Welcome to Throw Back Thursday! In case you missed it, I thought I’d share with you the little makeover I recently gave this hallway chandelier. It’s large, gold and already has crystals. Already a win-win in my book! But, because you can see this fixture from the front of the house, I wanted it to have an extra little pizazz! Come see how it looks now!
This is how the chandelier looked when we moved in. Very pretty, but a tad more contemporary than I usually gravitate toward. It’s very high up in the stairwell so I knew it would be tricky to work on it from a ladder. But, alas, one of the light bulbs burned out, prompting my immediate attention. (I can’t stand to have burned out lights. #OCD)
I decided to not only change the light bulbs and clean the dusty fixture, but switch out the small crystals for something larger. And add a bit of crystal chain for extra sparkle.
My husband set up this ladder in the stairwell before going off to play golf. He said he would help me when he returned home. Naturally, I got impatient. (Four hours is a long time.) I secured the ladder to the handrail using several bungee cords and I was good to go!
Knowing I was working alone, I wanted to have everything ready before I climbed the ladder. I cleaned and assembled the crystals and put them in the window sill beside the ladder for easy access.
I did the same for the strands of glass crystal beads.
First I changed ALL of the bulbs. I figured if one was burned out, the others were not far behind. Trust me when I say setting up this ladder is a hassle! I removed all of the old crystals and put them in my stash. (which I ended up using on the chandeliers in the Butler’s Pantry!) See Butler’s Pantry chandeliers here:Butler’s Pantry Reveal!
Then I attached the chain and the new, larger crystals. Once I added the bulbs and crystals, I used a dry microfiber cloth to remove any finger prints or dust.
I also added a large, vintage Pendalogue crystal to the string of beads in the center. This crystal was $10 on eBay, but well worth it in my opinion. (I used the existing chain in the middle since I couldn’t reach that high to replace it. Plus, it was fine.)
And now, the crystal chandelier has my personal touch!
My only cost for this make-over was the large crystal in the center. The rest of the crystal bead chain and pendalogue crystals were in my stash from other projects.
It even looks pretty when it’s not lit. I wish there was a place for a large crystal on the bottom of the fixture. Since the chandelier is metal, I could perhaps use a magnet with a crystal? At any rate, I’m pleased with how it turned out. And my husband is pleased I didn’t break my neck falling off of the ladder while he was gone. (He was not impressed with my bungee cord solution to securing the ladder, although I thought it pretty clever.) I think the larger crystals give it a bit more presence.
And here is a before and after. It was a beautiful fixture to begin with, but now I love it even more! And at night it really sparkles through the window outside. Quite possibly I am the only one that notices the difference, but that’s okay. Just like everything else in our new house, we are slowly putting our touch on it and making it our own!
I am doing some Christmas baking today in preparation for our children coming this weekend! How are you preparing for the holidays? Well, for now, I’m signing off and getting ready to take a stir-crazy dog outside in the rain! I hope you have a great evening! xoxo Dell