a bit of heresey.. i am sure...

if you cant tell the difference.. go cheap ... light fixtures are extremely easy to change out ... so why fixate on it ...

and if.. in a few years.. if you see one that makes your toes curl ... change the light fixture ...

i differentiate between things that can be easily changed.. and those things that cant ... lets call them the backbones .... such as a $2000 granite counter or shower stall ... e.g. ....

ken

I think you are correct. I dont think I would be compromising safety if I choose a big box brand. And darned if I can tell the difference between the brands!

Some of the chrome and nickel-plated lights have a brass base and won't rust. Some of the cheap lights feel tinny in comparison, the design is rather plain, and the shades aren't a heavy glass. I bought the Gatco Odenburg 3-light fixture with a brass base for $150 on Lightingdirect and have been very happy with it. Worth the extra $50 imo. You can also get coupon codes off the internet. I saved 6% on my order.

I got a 5-light Hinkley fixture for over my vanity. It was $300 but that's for 5 lights. It was the same price at Lamps Plus as at my local lighting store, so I went local. It's a chrome finish but I'm not sure about the base. The glass shades are very nice.

If I saw a light I liked at HD or Lowe's, I would have gotten it there. However, they had nothing I liked.

I've read before that as a decor rule or trick, use some things, the bigger or more noticeable things, that are expensive....then use inexpensive products for the less noticeable things. When the eye sees, say, pricey vanities and faucets, it will naturally see the lights above as the same (unless they're OBVIOUSLY low quality, I suppose).

This is a dressing rule, as well. Wear beautiful, expensive jewelry, and you can get away with an inexpensive simple black dress.

I would never spend money just because I think I ought to buy something expensive. I'm sure there's a difference in quality, but the lights are not going to be inspected with a magnifying glass.