A Craigslist Converted Crystal Chandelier

    

I have been admiring these Bead Chandeliers for quite a while now. However, they can cost in excess of $400. That is much too much for my pocket book. What can I say? I have Chandelier taste with a Bead budget. ;0)

Oh my gosh! Aren't they fantastic?!

   

So, when perusing Craigslist for a light fixture for our outdoor deck I came across this Crystal Chandelier for $50. It wasn't the outdoor lighting I was searching for, but definitely the shape of the bead chandeliers I have been admiring and wanting for our dining room. 

The $50 price was still a bit more than I wanted to spend. So, I negotiated the price down to $40 and my husband and I were off to go pick it up. 

Once we arrived, the Chandelier was sitting in a bucket in the sellers garage. It was super dusty, had white paint spatter and the crystals were not all attached. It looked much different from the photo they had of it hanging pretty in their home. Normally, I wouldn't of bought it in this condition if I didn't have a makeover in mind for it already. So, I bought it. Though, I wasnt 100% sure I was making a good decision. 

Seriously, there should be some sort of Craigslist Etiquette. Where the items you are selling look the best way possible. Or at least resemble the photos you have posted. Or be just somewhat presentable. Geez, is that too much to ask?!

Once home I placed an online order for 16mm wood beads that cost me $18 for 500 beads. All and all a total price of $58 for my Chandelier. 

This is our Chandelier being replaced. I still really like this one, but it no longer goes with our dining set. We use to have a gray iron/glass dining table that it matched perfectly.  It really is time to be out with the old and in with the new. New to us that is... ;0)

This project did seem daunting at first. I was feeling a bit lazy to clean the chandelier, remove the crystals and string the beads. I must admit I procrastinated. And I did not work on this project for a couple of weeks. 

Though, once I decided to take on the task, it was all much easier than I expected. The crystals unhooked with ease and the dust and paint spatter came off really well with a rag and soap/water. After seeing it shine, I was motivated to string a strand of beads. I decided to use what I had on hand to string the beads. Which, was fishing pole wire. Though, that didn't hold very well. Then, I decided to try black yarn I had on hand. That held up great. I would recommend bead wire of course, but for my project I was just making do. And the yarn really did work out perfectly. 

Once I got a few strands done, I was very motivated to keep going. All and all the bead stringing took less than 3 hours. I used 32 beads for the top strands and 28 for the lower strands. There were two lower strands that I used 38 beads on. And 44 beads were used on the lower center strand. There really is no set amount of beads to use, it really just depends on the length of bead strands you desire. It doesn't have to be perfect. That's the best part about it. 

I also wanted to mention I used a large needle to string the beads and dabbed a bit of glue to each knot tied for a secure hold. Would you believe the lower center iron piece is a curtain rod finial? Once again, using what I had on hand. 

I just adore this chandelier. It was a great buy after all and one of my craftiest projects yet. 

My husband took part in this project as well. Say what?! Yep, he wired the Chandelier to the ceiling and even installed a dimmer switch to adjust the brightness. It works perfectly and looks just lovely. Who knew I married myself a Handyman?! This is a project we are proud of and will now be a conversation piece. 

Well, that's going to be it on this post. Thanks for stopping by. It really does "light up" my life. Till next time! :0)