What style are you going for? Traditional?

Yes, the kitchen is a pretty classic style, with some transitional items, like a stainless steel apron front sink. Backsplash I am thinking of Anchor Bay Cardiff beveled subway tiles, perhaps crackle finished. Here is a photo of the tile with a white kitchen. Thanks for any input!

the white cabinets of the photo is similar to the Medallion Divinity white finish we have chosen for our perimeter cabinets with carrara or calacutta.

Are you planning to use additional sparkle and bling, such as glass cabinet knobs?

Also you didn't mention the size of the pendant, but if it's got a very delicate look overall, it may be a tad overwhelmed by the rather stout look of the cabinets.

I love the pendant! Where did you find it?

Yes, Marcolo we have two large china cabinets with glass doors and they will have crystal knobs and silver pulls. We have 8' ceilings and we were thinking of at least three pendants above the primary island and two above the secondary entertaining island, which is about 6 x 4.
Thank you Susan!
The pendant is from Thomasville Progress lighting Roxbury Collection
Finish Classic Silver
Glass Type Clear Crystal
Height 10-7/8"
Length 55"
Width 7"
Wire Length 10'

We'll also have lots of recessed lighting, task lighting and cabinet lighting. thanks!

They're pretty and they'll play nicely with other bling. Again, keep your eye out to judge whether they're too delicate for the cabs--it's hard to tell from photos.

However, I just wanted to point this out from the spec sheet:

Plated classic silver finish

Plated? I don't know about Progress Lighting, but other manufacturers, like Visual Comfort, have a silver finish made of actual silver. Meaning, you have polish it with silver polish and buff it by hand!

Thanks Marcolo, will do! Perhaps I can buy one and test it out on the island, post some pics for feedback and make a decision if it works or if we'll need something more substantial.

I'll check on the finish as well...sure don't need to polish anymore silver, enough to do with multiple flatware sets and holloware...then again I do have slave labor...two teenagers :)

If you found a way to get teenagers in 2012 to polish silver, you deserve as many precious metals as you can get.

5 pendants will be overwhelming, especially with only 8' ceilings. Pick one area only to accent with a pendant or pendants and use spotlight recessed lighting for the other. A two island kitchen also seems to be fairly size overwhelming for something with only an 8' vertical dimension. You really should check the scale of your choices here. You are also talking about a lot of visually light elements grouped together and then a lot of visually dark elements grouped together. That is another very fine line that will be difficult to balance. If you are not very careful, the room will feel very lopsided. Are you working with any software to help you to visualize your choices? If not, you should be.

Thanks Greendesign for your input. I appreciate your insight. To balance out the contrast, we've decided that the two china cabinets on the perimeter will be in the same gingersnap finish, as well as one of the three pantry cabinets. This should help balance light and darker elements. It is a very large kitchen space -- 13.5 x 27 approx with a casual dining area around the corner but open to the space.

I will revisit the lighting once we have cabinetry and countertops in and ask for much needed and appreciated input from the experts here on GW.
Many thanks!

Beautiful!! Love it! It will be the icing on the cake in that lovely kitchen!