Downlight

One of the toughest things about renovation is colour-scheme selection. Initially, both Hb and I thought we like earthly tones... i.e. brown, black and white which is also the colour scheme for our KS weekend home now. So when we went to shop for downlights, we immediately picked the only dark colour available; 4-inch glossy chrome casing with frosted glass.

The rationale was simple (or so we thought at that point in time):

• White may turn yellowish over time
• Chrome will make an interesting contrast to the white plaster ceiling
• Wires are visible if glass panel is non frosted
• 4-inch is just nice, any larger, very "cho lor"
• Warm light cos white light is harsh
• Energy saving bulb for obvious reasons
• Fans; we're likely getting chrome ones vs. the white ones...

And so we proceed to buy 56 units! Why 56?

• 4 x Living Room
• 6 x Dry Kitchen
• 8 x Wet Kitchen
• 2 x Toilet 3
• 4 x Room 4
• 6 x Master Bedroom
• 4 x Walk In Wardrobe
• 4 x Family Hall
• 4 x Corridor Upstairs
• 4 x Room 2
• 4 x Room 3
• 6 x Porch

Note that for Living and Dining area, there will be ceiling mounted fluorescent lights concealed along the plaster ceilings. Hence the minimum number of downlights required in these areas.

The chrome coloured downlight that we selected was slightly more expensive than the plain coloured ones. But then because this guy is my bro's wife's friend's husband, the discount was better than other shops we surveyed:

• RM14.00 Casing
• RM13.00 Energy Saving Bulb
• RM27.00 Each

Grand Total = RM1,500.00 (Paid in Cash on 27-Oct-2012)


So we happily bought them all and loaded them onto our car. 6 full boxes of them! End of story? No! Cos ONE MONTH LATER... we began to doubt our selection. Why?

• The ID we consulted said any colour is fine... as long as it's not the glossy finish type cos any imperfections, dent etc will be super visible...
• Google said... stay away from chrome, it may rusts...
• Family said... the contrast is so weird... the chrome coloured downlights will be jarring...

In actual fact, one man's meat is another man's poison i.e. doesn't matter what others say, so long as we like them, different people has different taste and preference. However, the part where it may rusts and that dents are super visible... made us think twice. Afterall, we are not exactly experts in lighting. So we decided to heed the advise from the experts (the ID we consulted and my brother; an architect). We went back to the shop and asked if we could change the casing. Lucky thing, they said OK... So this time round, after much deliberations, we said OK let's go with the white one... But then even with white, there are 2 options:

• White with opening in the middle (top row, 3rd from left but in matt white)
• White border without opening (top row, 2nd from left)

After another round of discussion; with opening (where dusts tend to gather around the opening gaps) vs. without opening (we felt that it's not exactly hard to pry the casing from the plaster ceiling), we went with the 2nd option i.e. white border without opening. Oh and the part about it turning yellowish, we said, we will not smoke in the house, so it should be fine!

So OK, happily thought there will be sufficient balance for us to get other lighting from the same shop since we still need:

• 1 x Pendant Light for the Altar Area
• 1 x Pendant Light for Dining Area
• 1 x Pendant Light for Breakfast Table
• 6 x Wall Light for Toilet
• 2 x Outdoor Light for Porch Pillar

But when the recalculations were made, to our disappointment, there isn't much difference cos apparently, the one we selected earlier were on promotion, the one we are selecting now is not:

• RM12.50 Casing
• RM13.00 Energy Saving Bulb
• RM25.50 Each

Grand Total = RM1,428.00 (Exchanged on 25-Nov-2012)
Balance = RM84.00

Nevertheless, we have returned the chrome casings and will collect the new ones once they are ready (need to order it seemed). Honestly, the entire experience made us felt so 'bodoh'. Like we can't even decide on such a simple item! But then Hb said because the stakes are so high i.e. this entire renovation will cost us a bomb, we can't afford to make mistakes so it is only natural that we are unsure or maybe even afraid to make our choices. I say, we're indecisive, hehe. The only consolation is perhaps we're both in this together!

Moving forward, we will make sure we weigh the pros and cons properly before making our final decision.

OMG, so stressful!!!