Liberate Your Chandelier
Chandeliers are showing up in the most unexpected places. Where can you imagine one?
Becky Dietrich
April 20, 2014
Chandeliers have been around since medieval times, but we’ve never grown tired of their wonderful combination of usefulness and beauty. Traditionally they have been used in dining rooms, foyers and grand ballrooms — but gone are the days when they were enslaved to such narrow usage.
Nowadays chandeliers can work in any room. Bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchens, nurseries and even the garage of your favorite car enthusiast — all are acceptable candidates that can benefit from the countless styles, sizes, shapes and colors of this ever-useful light fixture.
Nowadays chandeliers can work in any room. Bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchens, nurseries and even the garage of your favorite car enthusiast — all are acceptable candidates that can benefit from the countless styles, sizes, shapes and colors of this ever-useful light fixture.
A foyer doesn’t have to be grand to sport a chandelier. This average-size entry hall shows that a chandelier likes to partner with lamps, which help round out the lighting coverage in any room.
This mini chandelier fits the scale of this mini entry. Again, grand is great, but small can be just as compelling.
Living rooms also love chandeliers, as is obvious in this classic use of a big crystal sparkler …
… and this rustic candle chandelier. Again, note the partnership between chandelier, lamps, sconces and mini spotlights. A chandelier all by itself usually doesn’t meet the varied lighting needs of a room. While it will provide whole-room illumination, you’ll still need to address task and accent lighting.
And always put your chandelier on a dimmer, so its light is not glaring, intrusive or harsh.
And always put your chandelier on a dimmer, so its light is not glaring, intrusive or harsh.
Sometimes a chandelier can kill two birds with one stone, as in this contemporary living-dining room, where it’s positioned to provide lighting for both spaces.
Kitchen islands are a relatively new place for chandeliers. They could be classic ormolu and crystal …
… or contemporary pierced metalwork …
… or rustic iron paired with crystal …
… or this cool new trend, which combines a drum shade with crystal drops. In any iteration kitchen islands have a bit more gravitas when graced by a chandelier.
Dressing rooms also love chandeliers. This mini (also called a chandelette) works perfectly in this small dressing room. (I’m envious!)
If bathroom bling is your thing, check out how this chandelier adds a sense of elegance and presence to this awesome freestanding tub.
Here the chandelier adds a finishing touch to this come-hither shower area like a piece of jewelry on a black dress. It makes me want to get dirty, just so I can get clean in its beautiful environment.
A chandelier can add a bit of sophisticated sparkle to a nursery.
It can make a little girl feel like a princess …
… and a teenage girl feel like a diva.
Finally, whether the master bedroom is classic …
… or contemporary, a chandelier can add that little something extra that raises your decor to the next level.
So, if you have a chandelier languishing in your attic because you don’t know where to put it, or if you fall in love with one at a thrift store but feel its uses are too limited, open your mind to the possibilities and liberate your chandelier!
More: See Your Home in a Whole New Light
So, if you have a chandelier languishing in your attic because you don’t know where to put it, or if you fall in love with one at a thrift store but feel its uses are too limited, open your mind to the possibilities and liberate your chandelier!
More: See Your Home in a Whole New Light
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Looks great. The gold bedroom is amazing
I’m looking for hanging lights over a kitchen bar