LEDs have certainly come of age for domestic lighting. The rolls of self-adhesive SMD LED strip are pretty cost-effective.
We came up with a simple system that uses them:
Get 5 metres of
warm white SMD 3528 600 LED strip, an infrared controller (
like this), plus a 1.7 metre length of 2"x1" (ish) planed wooden batten.
Split the LED strip into 3 equal lengths (cut only on the cut marks every 3rd LED) and stick it onto one of the wide faces of the batten in three parallel strips a few mm from each edge (so there is a wide gap between the strips).
Wire one strip to the R(ed) channel of the controller and one to the G(reen), one to B(lue) - it's common positive, by the way (marked on the controller connector with an arrow). Attach the controller to the underside of the batten.
Next, make a pair of small hoops about 3" diameter out of anything you can find (coat-hanger wire is good) and suspend from the ceiling at your desired height, then thread the whole contraption through the hoops.
Plug in the 12v supply of choice, and there you go... a 30 watt remote controlled (dimmable) striplight that you can rotate to point straight down when you want an intense worklight, or rotate to point at the ceiling when you want a softer ambient light - all for a lot less than a tenner.
This one uses a 2.5 metre batten and two strips:
Another trick is to stick the same strip along picture rails, pointing at the ceiling:
I find the 'warm white' to be best for home use - the 'cool' is a bit clinical.
On a side note, if you've got 12 volt halogens anywhere, replace the old transformer(s) with '
LED drivers' if you're fitting LED lamps.