We now have a chandelier over our new dining table! It used to hang in the dining-now-homeschool room, mostly just collecting dust. I didn’t like it, and would have thrown it away, if I hadn’t seen The Frugal Homemaker’s revamp of a similar brass chandelier she found at a thrift store. Here’s a before picture with one of the glass shades missing. It I remember correctly, I had removed them and one rolled on the floor and broke. Then I decided to take a “before” picture, so I had to put them back on. 😛 Whoever installed it had just looped up the excess chain with some copper wire instead of making it the right length.
We took it down back in August, and I cleaned and painted it with Rust-Oleum Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint. I am not a good spray painter, and hate the smell, but after several attempts, I finally got it good enough to hang. One tip I learned from this post is to dip a cotton swab in a puddle of paint sprayed on a paper plate (I used a paper cup, because I didn’t have a plate) and touch up any areas that got missed or scratched. I also ordered new bulbs and socket covers. Today, the electrician came and wired the new dining area for a light (there was no overhead light there). He also hung the chandelier and shortened the chain. I love it!
And, having seen it in person, can concur that it’s a wonderful update!