Some of you were wanting more details on the lighting when I shared the pantry reveal. The lighting in the open pantry area was a challenge. 1. There was no overhead/ceiling light to begin with. 2. Walls and ceiling are plaster. 3. Outlet was old and controlled by a switch on the wall. 

Electrical work for the lighting was not DIY. My husband has installed recessed lighting in the kitchen but he was able to run electrical from the previously installed ceiling light, so it wasn’t quite so challenging. For the pantry area, no previous lighting meant pulling the wires from the wall to the ceiling. He started with drilling holes in the plaster wall and ceiling but the wood beam where wall meets ceiling had us realizing this job was ‘over our heads’ and not just literally. It was at this point that we decided to hire an electrician.

Then after some thought and to keep labor costs down, I let the electrician know that I wanted the wiring to run on the outside of the wall. He changed the old outlet near the floor (the old type that meant I needed an adapter anytime my plug had three prongs), added another outlet a little higher up to accommodate the microwave sitting on the pantry shelf (so I wouldn’t have to drill holes into the wood shelves for the cord to reach down to the lower outlet) and ran the lighting wiring up the wall, to the ceiling with a 90 degree turn to place the lighting. He also made the switch work for the lighting only, disconnecting the switch from the outlets. In hind site, I think this was something we could have done, but when in doubt, seek professional advice! 

Cord covers for the wiring from outlets, along the outside of the plaster wall, along the ceiling and connecting each individual light fixture.