Kitchen/Laundry Room - New Light Fixtures

As I was writing this post, I kept thinking of horrible "light" titles. Like, "let there be light." Or, "you light up my life." Really, really awful. I'm so sorry.

Anyway, we replaced two new light fixtures in the kitchen area. I've read stuff before about how light fixtures are one of the most important thing in a room, when it comes to decor. I don't really buy that, BUT I do think that attractive light fixtures can make a huge difference and are often overlooked. So, you out there, replace your ugly light fixtures! Do it!

Here is what we were working with in the kitchen:

The ceiling fixture originally had a plastic covering over it, but it was cracked on the day we moved in. Eric took it off and threw it away and we had been living with it like this for over a year.


See? Hideous. So off we went to IKEA to pick up a $20 light fixture. Luckily, the wall just needed a little paint and it was easy to replace. We really like this fixture because you can point each bulb at different areas of the kitchen like the stove, sink and fridge.

Then there was the laundry room. I posted about the laundry room here (it was originally green and full of junk). It was looking pretty darn good after we redid it:

But the light fixture that was hiding in there, was pretty gross:

Luckily, it wasn't as offensive as a boob light, but pretty darn close (the indention it's setting next to is an opening to the attic - we're pretty sure a nest of birds are living in there, but that's another story). So once again, IKEA came to the rescue. We found the same light fixture that was already above the sink, and put it in the laundry room.

 You can see that it is not in the center of the room because of the attic opening, but it's fine character.

 Cute, eh? What do you think? Do you think lighting is the most important thing in a room? Or is it even worth it replace them? Anyone else hate boob lights as much as I do?