I have a drawer specifically dedicated to housing partnerless socks, which would be a brilliant idea if I were ever able to reunite any of them with their partners. I have never once found a partner. I have a beige, wooly sock that matches a beige wooly sweater I own, that has sat, partnerless in that tomb of a single sock drawer for 5 years.
Yet I keep them all with the kind of unfailing hope normally reserved for fad diets.
Other stuff? Useful stuff? Yeah, I just chuck that. The one and only key to open the bars on my basement window? Chucked it. The instruction manual for my very complicated tomato press? Chucked it. The Prada skirt I got for $20 at a second hand store? Chuckeroo. I have no idea why, but it must have seemed like a good idea at the time. Maybe I'm sleep chucker.
Which brings me to my dining room light, the Draper light from Crate and Barrel. I bought it on sale online a few years ago and really liked the bit of mid century modern it brought to my front hall. Then this past year I did a bit of rearranging in my house and I replaced the Draper lamp in my front hall with an empire chandelier that I got from Kijij (Canada's better answer to Craiglist) for $100. I had to do this to because I didn't want a mid century lamp over my new mid century Tulip table. Too much mid century.
It was all going to work out fine because I could just hang the Draper lamp in my library/dining room. The light has kind of a library feel to it so I was confident it would look good.
And it probably would have looked good ....
... had I not chucked the extension bars for it. The pieces of brass rod that let you drop the light lower. Yeah, I chucked them. I don't know why but I did it. I guess I figured that once it was installed in the foyer I was never going to move it and was never going to need them. But I did and I do.
After a bit of consideration I also decided that maybe I just didn't like the light that much. I could have searched around to find extension bars that matched the same burnished brass colour as the light or I could have bought some and painted them to match but that's a pain for something I'm not completely in love with. Like, I'd go to the ends earth to fix something (anything) for Idris Elba or even Jeff Goldblum. Definitely Anthony Bourdain or Adam Driver. But for say, Brad Pitt - yeah, he's O.K. - but he's not worth the work.
Neither is the Draper lamp.
As it turns out the Draper lamp is going to end up in the sock drawer.
Which means I now have to pick out a pendant light for the dining room. I did a bit of browsing just to see what styles I liked and came up with a few. The one I really love is the Lindsey Adelman type branch lights but I'm worried in a few years I'll look back on it and think, "Oh look! The Chevron of lighting fixtures!".
I really do love it though.
Here are a few of the looks I'm considering, including that Lindsey Adelman knock off.
- Candle style chandelier.
- Geometric Gold sculpture chandelier.
- Lindsey Adelman (branching) knock off chandelier gold.
- Lindsey Adelman (branching) knock off chandelier black.
- George Nelson Bubble light.
- Globe light that I can no longer find anywhere on the Internet, lol. Oy.
The first light, the sort of medieval looking candle style chandelier is nice and I really like the style but it's a bit too ... wrong. I'm not sure why but I think it's partly because it's very busy with all the chains and links in the chains and 7,000 bulbs. It's just too much with all the books in the bookcases. It also doesn't look solid enough, it's too wispy.
Now this light I LOVE. I love it with all of my heart and a sliver of my appendix. It's a big, solid looking sculpture made from metal that lights up the room. What's not to love? At $1,369 it's a bit of a budget eater, but since I did the entire room myself and I do EVERYTHING myself, I'd almost consider it. I'd at least consider saving for it.
What's selling me on it is I haven't seen it anywhere else before. Also, to get over the sticker shock I'm considering it a piece of art and any piece of art is going to cost $1,000. This one just happens to hang from the ceiling and light up.
And the Lindsey Edelman branching light. I'm sure you've seen these lights before. They're everywhere now and for a much lower price than Lindsey's. She came up with this design and deserves any and ALL credit for it. Her designs are the Haute Couture of the lighting world and most of her lights cost in the tens of thousands of dollars.
Just look at this from her Cherry Bomb collection.
Yeah. She knows what she's doing that Lindsey Edelman. Her branching light kind of disappears in this photo of my dining room but I think in real life it would show up beautifully.
Genius woman that she is, she offers a DIY version of her iconic branching light for $200 US, which I would have bought years ago if I thought it would be big enough for my dining room table. She only recently added dimensions and photographs on her website so now I know it probably would be big enough.
It's a contender.
I have a hunch I should maybe be looking at more black options though. Black might be a better choice.
I've wanted a George Nelson Bubble light since I moved into this house. In fact I wanted one so much and talked about it so often that a designer friend of mine, Carol Reed (who e-designed my kitchen), believed that I had one. I do not. But if I did, this is what it would look like.
These globe type branching lights are another Lindsey Edelman inspired lighting option. If not for the fact that I found the light online and then promptly forgot where I found it. I thought it was Wayfair but if it was it isn't on there anymore.
That's O.K. It's no Anthony Bourdain.
I'm leaning towards the DIY Lindsay Edelman I think because, that's what I do. I do things. Stuff, I do stuff. But honestly, I wish I wasn't quite so compelled to do everything. If I weren't so compelled I would just buy the Lindsay Edelman knock off for almost the same price and spend the time I saved not making it to do other more useful stuff.
Like hacksaw the bars off of my basement window.
Update! I went with the white George Nelson Bubble light. You can see how it looks in real life here. :)
jaine kunst
Bubble light doesn't get lost in the room. With all the books I think the other lights get lost and don't make a statement. Bubble light holds its own.
Jeff Goldblum can park his boots under my bed anytime. How about his "swagger" walking across the desert at the end of the movie Independence Day. Be still my beating heart!
