@Neryl, you cracked me up when I read your post ha-ha @lakshmi17, All jokes aside, if you want to go to the trouble of having beautiful pendant lights and your ceiling is so high, get a professional!!! Save up if you have to but it's the best way to go in this case, you might be surprised that it's not as expensive as the cost of the lights you intend to have fitted. I paid over $130 for each of the three lights I have bought to have installed over my dining table and I'm darn sure my electrician won't be charging me $400 to install them!!!

I'm a fan! But i've seen them in so many cafes/restaurants that I don't know if I'd want them in my home any more!

If you go for down lights you will need to leave a gap around them of 100 mm between the recessed part and insulation so the insulation doesn't catch on fire. This also creates a problem with the thermal performance of your home because heat can move freely through the ceiling where there is no insulation. It can make a big difference even if there are only a few down lights. Also, down lights are very directional (send most of their light straight down) so you need to put more in to get the same effect. You could try track lights that attach to the ceiling instead. If you want a pendant go for something cheap and easy to replace if it is damaged by toys/clothes or whatever being thrown around. Ikea have lots. FYI dimmers don;t educe the power consumption, merely reduce the intensity of the light.

It's all about proportions, the individual space and how it works. If they are directly above a bench top (or table) you can get away with hanging them a bit lower than normal because you don't have to make sure they're above head cracking height, but if they are above an island you don't want to have to be constantly peering around the pendant lights to talk to someone on the other side.