Affordable Light Fixtures Under $150
I think the hardest part of building our house was picking the dang light fixtures and staying within budget. We were given an allowance of $1,500 to use on lighting. I am a deal hunter, so at first I thought "no big deal at all, that is a good budget". Man, there are SO many lights you don't think of that fall into that category. I obviously was thinking of bedroom lights, kitchen island lights, and bathroom vanity lights. I was not thinking about back yard flood lights, garage door lights, hallway lights, the freaking doorbell (lol). I shopped the sales like c.r.a.z.y (I'll share some tips below too) and we still went over budget by about $600 but almost every single light we (I) picked out was under $150.
These black/brushed nickel lights are $80. I didn't want to use the sconces in-between mirror so put them above the mirrors in the bathroom and love how they turned out. They tie in the black mirrors with the brushed nickel hardware. $ saving tip: You can sign up for Lamps Plus free "new home owners" coupon by entering you email and zip code and you will get a coupon e-mailed to you for $15 off $50 bringing these down to $65 with free shipping!
I grabbed these two off of Amazon (after reading a ton of reviews) and love them! I used the black one ($59) in the mudroom and the 2 light brushed nickel fixture ($55) in the master bath. I need 2 of them for above each sink so for just under $100 I got both which was a great deal.
My favorite ceiling fan that I wish I used in every room! It is a matte black and I just love everything about it. It is controlled with a remote that I just used a command strip to put on the wall. The 52" Merwry fan from Home Depot is $119. The first picture is in our master which has a normal ceiling height. The 2nd picture is in our family room with vaulted ceilings - there is a 24 inch universal black download extension on that one.
These two lights were from Home Depot as well. I put the $50 black ceiling fan in each of the regular bedrooms, including my son's nursery. They are pretty simple and not super modern but I figured they can be updated down the road. For 50 bucks to get a light and a fan I thought it wasn't that bad of a deal!
The flush mount brushed nickel light comes in a multi pack. I used these in spaces that are "hidden" but needed good light. They are BRIGHT and give off a lot of cool, white light. I put one in the walk in pantry, laundry room, and master closer. They are on sale $50 for 2 of them making them $25 each.
A random but good find is this Target kids Pillowfort brand white fixture. I use this in the playroom and love it! $70 but watch for sales! I got it for $35. If it doesn't go on sale you can always use a Target Red Card to save 5%.
Next up is Wayfair. The light bulbs in these look weird because the energy efficient people came and put in bulbs with white bases. I have to replace them. Wayfair has some really good affordable options. The black modern lights ($130) I used over the kitchen island. I got similar ones from the same "family" for the dining room and the foyer too but those were over $150. Here are the links though if you're interested! Foyer & Dining Room. Bathroom vanity light is $130
$ saving tip: You can sometimes get a 10% Wayfair coupon or if you call you might be able to have them apply one for you. Another option is shopping their open box deals which are basically like returns and heavily discounted. They are inspected for any damages. They're none returnable but if they are damaged you can return them. I ordered 1 of the black lights open box and saved a ton of money!
For all our outdoor lights we did the black lanterns from Lowes. Right now the 2 pack is on sale for $20 which is a great deal. We put one on each side of the garage, and on both sides of the exterior doors (front, basement, slider).
Something to keep in mind... The hallways (in this pic the master hallway) needed at least 3 mounted lights. The electrician told us that if we did recess lighting it would be about $70 each. At first we said no but when I went to look at lights for the space the only ones that I really liked were around $60 each so for an extra 10 bucks we decided to do the recess, I am so happy we did! Worth a shot to ask what the price is for some spots because it may be cheaper than a fixture.
Hope this helps you if you're on your light search!