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light fixture over kitchen table off-center

17 years ago

The hanging light fixture that is in my breakfast nook is off center. I guess that the builder found this particular spot to be the easiest place from which to hang a light, but it is definately and very obviously not over the center of where the table must go. What can I do remedy this problem? The guys at Home Depot told me to get a hook and swag the chain over to where it should be hung from, which is about 5 inches over. But isn't this kind of tacky? And, I really don't want to hire an electrician and mess up my ceiling and have to repaint it.

The light is a beautiful hand made Italian piece that I scored at a close out place for cheap. It's wonderful, and I hate to do it such an injustice by hanging it wrong. Do you think that I could cover up the hook and original ceiling plate by constructing a sort of decorative box with crown molding and faux bronzed tin ceiling panels? Any advice would be really appreciated! Thanks!

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Comments (3)

ilitem
17 years ago
If the fixture does not weigh over 25 pounds, you could purchase a 2' piece of track and an end feed along with a pendant adaptor. The track would run from the box to where you need the fixture to hang (the track can be cut) and you would wire the fixture to the adaptor. This has been done many times. If you don't like the idea of the hook, but it is the easiest, you can get a cord cover which is sold in lighting showrooms that matches the colors in the fixture and just put that over the chain and hook, then extend it over to where the box is.

Hope this helps.
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dmlove
17 years ago
We had to do the hook/swag thing with our island light, and once you do it, you don't even notice.
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Ack. Lights centered over table would be off-center in room...
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Comments (5)
We have the same problem in our dining room. And the real 'ACK' part is that we gutted our whole kitchen/dining area and removed the old ceiling, so we could have addressed it properly the first time. Once the new dining room table was in, it was obvious we would be moving it off centre (pathway to deck is behind table), and we're kicking ourselves. DH is planning to buy a plaster medallion to put up on the ceiling, so that the edge of it will cover the old hole. Luckily, he is an electrical engineer, so he can do the rewiring. I COULD patch the hole, but what a LITERAL pain in the neck. So not only will the fixture be off-centre, but medallion will be too. I am pretty sure it will cost you more than $35 extra on top of the first $35 to rewire in a new location- assuming there is enough wire up there to allow the move. Ours is accessible from the attic.
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Comments (6)
Had to do that with my dining area. The fixture was centered in the room, but you can not put the table centered in the room since there would be no where to pass by. So when I changed it from the fugly Early American hurricane/copper chandy to a more contemporary lamp with a black chain, I had to swag it to center over the table. It does not look weird at all. This is the only pic I can find. I don't know why it looks like there is a black wire sticking up, it's not really there. But you can see I have a small swag.
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Comments (4)
can you choose a fixture on a chain, and swag it over to center it on your table.... saves moving the junction box and doesnt offend your eye so much.
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Comments (17)
https://www.houzz.com/products/quoizel-laila-4-light-18w-mini-chandelier-rustic-antique-bronze-prvw-vr~142694794 https://www.houzz.com/products/laila-rustic-antique-bronze-prvw-vr~65234927 https://www.houzz.com/products/quoizel-laila-chandelier-rustic-antique-bronze-lla5205ra-prvw-vr~25692376 I think these are all the same. Thanks for all the suggestions! I have the table moved out now, it's not terrible. I'm just going to live with it a few days, maybe I'll try rotating the table for another few days and see how I like it.
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rainecherry
8 years ago
I struggled with this same exact isaue and thought swagging was yuck but my decorator readily approved it so I had it done and it doesnt bother me one bit and it looks great! She used a white hook which blends with my ceiling.
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