Following My Own Advice

My post yesterday not only inspired those who left comments and told me so, but it inspired me as well. I've been working on the pair of chandeliers in my living room for months, now, and it was finally time to finish them.

This is how they started out. They weren't bad at all, but when I hung the curtains, they seemed too busy and the finish wasn't working with the newly installed rods.

I removed all of the beading and crystals, which were splattered with a burgundy paint. (Why, oh why?) With the chandelier stripped of its bling, I painted it a warm antique gold with an asphaltum glaze over top. Now, they matched the gold curtain rods. I then went through the laborious task of soaking each crystal in nail polish remover, scrubbing it with steel wool and then stringing it on jewelry wire and back on the chandelier. It took a long time, but it was worth it.

Today, I finished the soaking and stringing and sprayed the candle sleeves white. They now compliment the chandelier in the dining room, which is opposite the living room. They're just a lot cleaner looking, too. I'm not normally a fan of painting things gold, but this was the right way to go with these for this room.

I also painted the cord cover to blend in with the ceiling a little better. The picture below is without the paint and the sleek finish stands out against the eggshell paint.

I've also bee refinishing my dining room table and plowing my way through the chair slipcovers. This may be a personal project, but I needed to write a tutorial for the slipcovers and I need to have the table finished for my HGTV.com Christmas projects, which include several tablescapes. I couldn't have a speckled orange table in the pictures! It's my job. I must refinish my table. (What an awesome job.)