It is becoming more common to purchase pre-loved chandeliers, or in other terms second hand chandeliers. For some it might be because it is cheaper, for others the fact that the chandelier is pre-loved means that there might be an additional vintage factor added to the already vintage style chandelier. Whatever the reason, we think you can’t go wrong with buying a chandelier whether or not it’s second or first hand.
However, there are some things that you would be wise to look out for when buying a second hand chandelier. O
n listings online it isn’t uncommon for people to be misled and therefore misleading you or for them to say something about a chandelier that they don’t actually know to be true. For example, on a recent listing we viewed, the chandelier was described as having 40% lead crystals. This is a very uncommon lead percentage to find in crystal trimmings as the maximum used is 35%. Most commonly the usual percentage lead crystal trimmings is 31%. It is always said that 31% or less is the percentage used in crystal trimmings, so if there is any more lead percentage than this in a crystal, you can be assured that this wouldn’t have been manufactured from a reliable manufacturer.
Crystal chandeliers especially can be a cause for sellers claiming the crystals on chandeliers are better quality than they may be or are different crystals than they state. It is most common when it comes to Swarovski crystal; this type of crystal has become a popular make of crystals and is very well established. Being able to distinguish different types of crystal and the quality of all of them is far from easy! You have to have a good eye for it, or know what the different crystals look like. For bad quality crystals, there would be no light refraction or clarity within the crystal. You can usually tell this just by looking at a picture of the crystals (obviously depending on the quality of the picture).
Another es
sential thing to look out for in the listings is spelling mistakes; if a seller has listed their product with spelling mistakes they clear don’t know what they’re talking about. A recent listing we have seen has written “Moreno” instead of Murano glass. This to begin with is bad, but after looking at the photo and seeing that the chandelier being sold was actually colourless proved that the light definitely wasn’t Murano! Murano glass chandeliers usually come in a variety of different colours and patterns. The make of a chandelier that a seller was also selling was also spelt wrong; it wasn’t that it was a genuine typo and it has been missed in proof reading, the spelling throughout was incorrect. In these situations it definitely doesn’t build your confidence!
When reading a listing, it is important that you feel like the seller knows what they are talking about, if you don’t feel comfortable, don’t buy it! The more information in the listing, the better; listings where for the diameter and size of the chandelier is stated is a good start, firstly for you as the prospective buyer because you calculate the size of the chandelier and the size you need, but it also shows that the seller has ensued you have this information, which shows some sense of reliability. There have been some listings I have seen where all you have is a picture and one line describing what your own eyes can already see in the picture!
Overall, we advise that you don’t buy second hand chandeliers! While they can look nice in pictures and seem like they are from a reliable source, you don’t actually know. Knowledge is power as the saying says, especially in this circumstance.
As well as second hand chandeliers, you might have an old chandelier that is looking a bit worse for wear or has been hidden away for some time – these situations we get phone calls about on a regular basis. As I’ve written this, we have had someone ring in saying that they’ve found a chandelier in a drawer and want to see how it could be restored and if the colour of its finish could change. This is all entirely possible! At the end of the day, you don
’t know until you ask but we are always available to talk to you, advise you and look at your chandelier to give an opinion on how it can be restored. We love chandeliers and love being part of the process of getting them back to their former glory! An example of some of the previous restorations we have done is on our website, please click here to see and read more! Feel free to also give us a phone call on 01420 520521 for advice or you can also email us for any questions you might have.
(Above) – Before and After pictures of a Chandelier we cleaned and restored. For more info follow the link above.
