Lighting

I thought I was heading down the right track by trying to find the best LED lighting for the house. I researched the various manufacturers and checked colour temperatures, spread, lifespan, consumption and actual appearance compared to existing halogens. I'd come to the conclusion that the best product was the Curve D900 designed by Brightgreen in WA and made in China to their specifications - http://brightgreen.com/.

All of this research went out the window in the space of 2 minutes after meeting our electrician. At ~$125 per LED downlight plus fitting, we quickly found the cost to upgrade was significant $4-5k (based on no. of lights). When our electrician confirmed these are best on the market, but come at a cost that isn't necessarily realised as a cost saving over the life of the product we thought it best to stick with the standard halogen.

We opted for pendant lighting over the kitchen island bench, dining room & powder room as we wanted these areas to be a feature of our home - down lights were also installed in these areas for functional purposes. The pendants we selected are a new product called 'Torino', that are a replica of the Italian Designed AXOLIGHT Spillray Pendant. Available in several colours & configurations, they are a 12v 20w halogen.

We selected the "smoke" colour (pictured below) which compliments our Raven Caeserstone perfectly & have gone with 3 x singles over the island bench, 2 x 3 drop pendants over the dining room & a 6 drop pendant in the powder room to add a bit of retro glamour for guests.