Chandelier Saga - Finally Got It.

[Corsetière]

Oops! I think my previous post got eaten?

So, I have a love/hate relationship with a local shop. I have gotten some really staggering deals on gorgeous items there, but damn....the customer service is an absolute train wreck. Lack of help on getting heavy or highly placed items down to purchase, no response from vendors on offers, and most recently overcharged by $45.

Well I decided to venture over there again and the chandelier I had offered on was still available.
I asked the people at the counter to call the vendor. No response, no way to leave a message. Are they actually living in the 1800's? Then it occurred to me that the store normally will automatically give you a 10% discount on a $50 or more item, if you just ask. It wasn't worth quibbling over an additional $15 (especially since I think the piece could be worth in $350 range), so I took it! I think it is a very good buy at $75. I was starting to get nervous that if I waited much longer it would get damaged in the shop, especially since it has the original shades. I *had to* save it!

[1918ColonialRevival]

Nice!

It started life as a gas chandelier and it looks like it dates to about 1900. The set of original shades alone is worth what you paid for the fixture. Glad you were able to save it before it was damaged in that place.

[Corsetière]

Right?!?! I thought the shades were worth about $100, too! I was so worried they were going to get broken there. The place has very little supervision on the floor.

[Manalto]

It's beautiful. Good going!

Don't you find that service tends to be in proportion to price? I can tap into my (shaky) reserve of patience if I know I'm getting a good deal!

Whatever happened to that polychrome fixture you took apart and repainted a while back? Did you post the outcome and I missed it?

[Corsetière]

Well, in theory that would make sense, yes....but the thing is lately I have been preferring flea markets and antique markets because of the immediacy of knowing this is the owner of the said item and they are ready to deal. And I do get the best prices at markets for least amount of bs. The shops and malls seem to not have any good system for dealing with offers and as a result I think they are losing a lot in sales.

I have gotten to the point with this particular location that I just automatically expect them to screw up so I am less disappointed these days. lol!

I did complete one of the pair of the poly chrome fixtures! I am a little dissatisfied with the gold color I chose though because I tried to match the original gold that was on preserved on a hidden inside place of the chandelier but now it bugs me because it is not aged looking enough for my tastes and is a bit garish, I think!Shouldn't be too hard to redo now that all the hard work of stripping is done - but damn, I'll need to disassemble it again. ha ha!

Here's where I'm at on it now:





It looked really good to me before I put the other colors on it, then it seemed too orange!


it goes well with this medallion though...

[Corsetière]

It should really look more like this I think:



I will try again and either just spray with a dilute brown to antique it or redo the gold entirely and hopefully have the process down pat by the time I get to the second fixture.

It wouldn't be worth all the effort, except I think I only paid $5 for the pair and they are truly massive, six bulb fixtures! I would think one could expect to pay $1000-1500 for a Spanish revival pair like this.

[Manalto]

Gold is tricky - I'm afraid of it. Your idea of toning it down sounds like it could work. Have you ever used an airbrush?

[Corsetière]

Yeah I airbrushed all these parts. It made it a lot easier!
I could gold leaf it, too, but I don't thinking that is the right color either....I will keep searching.

[Willa]

The new fixture is an excellent score ! Amazing that all the original shades survived, too.

It's hard to tell how bright a vintage or antique fixture might have been v.s. how we are used to seeing them with the patina from sun, smokers, time, and oxidation. Personally I like antique things that are a little dinged up, but that is also my taste. You could tone the polychrome fixture down - if YOU want to ?

I think many victorian homes would have been crazy gaudy with their brand new colors and textures, when they were first built v.s. looking at it through a lens of faded paint, wallpaper, etc. 120 year later. Victorian stained glass never ceases to amaze me with the bright clashing colors, for example.

My former house had very faded wallpaper on the ceilings of the main floor. The color was faded, but the print was metallic, which probably looked very exciting with gaslight. The metallic sparkle of the polychrome fixtures would be a similar eye catcher I think ?

[Manalto]

You'll get it right; if there's one thing I've learned from watching your escapades here, is that you always do.