Classical Chandeliers Blog

Although chandeliers installation isn’t difficult it has to be done by a competent person. There are two main ceiling structures: concrete and wooden. Chandeliers have to be hung from a structure capable of carrying the chandeliers weight, never from the plaster board.

Concrete is my least favourite ceiling structure due to a) the complexity of anchoring the chandelier hook into the concrete and b) overcoming the awkward void which can vary from 1 inch to 3 feet. Unless you are a very practical person or were overseeing the construction/reconstruction of the actual room you will not be aware of the voids existence not to mention the size. For the small voids you can use the plate hook, for the larger voids there are various types of brackets available.  Read more...

When choosing your chandelier have a good look at the chandelier’s four main aspects that are: quality of metal parts, quality of trimmings, joining of the crystals and electrical wires.

With regards of the metal parts quality in second hand chandeliers you look for the tarnishing.Tarnish is basically discoloration of the metal, most common are rust speckles beneath the varnish so it cannot be wiped off nor can it be polished off with a polish paste.

Good quality chandeliers are made of brass, lesser quality chandeliers are made of all sorts of metal compounds, some of which are prone to rusting.  Read more...

These are the detailed instructions for chandelier 10740 12+6+3, which is definitely my favourite classic crystal chandelier especially in the Swarovski Spectra.

To start take the instructions out and have a good look at the base diagram, below left.

You can clearly see three bases for arms and numbering for all parts which corresponds to the packages within the box.

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Chandelier assembly may be daunting at first sight, however it is quite simple and rather rewarding  when you see what you have achieved.

First of all find the central stem and suspend it in a position where you have plenty of room or directly on a chandelier hook.  Make sure that the chandelier is out of reach of children and animals so that neither comes to any harm.

Unscrew the lower most nut and take off the glass dishes and wire cover, placing the parts in a row so you know how to put these back on.  Read more...

A History of Chandeliers
The very early origins of chandeliers were simply a multitude of candles placed on objects like cart wheels and other wooden frames to illuminate large spaces. Quite simply a single candle or even a 3 candle candelabra just did not produce enough light to illuminate a large space so people had to think of ingenious ways to hold a multitude of candles in order to get sufficient light. Now the basic ones were just cart wheels but soon design came into play and large wrought iron designs were made and then later, as the rich and famous wanted more elegant designs, the glass chandelier was born. Initially the designs were constrained by the limited manufacturing capability but as skills advanced the glassmakers leaned new techniques to make fine chandeliers.
One of the origins of fine chandeliers is Bohemia in the Czech Republic. The glassmaking in this region started in 1724 and from this date they have enjoyed a reputation for making fine glassware and chandeliers that ornament fine buildings and palaces across the world.
Early chandeliers were all lit by candles and some still are, but the majority were modified to take electricity utilising ornate candle light bulbs. Nowadays they are all made this way and chandeliers are today a timeless tradition as they have been for centuries.

The Different Types of Chandeliers
Chandeliers can be either traditional or contemporary. Whilst the contemporary ones can really be as radical as the designer chooses, the traditional chandeliers to fit into broad categories. The main categories of traditional chandeliers are basket chandeliers, glass arm chandeliers and waterfall chandeliers. A basket chandelier is in essence an enclosure of crystal chains which can either me mounted straight to the ceiling or suspended from a chain and is then lit by an array of internal lamps. The glass armed chandelier has a set of ornate glass arms, either in a single layer or multiple tiers and at the end of each arm there is a candle dish and candle lamp. In contrast the waterfall design is a set of cascading crystal chains attached to a metal structure and can take a multitude of different shapes and forms.

A Guide to Crystal
It is the crystal on chandeliers that gives them that special sparkle which characterises the light fitting as a chandelier and then the degree of sparkle provides a good indication of the quality of the crystal. The major attribute that produces the sparkle is the leads content of the crystal often known as PbO (lead oxide) content. If the leads content is around 24% then you have a high quality lead crystal and the highest quality lead crystals will be about 31% PbO. As you increase the lead content then you improve the refractive properties of the light as it passed through the crystal producing brilliant sparkle and if daylight is passed through the crystal then the refraction will produce light in all the colours of the rainbow. This can often be seen on a chandelier as sunlight is cast through a window and is then refracted by the crystals and you will see spectrum of coloured light patterns across the walls. In contrast if the crystal is of a poor quality and under 7% then these effects will be negligible and the chandelier cannot be classified as an item of true beauty.

Some design advice on Chandeliers
One of the basic rules on buying a chandelier is to purchase one that is the right style for the character of the property. If you have a splendid old Victorian or Georgian property then ornament it with a traditional chandelier. Conversely if you have a modern style new build then invest in a contemporary style chandelier that will fit well with the interior design theme. The next thing is to buy one of the right size. There is a rule you can apply here that will give you the approximate size of the chandelier to fit the room. Add together the width and length of the room measured in feet and then this will give you the diameter of the chandelier you need measure in inches. So for example if your room is 15 foot long and 16 foot wide then the ideal chandelier diameter is 31 inches. Then my final piece of advice is to choose carefully because a chandelier is an item that will be with you for a long time, probably generations.