Thanks, enablers!!! : ) I will wait until the chandelier arrives to see what itÂs...top thingieÂlooks like, before choosing one. I have waited so long to get a chandelier for this house that I want to play it up as much as possible. When the house was being built 23 years ago we both thought that colonial chandelier was ugly and resolved to replace it. But then we had kids, and all such ideas were put offÂ. My ceiling is only standard height. So, much as IÂd like to paint one to match the chandelier, I think that would make the ceiling look lower and I should paint it to match the ceiling itself or the trim. Providing I can keep my hands off and resist embellishing it (hÂmmmÂmaybe a little gold outline alongÂ) How wide would look good? The chandelier is 29 ¼". There is one with acanthus leaves on it IÂm drawn to. CanÂt remember where I saw it. I have a background in ancient art history so acanthus makes me drool. IÂm still hoping to find a paintable anaglypta border with acanthus (no luck so far), plus some trim with it.

I absolutely loved using ceiling medallions throughout my house. I used a lot of vintage electrical fixtures (chandeliers as well as sconces), and I thought these were just very appropriate. I also like them because they break up what would otherwise just be a bunch of plain space. :) All of mine are painted to match the ceiling color. In general, I used a guideline of making sure the medallion was approximately the diameter of the fixture. The only place this didn't work was with the ceiling fans in my bedroom and office -- I couldn't get one big enough shipped here anywhere close to my budget. But then, you don't have that problem on the mainland...... This is a long hallway with two hanging fixtures: My entrance foyer: When I took this photo, I hadn't yet re-dressed the chandy. It looks much much nicer now. :) And I put on with the chandy in my master bath: HTH! Summer

This image is terrible. Let us pretend that the dining and living rooms remain pretty much the same (with repairs and perhaps some short "wing" walls between them to separate a bit. The green line is the wall between new stuff and old--just how that will work depends on everything else. But I do want to have a real actual separation here, with doors and stuff. Or at least any permanently opened opening would be towards the rear. The mudroom in the original I think I would like to keep as is (but stick laundry in there--it'll fit fine). So doorways from there would go into the ex-kitchen, garage, and new kitchen. Behind the garage and between garage and house is the new kitchen, family room, bathroom, and small guest room. We're thinking of a more open concept here (hence the erased kitchen), with kitchen open to FR and spare room/bathroom tacked onto the back. (I'm sure our architect can make that work better than depicted here, with an actual roof and walls and better layout.) I'm confident we can work out minor details (like laundry flow) once we get a general idea nailed down... But this concept appeals to us because it puts the noisy activities away from the bedrooms. And since there will be a separation between the old and new, it might not matter about a ceiling difference. The new roof is going to be in a new plane anyway so I'm not worried about it lining up on the outside. I realize this isn't going to be quite as nicely laid out as a new house built from scratch, or if I gutted it and started over, or if I just moved... And if it makes a difference, this house is oriented so that the "good bits" are in the back. It's based on that postwar mentality that the backyard is part of the living space and the front is where the car goes.

Exactly!!! I'm not THAT talented. We really need something there to cover up and imperfect ceiling opening (not fixable at this point) and need square, as there is NOTHING round in our kitchen...and the base of the lighting fixture is square. Don't you think a square base lighting fixture in a round medallion would look awkward!? Thanks for your responses though. Anyone else?