There are solar skylights on the market now that can be switched on to give you light at night. They do not require as much work upon installation and provide free light throughout the day.

In my past renovations, it's been unforeseen things numbering too high, too often, blowing out the budget and time frame! That was after me allowing for some things in advance too! This time I'm concentrating on structural before moving in, then taking my time over a year or two to do a few things at a time, so there's less rush. Eg Restumping, dangerous tree removal & roof repairs before moving in, then once in, kitchen, skylights, ducted climate control, landscaping, verandas & bathrooms all separately with a break in between, rather than all at once! Means it's gentler on my psyche and my wallet, plus allows me to plan each thing through more thoroughly as I'm only concentrating just on that thing. Fortunately it's just renovating existing spaces and not an extension (that's in about 4-5 years!) Good luck and remember to get out often for nights away!

roof without leaks is number 1 priority and although we loved our old Velux roof windows they leaked over time and were too hot on hot days and the blinds are very expensive so they were replaced with Solar Skylights and, although not as pretty as the roof windows and having no ventilation they can't leak because there's no hole in the roof and operate as a solar powered "light" connected to a small roof mounted solar panel with fibre optic cable (our two 25cm Solar Skylights do a great job brightening our 5 x 7 m kitchen dining area and cost about $500 with DIY installation..

My understanding in that all of the Velux glazed skylights are double glazed and have a UV-protective tint to prevent fading. I have had a large north facing one above my Melbourne kitchen for about 10 years with a two-pack kitchen and have never noticed any cabinetwork fading. This doesn't mean it hasn't happened, but nothing that I have noticed. I went to the expense of openable one with an internal shade and it has been worth the extra expense. In summer on the really hot days I close the internal blind in the morning which keeps most of the heat out. During the night I open it to let any hot air that has built up in the house naturally ventilate. I put a fixed skylight in my son's bedroom a few years ago, and it didn't need to be ventilated, but did need the blind. The skylight was installed with a small solar panel and battery to operate the blind, and no electrical connection was required. You can't easily retrofit these additional features so I would strongly recommend you put in the electrical and have openable in at least one (probably the higher one), and blinds in both to keep the heat out on really hot days. Best of luck Dr Retro of Dr Retro House Calls