How to inexpensively repurpose a builder grade mini pendant light with industrial style.
Happy Monday, friends! I have about three projects going on at once today. I’ve hit total beast mode to knock out several things that have just been sitting and waiting on me to finish. You’ll see a couple of them later this week.
I realized it’s been a while since I posted a builder grade light re-do. If you are new to following my DIY insanity, I’ve made it my mission to personalize every builder grade basic light fixture in our house…at least the downstairs for now.
My style isn’t for everyone, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with simple lighting. But for our home, the hubby and I wanted something with more interest, and the one I’m sharing with y’all today is definitely not your average cookie-cutter suburban light fixture. I know there are other bloggers out there who have shared their versions of industrial style lights, so it’s nothing new under the sun. But I’m stoked to have one for myself!
I have a mixture of styles that I love- farmhouse, French country, industrial- and I try to keep them balanced and working together in our space. (Do you find yourself in that struggle too? I blame Pinterest.)
Since I had most of the materials I needed already hanging out in our garage and four light fixtures still left to makeover in our kitchen, I decided to go for it with our bar pendant lights. And this one was super easy!
If you want to try it out for yourself, here are the materials I used:
- Builder grade mini pendant light fixture
- Oil rubbed bronze spray paint (affiliate)
- Sisal rope- 3/8 inch
- High temp hot glue gun and glue sticks
- Metal lamp guard (affiliate)
Since I had two fixtures, the total ended up being just under $10 for each light.
Here’s what we were dealing with before. Nice, simple, but just not us.
I had a can of leftover (and my favorite) Rustoleum Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint and primer. So I taped off the electrical parts on the fixtures and sprayed two coats.
Even though I planned to wrap them in rope, I went ahead and sprayed the rods too just in case any peeked through.
I let the light fixtures dry for a full 24 hours before the next step.
Then, using high temp hot glue, I wrapped the sisal rope tightly around the downrods of the pendant lights. It was tedious but worth it!
Each light took about 30-40 minutes to wrap. The beginning is a little tricky to get started. Hold the rope in place for the first few wraps around the downrod, and apply about a dime size of hot glue for each wrap around.
I held the end in place until the last bit of glue was completely cool.
The lamp guards screwed right in place above the bulb and that was it! I used Edison bulbs to give it a more vintage look too. They give off a yellowy light that I’m okay with in person, but it doesn’t translate very well to photos. They are rustic industrial fabulosity though. 🙂
And they remind me a lot of Restoration Hardware’s version but without the $119 price tag.
They look pretty darn smashing with our giant chalkboard and vintage gallery wall…
…and our breakfast nook’s clock wall too.
Tomorrow, I’ll be sharing a knock-your-socks-off fall recipe. If you follow me on
Instagram, you might have already seen a sneak peek of the epic main ingedient. 😉 I just pulled it out of the oven and oh…my..heavens.
If you liked this post, check out these other light fixture DIYs too. (Just click the image to find the project details.)
Blessings,
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Oh I missed this post!! I just ordered these light wire covers from Amazon–been wanting to do this for months–and finally got my hubby’s agreement. I’m one to mix things up. Im a bit defiant at times. I want to take off the white shade covers from our over our table five light fixture but these will be placed upwards not down. I have huge beveled chandelier crystals with rubbed on antique gold edges that I will hang from arms of the now looking more like a chandelier light fixture. The crystals are shaped in a free form styled oval/curved/pointed sides shape. Put with the industrial look of the wire cages makes me excited to try it!! I’m not out but $32 to try a unique look for me!! I love your idea. I love this rustic charm look!!!
Ooh that will look really cool! So different! I hope it turns out well! I’d love to see pictures when you finish it.
Hey Lauren,
These are very awesome looking pendant lights ..I really liked them.
Thanks for sharing …
Pinterest is definitely to blame! I have stalked your blog enough for today but I will definitely be back. Would love to turn my builder grade lights into this magnificence!
http://www.marriedlifewiththemrs.com
Stalk away, Tasha! So glad you’re here. 🙂 And yeah, always blame Pinterest. Haha
Oh gosh! The light fixtures you created are just simply amazing. Your aesthetic and style just blew me away. Thank you for sharing all your great DIY projects, which are a great way of spreading beauty to homes everywhere. Happy Halloween, y’all!
Eleanor Roy @ Douthit Electrical
Love this! Where did you get the light guards? Your link didn’t work 🙁 Pinning 🙂
Oh darn! Fixing it now. You can find them on Amazon or in most home improvement stores. They will set you back about $3. Thanks for pinning!