You can get enough light either way. Which style do you prefer?

In our current (custom) house, we went for a minimalist style. Recessed everywhere except for fixture over dining table and pendants over kitchen island. We have zero flush mounts now.

In our last house we had a bunch of flush mounts, a few semi-flush, a few hanging (e.g. stairwell), and the rest recessed. No sconces, which I don't like. It worked great for us.

I’m 50/50 but concerned with getting enough light in those areas. We want to stay away from those builders grade flush mount but don’t want to spend 100 for each light fixture either. We are leaning towards any place that doesn’t have “designer” or “statement” pieces. Over the island we will have pendant lighting, dining will have a hanging light and entryway. What determined if you went 1 versus 2 recessed?

@williamrudoff, "What determined if you went 1 versus 2 recessed?"

That was simple. It was so much cheaper to add the recessed when building vs later when drywall is already up, so we always went for 2 vs 1. In general, add more lights now.

There are some nice affordable flushmounts at the big box stores. We ended up buying a dozen on a blowout sale @ $20/ea and then spray-painted with a hammered finish. Pretty slick.

Recessed lights generally cast light down, surface mounted fixtures generally cast light in all directions. Use surface mounted fixtures.

Have you started construction?

Started construction yes and we are in the stage where we are dried in and starting the trades, HVAC, plumbing, and soon electrical.

Put at least two lights in the laundry. The more, the better. Good lighting is crucial for seeing stains that need a pre-treatment.