Affordable Pendant Lights and How to Convert Recessed to Pendant
Affordable pendant lights are an easy, budget-friendly way to give any room a more polished look. Find out how to convert recessed lights to pendants and where to buy affordable pendant lights!
It’s official. Lighting might just be my favorite element in a room.
I feel like it brings a space from nicely decorated to incredibly designed… It’s a fine line, but do you know what I mean?
But I know what you may be thinking: designer lighting costs a fortune, electricians are expensive (not to mention the hassle of scheduling a professional), and it can be so hard to choose the right thing. You’d hate to hardwire something into your home and then change your mind, right?
But it doesn’t have to be expensive, complicated, or difficult.
In fact, I’ve hung four different light fixtures in my home without even hardwiring them (two chandeliers, a DIY pendant in the nursery, and sconces in my boys’ bedroom). I even have a tutorial on how to convert a hardwired fixture into a plugin and another one on how to hang a plug-in chandelier. These are SUCH great options if you are renting or if you only have one ceiling fixture per room and fans are essential – like they are here in central Texas. Plus, no electrician required.
But there are some spaces when you need a fixture hardwired, obviously. And I want to share how we updated our breakfast area with some gorgeous sconces for less than $100.
This post contains affiliate links. Click here to read my full disclosure.
GET THE LOOK:
We had basic recessed lights in this space before. While a great option functionally, recessed lights definitely lack the character of pendants, so I began looking for some to give this space a more finished look.
What you need to replace recessed lights with pendants:
- a recessed light conversion kit
- pendant lights (I used these, but see all my suggestions for less than $100 below!)
How to replace recessed lights with pendants:
Warning: I have basic wiring skills, but I am NOT a certified electrician. This project is completely at your own risk, and I take no responsibility for any mishaps you may have as a result of this tutorial. Please be careful and consult a certified electrician if you are in any doubt.
I’m warning you… it’s really, really easy: follow the directions on the conversion kit. That’s it! Does it really only take 10 minutes? Probably not the first time. Mr. Pax (who replaced ours) found that the first one took more like 30 minutes while he perfected his technique. The second one took just 10 minutes, though, even when you count the 2 minutes it took us to find a screw that was dropped. 😉
And I am in love with the lights we chose. Two lights PLUS the conversion kit was still all less than $100… and they look so. much. more. expensive.
But even if these aren’t the perfect lights for you, I spent a lot of time hunting down gorgeous pendant lights before I landed on these, and I wanted you to benefit from my search. So here are 12 amazing pendant light options – all less than $100.
1. Glass Pendant 2. Iron Metal Pendant 3. Warm Copper Pendant
4. Glass Globe Pendant 5. Oil Rubbed Pendant 6. Mini White Pendant
7. Old Bronze Pendant 8. Burnished Bronze Glass Pendant 9. Chrome Pendant
10. Glass Edison Pendant 11. Bronze Farmhouse Pendant 12. Hand Blown Glass Pendant
Save your money and energy for the things and people these lights illuminate – toy cameras, pink suglasses, and all. 😉
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Beautiful lighting and looks great in your space
Thank you Norma!
Oh I love the cute little second photographer you have helping you!!
Thank you! She’s very photogenic. 😉
Thanks so much for this post! It’s timely for me… been wanting to replace my ugly Hall light with a pendant. How do I choose what color recessed conversion kit?
That’s wonderful!! I’m sorry, I ordered mine quite a while ago, and I don’t remember the options being the same… But I think “finished white” would be a true white whereas “white ivory” is likely off white. If your ceilings are white, I’d go with the finished white.
THANK you, Rachel!!
I ordered #1, because I think it’s simply beautiful and elegant, and will inspire me in the kitchen, lol!
I’m thrilled to hear it! And I totally understand; we all need a little kitchen inspo, right? 😉
I a man wondering how bright the light is? What is the watt on the lightbulb of pendant?
I currently have an LED which is the equivalent of a 60w bulb. I hope this helps!
Wow! It is really good info! Thanks for sharing this post 🙂
Thank you! You are welcome!
Where can I buy the light you used, #1?. It’s exactly what I’m looking for but can’t find it on Amazon. Thanks!!!
Hi Kristen,
Yes, I’m sorry, it isn’t available in that exact style anymore, so I shared a few different options. These are beautiful though (affiliate): https://rstyle.me/+v7G0ECX–J_g3sPl_LofGQ