We are working on our lighting plan for a kitchen that is basically 12 feet by 11 feet with a couple of intersecting areas like the entry to our basement stairs.

According to the general rule of 24 inches out from the wall, and four feet from each other, the first row along our ‘cabinet wall’, seems to make sense with three pot lights in a row. We also put two pot lights in our foyer. As well as three pendant lights at the end of our cabinets by the dining room where the countertop overhang from the peninsula creates an eating area with three stools on the other side. So we are comfortable with all of those lights.

We then went four feet in from that first row and put another row of three lined up with the first row. This creates two problem areas (question marks on the diagram). One is that the fridge and adjoining cabinet are 29” and 24” respectively, so the pot light there, aligned with first of the first row, would be about 7” out from the fridge and about a foot out from the cabinet over the fridge. Is that ok, or should we give up on aligning the rows, and move that pot light 24” from the fridge cabinet?

The other problem area is that the middle light falls over a smallish ( 38” X 18”) mobile island. Is that ok, or should we have two small pendant lights there?

Finally, there would be two lights firming a third row (would be three but the basement entry is where the third would go). For proper positioning they would not be aligned with the other rows.