ooohh did you know that historic house parts is having a huge sale this weekend?? You may get lucky!!!
I vote for trying to get an antique if you can, then look for a reproduction.
There is a difference between reproductions and "fakes". well at least I keep trying to think that!
Reproductions are just that, they look like the real thing however they are obtainable and affordable. They mimic the real thing. When people ask you about your light you can say "this is a reproduction of a period fixture (add some more insight here) and we tried, however we just couldn't find a true antique piece" Then you can point them to the real antique fixture and watch them drool.
I guess the point is that you are TRYING.
Sometimes owning a old house causes me an emotional struggle too. I try to be true to it but sometimes I can't. Sometimes modern function or looks win out and I swear the house wants to make me feel guilty!!!
Of course if I let the house win every time I wouldn't have electricity or gas heating or even a bathroom *gasp*.
No WAY am I going without a bathroom!!!
Do what YOU like..it is YOUR home after all!!!
-renee

"No, that piece is not original, but it does seem to suit the room, don't you think?"

I echo..."Do what YOU like..it is YOUR home after all!!!
I've told that to my friend when she's agonized over her circa 1870 house's appointments. She got called on the carpet by a couple of visitors because she had a doorway cut with a Moorish arch from her dining room. It's a nice arch, she and her DH loved it til people started picking it apart. Well, it's HER house and if she likes it she shouldn't have to make excuses for it, right?

If you were putting in a modern piece, would you feel compelled to say something like "I know it's not period appropriate, but we just liked the fixture?"

I think not. I think you should just do what you think looks good and if people comment and want to know more, then fill them in if you want to. If not, then who cares.

Or, how likely is it that the Keno Brotheres are going to come by and say "hey, that's a fake, what were you thinking?"

Here's a weird way to look at your dilemma.

If you had a beautiful vintage dress but the original shoes were missing, what would you do? I'd be willing to guess you'd look for new shoes that complemented the dress. If you were really selective, you might find a vintage pair. Or they might have a vintage feel, but they'd be modern made. And you'd wear the outfit without feeling like a fake.

Why isn't caring for an old home a similar task? There's no need for guilt, especially when it's your home and you're trying to use materials that complement the originals. I'd go for an antique fixture if possible, but have no problem with a good reproduction. And a completely different modern fixture can look good, too, if that's what you like.

Tina

FWIW, my Rejuvenation lighting is much better made and SAFER than what little original lighting is left in my house. If my house were on the Historical Preservation list, I might be more of a purist. It was never a grand house to begin with, only nice and somewhat modest, so Rejuvenation is probably a step up, especially for my neighborhood. IMHO, *old* is not necessarily *tasteful* or good design, so if it is a choice between a good looking period appropriate reproduction and an ugly but authentic piece, I'll bet you can guess which one I would buy.

You are not living in a musuem or semi-public place like the White House or a governor's mansion. Plus, today we like/want more lighting wattage than past times. It is your house; do what *YOU* want and what feels right to *YOU.*

I'm in a lovely but modest little bungalow and I've grown quite fond of my reproduction lights. Especially as they age a bit. I can't afford "original" replacements -- and guess what, they're replacements! How authentic is that! Like KitchenObsessed, I have found my new Rejuvenation lights to be better made than the few originals I found with my house. Plus -- I get to pick out lights I think are more complimentary to the house. I think it's terrific if you can find authentic lighting for your home but it's not the only "appropriate" path.

Hopefully, the Keno boys won't be by. I love to watch them get giddy in someone else's house, scary to think they'd drop by here & cluck about what my DH did with his grandmother's mission bureau (I told him to leave it alone!!!).

Maybe friends aren't the ones passing judgment on our every move. Maybe we need to be kinder to ourselves.

My previous home in Michigan was built in 1929 and I replaced what was probably the original dining room light fixture because of concerns over possible frayed wiring and not enough light on dark, depressing, cloudy days. I found a fixture at a local hardware store, by chance, wasn't even looking, for $99. When my family came to visit for the first time, the first thing they did was exclaim over the beautiful old original chandelier in my dining room! Of course that made me feel good that I had obviously picked something that fit the room so well, but I was also happy to tell them it was new and safe! I never gave it another thought after that.

When budget, safety or practicality come into play, sometimes you have to make changes. My house was never going to be listed on the National Register of Historic Homes, so I just tried to put in what looked right to me thoughout the house. 99% of the time, I was right.

By the way, when I sold the house back in April, it sold the first day on the market. Everyone loved the "character" in the house, even tho all that "character" had been added by me in the past six years! Prior to that, it looked like crap, due to a 1960's-70's "remodel". Sometimes new CAN look like OLD!

I believe that our homes are for our comfort, safety and aesthetic pleasure, and if that means not always having something original in them, so be it. Our front bathroom is old, shabby Art Deco and I hate it, and our soon-to-be-expanded kitchen had the remuddle from hell by previous owners. We are lucky to have all the original sconces still in good working order. But I've also used Rejuvenation fixtures and love them. They are well-priced, safe, and handsome. So why not?

I recently purchased Bungalow Bathrooms and also Bungalow Kitchens, by Jane Powell, and they will be helpful as guides for me. I especially love the kitchens book, as it has many examples of 'old-fashioned' kitchens which will look great in this house and remind me of my mother and grandmother. Just cannot relate to the granite-counter, stainless steel, plain bleached maple cabinet look that is so popular on HGTV. Powell shows a room and then discusses how to create something similar, first with a section called Obsessive Restoration and then with one called Compromise Solution. Both practical and pretty.

What kind of friends come over and criticize a decorating solution in one's home? I would think that they'd at least wait until they were back in their cars before they said "Oh, can you believe that she did *that*?" For shame. Bring in Miss Manners!

If one is to be a real purist you would need to do some additional homework. While your house may have been built circa 1920 or before, that does not insure that any of the lighting or plumbing fixtures are original to the home.

While the developement of electrical systems did begin in the late 1800's in many areas of this country electrical utility service was not even available until the early 1940's. In this region we still see many older homes that were built in the late 30's or early 40's that have gas piping throughout the house for gas lights. In fact, my house was originally built in 1941 and all the original gas light fixtures are not only still here, they all still work perfectly.

The same is true of plumbing. There are records of municipal sewers and public water supplies in some of the major cities such as New York, Chicago and Philidelphia during the reconstruction period after the civil war but for the most part indoor plumbing did not become wide spread until the mid to late 1930's. Showers did not become commonplace in the home until after World War II when the returning GI's brought the concept home from their military service.

If you will closely examine the layout of many of the old victorians you will see that the master bath was originally a bedroom that was later rehabbed to accomodate indoor plumbing.

I'm sure you're right about that, but our subdivision was built by people who had owned the land for some time and put a huge amount of planning (and money) into it. These were large houses for the (then) movers and shakers for our city, with all the modern conveniences.

I'm virtually certain that our living fixture is original; when one of my neighbors came in for the first time, she said "Now, your house has two wedding cake light fixtures, is that right?" It seems that everyone who's been here for a while knows the unique features of each of the houses. One down the block has the original 1920s silk wallpaper in the parlor. Another has a picture in the attic of the original owner's daughter, which stays in the attic and is sold with the house, with the understanding that it will remain there. And so on. George and Ira Gershwin's sister lived in my house. The one across the street was built by the owner of an ironworks, and has some to-die-for wrought iron both inside and out.

It's a marvelous neighborhood, the history of each house has been well-researched and everyone who lives there wants to preserve things. There's even a grant for replacing trees, since the original developers were very specific about plantings, where they should go and what kind they should be. I love living here.