The Magic Of Color-Changing Kitchen Lights

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May 172013
 
PinExt The Magic Of Color Changing Kitchen Lights

Here’s a daring alternative to normal kitchen lighting: Instead of traditional accent lights that only emit white light, use kitchen lights that can change color.

Color-changing LED tape lights have the perfect linear, low-profile design to be great under cabinet lights, toe-kick lights, or cove lighting. But instead of shining with just white light, they can emit light in 16 different colors. Imagine, being able to change the entire look and feel of your kitchen in seconds. You can tailor the space to any occasion, from family game nights to big holiday parties, from early morning baking frenzies to a couple’s night in.

Can you pull off this dramatic feature in your kitchen? To help you find out, I’ve whipped up a few different “color recipes” explaining how each color can transform it into something new.

Green: Get Energized At Your Tranquil Health Club

Comfortable Home Design Green Over Cabinet Lights The Magic Of Color Changing Kitchen Lights

Image via ComfortableHomeDesign.com

Green is a clean, comforting color. Physiologically, green can be good for your heart, it can help you relax your muscles and breathe deeper and slower. Set your lights to an emerald hue for the afternoon, and suddenly, you’ll feel in just the right mood to have a cool glass of water and a piece of fruit. It’s the perfect scheme to use after a long workout or spending time outdoors too. Continue reading »

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How To Install Recessed Puck Lights In 8 Easy Steps

 Lighting Tips  2 Responses »
Apr 052013
 
PinExt How To Install Recessed Puck Lights In 8 Easy Steps

Puck Lights PALPX 300x191 How To Install Recessed Puck Lights In 8 Easy Steps
Recessed puck lights are a simple, attractive light source for task lighting and accent lighting. If you’re ready to use puck lights to illuminate your cabinets or shelves, just follow these tips to create the perfect lighting scheme!

1. Pick Your Pucks.

Do you prefer plug-in, hard-wire, or battery operated lights? LED, xenon, or fluorescent? Low voltage or line voltage? What color temperature works best with your decor? You can browse our full selection of puck lights here.

2. Decide How Many Puck Lights You’ll Need. 

This will depend on how you want to use them. For even under cabinet lighting or bookshelf lighting, use one light for every 6-10 inches of space. For display lighting, position one light above every item you wish to showcase.

3. Determine How To Place Your Lights. 

For even lighting, follow the 6-10 inch rule. We recommend you install the lights closer to the front of the cabinets or shelves. This will provide the brightest illumination, especially important for task lighting. For accent lighting, the placement is more arbitrary. What makes your display look best?

4. Test Them Out.

Before you whip out the power tools, test out your placement by taping the puck lights in place. You can even turn them on to see how the final lighting scheme will appear. Make adjustments as you see fit. When you’re happy with what you see, take a pencil and trace each light. Continue reading »

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Product Spotlight: LED Tape Lights

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Mar 282013
 
PinExt Product Spotlight: LED Tape Lights

Waterproof Reel 300x300 Product Spotlight: LED Tape Lights
LED tape lights are one of the handiest fixtures around. By themselves, the lights look old-fashioned and futuristic at the same time – stored in rolls reminiscent of vintage film reels, featuring space-age looking LED lights. But, once you install LED tape lights, they’ll bring your space to life unlike any other light fixture.

What Makes The LED Tape Light So Wonderful?

LED tape lights (also sometimes called LED ribbons) have a ton of special features that other fixtures just can’t measure up to:

  • The strong adhesive backing on every reel will stick to almost any surface with ease.
  • You can’t find a thinner, lower profile light strip on the market.
  • The trimmable fields allow you to tailor the length of your tape lights, fitting the specific requirements of your project.
  • Their dimming capabilities (when powered by dimmable drivers) let you customize your space’s light levels, no hassle.
  • Many are wet location listed, so you can have great lighting indoors and out.
  • You can choose between warm white, cool white, colored, and color-changing varieties.

On top of all that, LED tape lights have a 50,000 hour rated-life, and because they’re LEDs, you know they’re going to save you energy.

Colored LED Tape Lights 1024x581 Product Spotlight: LED Tape Lights Continue reading »

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How To Make Your Office Lighting More Energy-Efficient

 Energy-Efficient Lighting  1 Response »
Mar 152013
 
PinExt How To Make Your Office Lighting More Energy Efficient

White Cove Lighting in a Conference Room 200x300 How To Make Your Office Lighting More Energy Efficient
This article is part of a series here on the blog about how to save the most energy with lighting in your home or business. Browse the entire series here.

Lighting accounts for at least 28% of the energy used in the average office building. That translates to a pretty hefty chunk of the monthly budget. But, by making big and small energy-efficient updates, you can spend less and enjoy a more comfortable office environment.

Big Changes…

If you still use incandescent or outdated fluorescent overhead lights, it’s time for an upgrade.

LEDs use about 80% less energy to generate the same amount of light as incandescent light bulbs. They also last about 25 times longer. So, if you use incandescent light bulbs in your recessed cans, you should replace them with LED lamps or retrofits. LEDs excel at downlighting, because they’re naturally a directional light source. Today’s models have light output and color quality very similar to incandescent lights, so you might not notice the change until you look at your energy bill.

