Renovating your house? Black Friday is a surprisingly good time to buy light fixtures
Last fall I was in the thick of a home renovation project, doom scrolling thousands of light fixtures in search of clean, modern designs I didn’t hate. While I would normally consult my Verge colleagues for the best Black...
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Last fall I was in the thick of a home renovation project, doom scrolling thousands of light fixtures in search of clean, modern designs I didn’t hate. While I would normally consult my Verge colleagues for the best Black Friday TV and laptop deals, it did not initially occur to me to check for seasonal deals on the more contractor-oriented category of hardwired LED light fixtures. In fact, a lot of big lighting companies run meaningful Black Friday sales.
Fortunately, I happened to finalize our lighting selections just before Black Friday 2023 – and then saved hundreds of dollars by ordering pretty much every pendant, flush mount, outdoor sconce, and track light we needed by the end of Cyber Monday. If you are embarking on a home renovation, let this be your PSA to save a few dollars by placing your lighting order this weekend!
Lighting is a very subjective interior design decision, so this is not an ultimate guide to the very best light fixtures in the world. But these are all fixtures I have actually installed in my house, used for several months, and like. Generally, I was looking for hardwired LED fixtures with modern design, dimmer compatibility, and 2700K color temperature (the warmer and more flattering end of the spectrum; please don’t make your house feel like an operating room with 3000K or higher!). I also generally prefer fixtures that emit softer and more diffused light over harsh directional spotlights.
These are all generally in the $100-$500 range; you can get cheaper fixtures at your hardware store, but I plan to live in my house until I die. I have also included a few of West Elm’s contract-grade fixtures on this list, which are not on sale this weekend but I think still deliver good value for the price. If you are mid-renovation, you should already be getting used to the sticker shock on all materials, including lighting. Hopefully, shopping this weekend can help you get beautiful fixtures while staying on budget.
Deals on nice pendant lights
If you have a reasonably high ceiling or need fixtures to use over a dining table or kitchen island, a hanging pendant is a good choice for ambient light that is softer and nicer than overhead recessed lighting.
A classic mid-century design by George Nelson for Hermann Miller that comes in a variety of shapes and sizes. They emit nice, soft light and look great by themselves in a high-ceilinged office or bedroom, or mounted in a line over your dining table.
A great kitchen island pendant. The integrated LED is bright enough for task light while cooking, but the brassy interior gives it a warm and cozy feel if you have island seating. It comes in a few shapes, so you can match or go a little funkier with a trio of different profiles.
$159
A good workhouse pendant we used in a high-ceilinged walk-in closet. It has a nice milk glass bulb that gives off diffused but bright light.
We used this pendant to upgrade the old can light in our nursery – see conversion kit below. It’s a joyful little blob with nice dimming.
A conversion kit to turn old can lights into pendants
If you are not planning a larger renovation, you can still make a big improvement to existing rooms by upgrading the main light fixture. In our son’s nursery, we used this conversion kit to DIY swap an old 1990s can light in the ceiling for a hanging, dimmable LED pendant light with much softer and nicer light. Just make sure you have a very stable ladder, and do a dry run of your assembly on the ground first.
$22
An affordable kit that screws into most old can lights, allowing you to hang a pendant light instead.
$11
Depending on the size of your can light and the diameter of your pendant’s ceiling mount, you may also need a small ceiling medallion to disguise the old opening. Before installing, paint the plastic Ceiling White to give it a more matte texture.
Deals on flush mount lights
For ceilings that are too low to hang a pendant, a flush mount fixture is the next best way to avoid harsh recessed lights. Arguably the most famous flush mount fixture is the boob light, but you can do a lot better without breaking the bank.
This is a nice light for a bedroom or office with a low ceiling. The shade is a nice linen texture that gives off a pretty and diffuse light.
$179
We used this flush mount in our open pantry. It’s a brighter light than you might want in a bedroom, though on a dimmer switch it could work well in most low-ceilinged rooms. The textured open shade gives it a nice vibe.
A good deal on track lights
If you have beams or a more industrial open ceiling, you might be looking for track lights. These are generally not my favorite way to light a space as they can feel harsh and industrial, but when combined with other layers of light – ideally floor lamps and some up-lighting – they can provide good task lighting in a kitchen, office, or workshop.
We found that most nice-looking track light systems were inexplicably expensive, perhaps geared at more commercial installations. This is what we ultimately installed over our main living room, a very nice system and low-profile system that comes in black or white.
Additional track heads for the Nora MAC LED track system.
Deals on outdoor lighting
When choosing outdoor lighting, you want something rated for damp spaces. Sustainability and dark sky best practices recommend that any outdoor pathway fixtures emit targeted, downward light from a recessed bulb.
We chose these simple sconces to light our front door and walkway. They come in both black and white and are dimmer compatible, something we did not find on many outdoor fixtures.
We put these pendants in a screened porch where a closed globe would have been likely to trap insects. They have a rigid pole but the shade can swing a little, making them a good choice next to a ceiling fan.
A deal on an expensive but awesome statement sconce
Our biggest splurge was the Tom Dixon Melt collection. These are wild acrylic blobs that when turned off make a perfect metallic mirror, and when turned on become transparent with a warm and interesting glow. They also come as pendants, chandeliers, and small rechargeable tabletop lights.
A very cool wall sconce that appears to be mirrored metal when turned off, with a warm and interesting glow when on.