Patty
1 and 2 both seem too busy with a room that has a lot of details. I like both 3 and 4. I would lean more towards 4 though. I think the black pops in a room that has a lot of gold and white. I think 5 looks like a space ship. The size would play a big part in how well that one would look. If it was too large it would block the view as you looked across the room taking away from the over all clean line look of the room. 6 is an okay option maybe a bit too dark of a color though.
Shelagh
Given the chairs the bubble is maybe a bit predictable? It " matches" the chairs beautifully....like they were made for each other.
Therefore IMHO, the diy gold branch one, despite its naked bulbs compliments the chairs, picks up on the gold in the frame, won't fight with the strip lighting on the brick wall and will still provide a suitable framework for Christmas decorations?
#2 and #6 are dramatic, compelling and to me real show stoppers! They deserve a room where nothing else is going on so they can bask in the attention they deserve and not have to compete with those amazing chairs a brick wall and Margaret....
Good luck, can't wait to see where you will take this!
Leslie
I actually like what you have. It is solid enough to anchor the space and not so busy to distract from the books in the library. If you have to have a new fixture, I'd go for the George Nelson Bubble light. Basically for the same reason I like what you have. It is solid enough to anchor the space and not so busy as to distract from the library. In my very humble option the box one overwhelms the space and the rest either feel too light (as in structure) or busy. It will be interesting to see where you go with this. I suspect I know :-)
Brenna
Love the bubble light! I have the propeller version of this pendant in my dining room. I wasn't sure when I ordered it...but as soon as I hung it (super simple install) and saw the romantic glow of soft light in the room....lurve! Its a light sculpture. Also, super simple to dust with the vacuum fabric attachment (practical). There are a number of less common but interesting styles like apple, propeller, criss cross and bell if you're looking for something less common.
Kristina
Okay, yes, you could do the DIY Lindsay Edelman. But I think you could also DIY Geometric Gold. I've never seen this light in person, but based on the product images, I think you could get the same effect with boxboard sprayed gold, superglue, and some cool-to-the-touch but warm-toned LEDs.
And THAT would be an amazing DIY.
martha
#2 is absolutely stunning. After I saw your photo of it in the room, none of the others even came close. There is nothing wrong with the branch lighting or the Nelson, they are nice. But thats the difference, #2 is not nice...it is awesome, a work of art and makes the room! (IMHO)
Jan in Waterdown
Martha, you are so right! I was going to say something similar but you did it for me. IMHO too, and apparently, according to my husband, I've never had a humble opinion in my life.
Yep, he's right 😏
Becky
You picked some nice lights however, my choice would be none of those but the lambert & fils cliff suspension light if you are still looking at options.
http://www.lambertetfils.com/collections/cliff-suspension
It reminds me a bit of the lindsay adelman light but slightly more restrained in design and less seen/available. I believe modfrugal built her own (2 of them). However, I can't get her blog to load for me. https://www.instagram.com/p/y2A9OONDUd/?taken-by=modfrugal&hl=en
Kathy
Ahh yes, Jeff Goldblum with or without lighting.
Yvonne M
The George Neilsen Bubble Light, #5. Always wanted oneof those, and it has some dimension to it without being heavy or heavy-looking.
Melissa Keyser
I really love the second, gold one. It's like a giant geode or multi-faceted mineral hanging from your ceiling. I think the angles of it contrast nicely with the curves of the chairs, but it's still less "busy" than the other ones.
I can't stand the branch lights, or sputnik lights if we are talking about lighting hates (not that you were considering them, anyways).
Kim C
I know zilch about how to pull a room together but upon examining your post today I found at least three things that I could imagine would make me say wow if you were able to implement them... chandelier #2 combined with Chef Bourdain and Mr Goldblum. 😉
I need to add, Karen, that photo way up near the top, with Margaret, had me stuck there for a long time just staring...that single tulip in front of your black plates, the wood, the black linens...perfection!!!
Barbara Cooper
# 1 or 5 would be my choice...but that's just because I'm anal about symmetry in some things. Most of the others seem too bulky or heavy for the area. But I know you'll pick the perfect fixture!
Leslie
Definitely #3 as it is airy and gives good flow. The others look too clunky in my opinion.
Mary W
I loved the gold geode squares so much and said to myself you wouldn't pick it. Then you said you loved it and I congratulated myself for being wise until I saw the price and I just couldn't. I did say NEVER the white squished globe, not ever, it is ugly. THEN I saw it hanging in your space and said this is IT. It is perfect and I don't even like it. But to tell the truth, my favorite is the cherry bomb light. BUT I think you could actually make a similar one that may even look better when using real twigs and if I were an electrician, this is certainly the one I would make for my shop - everyone would be coming to my store to view it. Maybe chose the gold geode nugget or the squished globe but make the cherry bomb to hang somewhere - would love to see what you come up with. It is beyond cool.
Angela
I still like the original Draper light the best!
Jane
The branch lighting is too light and busy. Your books create enough business. Gold or bubble is my pick.
Linda in Illinois
I pick #5 George Nelson Bubble.. it is shaped more on the order of the chairs. Seem to flow better with my eyes.
Sylvia
Hey Karen, if you are anything like me, which I suspect you are, since I also find Anthony Bourdain worth "fixing", haha, you have already made up your mind, you just want your audience to justify your purchase. That messed up gold metal is amazing! It's different. Whimsical. Out of the ordinary. Big statement. And, you know that's what u really want! Right? I say go for it. It really is an "Anthony Bourdain" kind of light.
Karen
Ha! No I really haven't made up my mind. Or even stopped looking! But I agree with all of your points. ;) ~ karen!
Carol-Anne
My vote is for the George Nelson Bubble #5