DIY Starfish Chandelier

Posted on May 10, 2012 by Roeshel

When I first ‘e-met’ Debi from

and first saw her gorgeous starfish tutorial and adorable video,

I was hooked. I couldn’t resist checking out all of her cute videos and creative DIY ideas.

Today Debi shares a few tips for making this pretty blingy starfish chandelier. Here she is:

I wanted to create a light fixture that had all of the wow factor of a chandelier dripping with crystals but without the big price tag.

I used 36 white starfish and about 10 yards.

I have to say that every project I dream up has it’s challenges and this was no exception.

Here are some important tips I discovered along the way:

Use a small dremel if you have one, it is much easier on the delicate sea stars and you will have more control when you get to the part where you need to drill the extra holes as the starfish are hanging on the chandelier.

Lay your starfish out in a mock set up to determine how many to use and how they will hang, I used a total of 36 starfish,( 12 strands of three). six of the stands had 3inch links of chain a at the top to attach to the metal ring and the other six 1.5 inch links. I did this to stagger the starfish so they would not bang into each other or overlap too much.

Keep in mind that the bottom starfish on the strand only needs one hole but the rest of them will need two or more.

E600 is the glue I used, although it is messy and needs to be used in a well ventilated area it works well. You can find this glue at Walmart or Michaels.

of crystal chain and about 10 yards of rhinestone chain.

Ps. Materials (and this chandelier – just 1!) can be found in Debi’s Etsy Shop: Debi’s Design Diary.

Thanks, Debi! If you’re attempting this project {or even if you’re not}, check out her video tutorial for tips and to get a glimpse of the girl behind the blog. I love it!

See more inspiring ideas at Debi’s Design Diary.

Let’s Talk about Chandeliers!

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Roeshel

I’ve been really lucky with finding thrifty {used} light fixtures. Want to see? Ever wonder how a creative idea strikes? Read on, my DIY friend…

This week, I may have squeeled with excitement when I saw this at St. Vincent de Paul for $9.99 {except that I’m the quiet type and even if I did squeel, you wouldn’t have heard me…but I was THAT excited. I still am!}

and I’m thinking it’ll go in the family room {which, as you know is a work in progress…so what it looks like now isn’t a reveal and those pretty doors aren’t finished either!}…

Then Lindsay had the idea of making it into an accent table – isn’t that brilliant?! ::light bulb over my head:: Re-wire it to plug in, add a glass top and ta-da! It’d be gorgeous all rigged up – no need for a table lamp if the table is a chandelier! Hmmm…now that she’s planted that seed…I just don’t know! {You know I’m indecisive!} But when it’s sitting on the floor, it DOES look like a table!

But I do love to play around. Here’s just an old window on top and an idea of how it’d look. Pretty awesome, I’d say!

This one was purchased for $20 from Habitat ReStore…

and I’m pretty sure it’s replacing the light fixture in the dining room…

Now the dilemma. I love that they’re both huge and will make a beautiful statement in each room. But did I choose the right rooms for each chandelier? I think either light would work in either room so I’m certain I’m going in the right direction. I think. lol! What do you think?

And I love each of them and their aged gold color but I’m so tempted to give them a “WOW” with a coat of spray paint. Check out this inspiration…

{Pretty Handy Girl}

{Addicted to Decorating}

{houzz}

{Vickie Howell}

{design sponge}

I’m no stranger to spray painting chandeliers:

My dressing room chandelier used to be brassy gold…

The room that Cassity (Remodelaholic) and I designed for Shaw/HGTV Home last summer and the painted chandelier:

Guest Room Chandelier

Keep my current placement plan?
Spray paint one or both or none?
Chandy side table?

Ps. Mr. DIY pictures a big palm leaf ceiling fan in the family room so the light fixture there will be temporary until we decide to choose and invest in the perfect one. And he’s sort of liking our current dining room light fixture, but maybe he won’t notice the swap? Or he’ll fall in love them when they magically appear in place? Didn’t happen with this one in the powder room:

{powder room}

He’s not a fan of the ‘snot monster’. But he tolerates it for me. Love him {and the tear drop light}. They’re both keepers! 😉

After writing up this post and playing with the idea more, I’m thinking if I keep the current dining room light fixture {we’d love a pulley light there anyway}, use the lantern-chandelier in the family room and the caged chandelier as a coffee table/accent table … problem solved, right? What do you think? I am LOVING the chandelier coffee table idea! So, I’m going to work a little do-it-yourself magic, make it sturdy, add a top (I like the window) and change the electrical from hard-wire to plug-in. It’s just too perfectly my style not to go with that idea. Here are some more pictures of the repurposed chandelier table idea (I see a tutorial in my near future).