DIY Pallet ideas for Home: DIY Brass Chandelier Makeover on the Cheap

When i saw the listing for this older brass chandelier for $5 i jumped on it. little did i know it needed to be rewired. this is something i have never done and honestly it sat in my dining room for many weeks because i was intimidated taking on wiring myself.

I finally asked a friend to show me what to do, watched youtube videos and spoke with several men at Lowes and Home Depot. I purchased the necessary wire and completed the whole wiring in less than 2 hours. it really wasn't so bad. everyone told me don't worry about the grounding wire so i didn't.

diy brass chandelier makeover on the cheap, how to, lighting, repurposing upcycling

I really didn't know where i was going with this chandelier. I had one direction but didn't like the results. I started off with Annie Sloan Clear White paint. I then did a washed dry brushing of a darker FolkArt Chalkpaint. you can see more clearly the photo below.

I just wasn't digging the color. So i decided i wanted some contrast on the arms. that is where I painted a mix of flat black, shiny metallic bronze, and flat brown...sponging the paint on.
I chose to add dark wax with a heavy hand on the entire lamp, except the arms.

Once the coloring was to my liking i use the smallest drill bit i had and drilled holes on the candle plates on top and on each candle base. I drilled four holes in each candle base. it was pretty easy too.

You can see the drilled holes above.
I was lucky enough to come across a large bag of wooden balls at a garage sale for $3. I grabbed them. didn't know exactly what i was going to use them for but knew one day they would come in handy. well this was the project for those wooden balls.

I used Hemp String to tie a few lines of wooden balls to see if i liked the look. I did but i didn't like the color. so I measured out all the lines i needed and hung the lines from a hanger with clips and spray painted them first with Rustoleum Primer and Paint in a satin cream color. Once they were dry I heavy handed them with Annie Sloan Dark Wax.

Heres the photo below showing each line as i finished waxing them

I started to string the lights on the chandelier but felt i needed some wood spindle drops like the gorgeous lights you see in high end home decor photos. So i ran to Hobby Lobby and purchased two small bags of spindles. I didn't like the spindles alone so i drilled a small pilot hole on top of spindle. I squirted Gorilla Glue in, threaded some Hemp string into the hole then strung one single round wood bead on top. I added some pressure for approximately a minute to set.

Once all the spindle drops were dry i painted them the same way I painted the wood bead strings. While those were drying i went to work on the candle sleeves. i love the look of Jute twine wrapped candle sleeves. I use Elmer's blue glue to wrap the twine. it holds great, dries clear, and dries quickly.
as you can see in photo below, I use clothespins to secure last twine wrap on top. once its all dry i clip very close with super sharp scissors.

So pretty much everything was ready to be assembled. I have to say i love the way this came out. I might add a few more spindle drops.
In total, this project cost about $15 (if you have some of the products on hand, like paint, glue, jute twine). Even if you had to purchase wood beads and jute twine, the whole project would be under $30. that is a bargain for a very trendy and one of a kind chandelier.
its easy to find these brass chandeliers.
hope you like the end result.
This little chancy will be hung above my bath tub. can't wait to hang it.