We have four farmhouse style sinks in two different houses, and all present the same problem. It doesn't have anything to do with the material as two sinks are concrete, one stainless steel, and one composite stone. With the two kitchen sinks it's very frustrating spraying out the food particles from corner to corner. Food particles go from one side to the other, and it's very difficult to corral them to the drain. The two concrete bathroom sinks don't have enough slope, so when shaving and brushing teeth, the water and material flow to the opposite side of the sink. It's annoying to wash a 3' wide sink every time it's used. And gross if the sink isn't cleaned from side to side after every use. As a compromise, we're installing a farmhouse concrete bathroom sink with two drains and more slope. As I evaluate many things in life, a, farmhouse sink is a solutions looking for problem.

I would consider how you plan to use the island bench, what tasks will be completed at the island bench, what you want to be able to see from the island bench (e.g. the TV in the family room) and what impact the pendant lights will have on the view of your kitchen from the family room. I personally found the height and style of pendant lights in display homes to be annoying. I'm not especially tall, but I had to deliberately avoid them and they often obstructed the view from the island bench. Some, but not all, also seemed to give off extra "heat" which isn't something I want in a kitchen which would already be warm when the oven is on. I did see some with the pendant lights raised higher, but then it looked a little odd to have a pendant light so high. In the end, I ended up not worrying about a pendant light.

Tribbletrouble, thanks so much for the info, it's great to know that there's a bit of a black trend happening, as the black accessories... Handles, lights, sink, legs were what we really liked when choosing but now seeing it all together it's taking a while to get used to. Like you said though. I probably just need to get the furniture and laying done. Really appreciate your thoughts, links and suggestions :)

Thanks for posting this dilemma - I am facing the same predicament! I have been stalking pendant lights over kitchen islands for about 18 months now and have noticed that there are a lot of interior designers, in new builds and online etc. who are using two pendant lights instead of the very common ''rule of three''. This is more so the case when the lights are quite distinctive or a feature. You don't want to close in the space or obstruct the line of sight... yet you do want to opt for functionality and balance. I have just sold (argggg!) my three medium solid black pendants and have opted for a ''lighter'' feeling material that are larger, to ensure they balance. sit above a 2.8m lenght bench. What did you decide to go with.