If you have older fluorescent lighting in your office (like T12s), you’re also not saving as much energy as you could. T12 technology is over 70 years old, and incidentally was taken out of production last year. If you exchange your T12s for T8s, you’ll use 45% less energy. Not to mention, the color temperature and light quality of fluorescent lights have improved dramatically over the past few decades, so new lights could be a huge morale boost for all the office workers.

iStock 000005663021Medium 1024x670 How To Make Your Office Lighting More Energy Efficient

Smaller Changes…

Office lighting isn’t just about what’s on the ceiling. To make sure you’re saving the most energy possible, you also need to take a critical look at the smaller light fixtures in the office. Continue reading »

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How To Make Your Garage Lighting More Energy-Efficient

 Energy-Efficient Lighting  No Responses »
Feb 262013
 
PinExt How To Make Your Garage Lighting More Energy Efficient

This is the fourth post in a series on saving energy with your lights. We’re tackling every space in your home and business to make sure you’re saving the most power possible. Click here to browse through all the posts. 

For many of us,  the garage is one of the most utilitarian rooms in the house, so there shouldn’t be any excuse for having lights that consume unnecessary energy. Whether you use your garage as a full-on workshop, or just as a place to stash your holiday decorations, you might be surprised at how much you can save with just a few simple lighting upgrades.

iStock 000019156158Small How To Make Your Garage Lighting More Energy Efficient

Let’s start by dividing the garage into different regions with unique functions: the storage area, the task area, and the entrances and exits.  Continue reading »

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5 “Light Hacks” from LifeHacker.com

 Lighting Tips  No Responses »
Aug 202012
 
PinExt 5 Light Hacks from LifeHacker.com

If you don’t know about LifeHacker.com, it’s a website about shortcuts to make your life easier. The site offers tons of articles about smart and handy tips and tricks for getting things done and solving annoying, everyday problems.

Below are just a few ideas from LifeHacker about lighting. Some are “hacks” about creating simple-yet-innovative light fixtures, and others use light to avoid common problems:

1. Use Rope or Tape Lights Under Cabinets to Prevent Toe Stubbing

This hack is pretty straightforward – all you need is a rope light, or some handy adhesive tape lights. You can cut them to the perfect length to run along the bottom of the cabinets in your kitchen or bathroom close to the floor. Wire them to a switch, and then when you get up for a late night snack, or trip to the bathroom, you’ll never stub your toe again. (They also add a really attractive layer of light.)

eefce4a0fc38ef1678e91e03dbc80e1c 5 Light Hacks from LifeHacker.com

Courtesy of LifeHacker.com

Continue reading »

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3 Recreatable Lighting Looks From Houzz

 Thoughts on Light  No Responses »
Apr 172012
 
PinExt 3 Recreatable Lighting Looks From Houzz
If you haven’t checked out Houzz.com, you’re in for a treat. Houzz is a home design site with hundreds of thousands of interior and exterior photos, thousands of articles written by design experts, and several tools for managing the remodeling process. I am opted in to Houzz’s weekly newsletter, which delivers inspiration via ideabooks that will make you swoon.

Our product pages at Pegasus Lighting are easy to navigate, but they don’t always include tons of application photos. I find that sifting through Houzz’s ideabooks can spark new design ideas in an instant! Here are three photos from Houzz.com that are easily recreatable with Pegasus Lighting’s products.

1. The Multi-Layered Dining Room: 
57668 0 8 0307 traditional dining room 3 Recreatable Lighting Looks From Houzz

Isn’t it beautiful? This look is achieved by using four layers of lighting (five if you count the fireplace)! The cove lighting on the ceiling is done in a warm white color temperature. The designer likely used a customized lighting strip, probably something very similar to our xenon low voltage light strip. The four mini recessed lights add just a touch of general lighting – and the two in the center are swiveled to also illuminate the wall art. The in-cabinet lights call attention to the glass cabinets, and with the cove lighting, create excellent accent lighting for the room. Finally, the under cabinet lights provide countertop lighting in a warm color temperature, likely with a xenon under cabinet light fixture. Continue reading »
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The Pegasus Lighting Roundup for October 25 to November 10

 Pegasus Lighting Roundup  No Responses »
Nov 112010
 
PinExt The Pegasus Lighting Roundup for October 25 to November 10

Not Your Typical Next Door Renovation The Pegasus Lighting Roundup for October 25 to November 10

What would it be like to renovate the house next door to President Obama's?

In lighting news…

If you’re not yet familiar with the new law phasing out standard incandescent bulbs, this article provides the best overview I’ve seen.  It also discusses the latest buzz surrounding the issue.

The government is forecasting much higher energy bills this winter for those who heat with oil, propane, and natural gas.  In the northeast, the average bill is expected to increase by $259!

An emerging technology called virtual staging is allowing real estate companies to show “furnished” properties without investing money in costly items.  Get the scoop from daily5remodel.com.

In lighting tips…

The blog Life of an Architect has posted a couple of extremely helpful articles lately.  If you’re ever in the market for a contractor, these are the must-reads on checking a contractor’s references and 30 questions to ask your contractor. Continue reading »

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Lighting Tips for Residential Dining Rooms

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Jul 012009
 
PinExt Lighting Tips for Residential Dining Rooms

Guiding Principle
“Light is the first element of design; without it there is no color, form, or texture.” – Thomas E. Farin

General
Proper lighting can add depth and/or excitement to a dining room.

Accent Lighting
Accent lighting can add important drama to a dining room by creating exciting visual interest. As part of the decorating scheme, accent lighting should be used to spotlight paintings, houseplants, sculpture, and other prized possessions, or to highlight the drapery or the texture of a wall. Good accent lighting can be especially helpful in a dining room to help create an especially attractive space.
Continue reading »

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