Chandeliers
do not always have to come straight off of a showroom floor. At Christmas time, you can create your own to
accent the places family gathers and add some sparkle and shine at the same
time.
Lighting
fixtures over kitchen and dining tables and in high ceiling foyers can become
anchor points for a homemade chandelier featuring beautiful Christmas
ornaments. Now, the tree is not the only
place to showcase all those baubles and trinkets. You need a few things to get you started on
making your own chandelier: a plan, a collection of ornaments, thin ribbon,
scissors, and potentially fishing line and hooks, an open picture frame, or even
a decorative tree branch.
First,
pick the right lighting fixture in your home to build around. If you have a longer fixture over your dining
room table that runs with the length of your table, you may be able to
construct using ribbon alone. If your
lighting fixture is more of a single pendant style over a table or in your
entryway, fishing line and hooks can help you create your base using a
suspended picture frame. If the
structure allows, string ribbon through the loops in the top of a series of
ornaments and tie at varied heights directly to your lighting fixture structure. Create an artful focal point in the way you
string up each piece in your arrangement that produces a spiral, a traditional
chandelier shape, or a “rollercoaster” of a silhouette.
From
a pendant style fixture, use fishing line and hooks to secure an open picture
frame to hang below it to give you a surface to string ornaments from. Always make sure the weight of what you
intend to hang can be easily supported by your base. To take it a step further, suspend a
decorative branch directly from the ceiling using ceiling hooks and fishing
line. Hang your ornaments on ribbon
strands along the branch, fashioning a real conversation piece for your guests
throughout the season.
Peruse
some design inspiration online, and start building
your own masterpiece to take your Christmas décor up, up, and away for a
holiday that is even more merry and bright.
DesignInMind column; appeared in the Valley Morning Star December 4th.
