Buy lighting fixture online?

Platinum Member Joined: Oct 14 2009 Posts: 5893

Is that advisable? Has anyone done it and can share experiences?

I'm thinking track lighting would be good for our living/dining room. Small room. Tried Lowe's and Home Depot and they have very limited selection and the customer service wasn't so great either. Tried a lighting specialty store where the customer service was great, the selection only slightly better on the floor but they had humongous industry catalogs and would help you get what you want from those though you don't see it in person until it comes, but their prices were way, way higher than Home Depot/Lowe's. I see lighting websites that have beautiful selections and lower pricing. Does it make sense to order from one of these even though you don't get to see it first? I did see what the other stores had so I get the idea of what's out there. I am no interior design maven.

Looks and functionality are more important than serious quality to me at this time because while we need good light wherever we live, we don't plan to be in this apartment for more than a couple of years at most, and who knows what the lighting needs will be like where we are next or if it will even be worth moving the light with us. So I'm OK with buying $50 quality instead of $150.

The websites had some really nice looking pieces in the $50 range (we'd need 3 or 4 of them to light the room) while the lighting store's cheapest offering was $90 and UGLY. But I mean REALLY ugly. So we're talking at least maybe $120 apiece if I go with the professional place, times 4, makes a big difference. but they do advise you and do the install...

Executive Member Joined: Sep 11 2008 Posts: 329

I just bought a kitchen hanging light and a hall light on line. My husband and I looked at the pictures and narrowed it down to what we liked the best and placed the order. For the hall light, I didn't measure the drop from the ceiling so the light we bought hung too low. I was able to return it but the caution I share with you is to make sure you are very neat when unpacking the box so that if you need to return it you can put it back so it is resellable. Otherwise, they may not give a full refund. The second hall light I ordered was perfect.

Platinum Member Joined: Oct 14 2009 Posts: 5893

where did you order from? Do you recommend them?