It had been too long since I had tackled a home decorating project. So when I learned my friend, Steve, would be coming to visit us at The Maples, I knew it was the perfect time to line something up.

Steve has provided the expertise and the labor for most of my projects. To name a few, he installed my bamboo floors, put up continuous curtain rods and drapery panels in my sun room, changed out my dining room light fixture, hung countless pictures and decorative items on my walls, and even buried my TV cables in the wall. But when Steve moved to Columbus for a new job last summer, I was left without the brains, skills, and labor I needed to bring my ideas to life.

I came to think of this latest project as the great light switch. It brought a new look to my kitchen with a minimal investment of time and money. And, as is often the case, I stole the idea from neighbors who had done it first.

But no, it didn’t involve the electrical switch that turns the lights on and off. It was the lights themselves that changed. If you’re familiar with the cathedral ceilings of our Abbey and Canterbury homes, you can probably visualize the four can lights way up high on the kitchen ceiling. What you may not know is that there is a type of pendant lights that are installed by simply screwing them into the light bulb sockets. Then a metal plate covers the existing can light.

Commonly called instant pendants, they come in a variety of colors and styles with many types of shades. I found mine on amazon.com, but other neighbors ordered theirs from plowhearth.com or lightingdirect.com or purchased them at Menards.

Here is my new-look kitchen with pendant lights.

From this angle, you can see the dining room light fixture that I was trying to match in terms of colors and materials.

And here is a picture taken later in the day, when the light from my sun tunnel is dimmer.

That was fun! I can’t wait for inspiration to strike again. Guess I’ll have to go visiting around the neighborhood to see what other ideas I can borrow.