do the strips over pucks, but since you don't have the room for a light rail, I would do the recessed light pucks. I think it's a good compromise.

You will like the undercabinet lighting, I'm sure.

Good luck Judydel!

Judydel, I am feeling for you. I think everyone is guilty of acting differently when different family members are around and it's tough to bear.

I think your kitchen is gorgeous and serene! I think you've done an awesome job! I love how you mixed all of your hardware selections.

I currently have cheapo flourescent strips intermittently under my upper cabinets. They are really ugly. I hardly ever turn them on. So, I am having a tough time understanding this undercabinet business, but your GW thread is enlightening!

I too have the SeaGull low voltage linear lighting and have no light rails. I cannot see the lights unless I get down on the floor. These are great little lights but they do require a transformer.

LOL marcolo. I'll have to remember that for next time.

Thanks everyone for the information and for your wonderful support. I'm okay now : )

I measured the lip at the bottom of our cabinets and it is actually almost one inch! It's 5/8".

So I think if I go with the Kichler Design Pro LED's, which are only 1/2" deep, the narrowest I have found, I'll be okay without a light rail. I'm so glad to hear that those of you that see the light when sitting at the table don't mind them. If I do, I can always apply a 1/2" rail later on I suppose.

The Kichler Design Pro LEDs are 3000 K and 90 CRI

THANKS AGAIN . . . this forum rocks!!

Judydel, we are also in the market looking for a good undercabinet lighting. We too don't have a light rail, a good one that we found is Utilitech LED Strip Light, sold by Lowe's. they are very slim, and throws out a very 'warm' light too .. So check it out & good luck !

sounds like your DH and BIL are implementers, not designers. It's like engineers versus architechs. The architech can design a drop-dead gorgeous building and the engineer will look at it and say, "that beam is in the wrong place."

I've seen the units at Lowes and they seem pretty nice. I have some flourescents in my office that are about 1/2" thick. they aren't dimmable, but they put out a fair amount of light.

The undercabinet lights are really nice when working since they put light down directly on the work surface. Good mood light with other lamps turned off. And very low power (LED).

Try Pegasus--I just bought some Xenon's from them because they are only 15/16" and don't require a transformer. I do not have light rails and I cannot see them unless I bend down to look for them. Very reasonably priced as well..