Happy Tuesday, my friends! And welcome to June! I hope this post finds you safe and well. This little project is something I’ve been wanting to share with you, but in order not to ruin the surprise, I had to wait until today! Come check out a sweet chandelier for a little girl’s room!
You know me and how much I adore chandeliers! I’ve had this sweet little chandelier in my stash for quite a while waiting from just the right opportunity. I bought it on eBay and when I got it in the mail, it was wonky and sad looking. The main body of the chandelier had worked itself lose and the fixture looked as though it was falling apart. It needed a LOT of work.
Still, I love the shape of the chandelier. The fixture has five arms and such lovely and delicate details. See how the bobesche looks like a flower?
One of my favorite gifts to give someone I love is a vintage chandelier. To me, it’s even a bit of a rescue mission. I like to take a vintage, forgotten fixture, and reimagine it for someone special. So, as soon as I found out my niece was expecting a little girl, (to be named Gigi) I knew this fixture was the one! Originally it was black with a bit of rubbed gold, which did it no favors.
I decided to paint the chandelier white. I thought white would be perfect for a little girl’s nursery and would also accentuate the beautiful curves. A few coats of white semi-gloss paint instantly updated the fixture and made it look brand new! Now all it needed was some sparkly crystals!
Once the paint was dry, I hung the fixture in my treasure room so I could work on it. I had to study it for a while until I figured out exactly how I wanted to proceed.
Nearly four years ago, my niece tragically lost her younger sister, Julia. I wanted the chandelier to be sort of a tribute to Julia so our little Gigi would have a bit of her Aunt’s lovely spirit in her nursery. Julia loved butterflies and her favorite color was pink. The inspiration came to me! I ordered some tiny pink butterfly crystals and used them as connector pieces with vintage glass crystals I had in my stash. Using 25 gauge gold wire, I wired the butterflies to the crystals and attached them to the bobesches.
Around the top of the chandelier I used a combination of the pink butterflies along with pink, oblong crystals from my stash. I think it was meant to be since the colors matched perfectly! This chandelier only has holes for 24 crystals, but I think it’s plenty for this dainty fixture.
I had my sweet electrician put the chandelier on a plug for me. He added white chain to match the fixture and clear wire with a plug.
I purchased new white candle sleeve covers because the old ones were cracked and yellowed. The new ones look crisp and clean to match the white paint. I added 25 watt incandescent bulbs and plugged it in for a final test. Woo-Hoo, it works! The chandelier is complete!
On Saturday, we hosted a baby shower for our niece and she received so many amazing gifts! I gave her the chandelier along with a few other small things, but this was by far my favorite! Hopefully this sweet little chandelier will grace Gigi’s nursery for many years to come! As a plug- in fixture, it can swag over a rocking chair or changing table but it can also be hard-wired into the ceiling if they choose. And here’s a quick before and after picture! It hardly looks like the same chandelier, right?
Well, another chandelier makeover is in the books! I’m itching for a new project so I can’t wait until my son and daughter-in-law move into their new house. I predict LOTS of painting and chandeliers in their near future and I’ll be sure to share with you some of their fun projects! Thank you for stopping by and I wish you a safe and lovely day! xoxo Dell