another industrial pendant to complete the set

One of the first art lessons I still remember is the one in which we were introduced to the fact that in nature, things often occur in odd numbers (plant leafs, flower petals, etc.). It was an introduction to the Rule of Odds, which is used often in art and design to keep your brain interested and engaged, and you can find it in art from ancient Japan through the Renaissance all the way up through current day.

At the end of a previous lighting post, I mentioned that the idea for a certain spot in our house was to eventually have three hanging pendants for balance. That's the Rule of Odds at play in our living room.

Light number 1 was a five-cent frosted pendant.

Light number 2 was a metal cage light made with salvaged parts. (I've switched out the light kit since the original tutorial to accommodate a standard-sized Edison-style lightbulb.)

And this, the third, is was originally a plastic cage light, like this one, purchased used for 50 cents at Bring (but I've seen them similarly priced at the Habitat ReStore).

I hung it from a coat hanger in the yard and sprayed with gentle layers of primer, aluminum finish, and flat black spray paint to give it the look of aged metal.

Here are all three together at last:

I have them all hung by hooks from the ceiling. 

My original hope was to hard wire them all together, but since I lack the practical expertise for that, the cords run bundled down the edge of the window frame and are turned on and off via a power strip. I hope to get the curtains rehung to hide them a little better soon.

I've seen a few lighting solutions lately that involve swooping black cable and exposed bulbs and while I love the look in a loft space (like the one Brooks designed on DesignStar), it's not practical with 8-foot ceilings. I'd likely accidentally hang myself.

Okay, now you know what you need to know to diy three pendant lighting fixtures on a teeny tiny budget. Of course, if you have a bit more money you want to spend, you can buy industrial metal light cages:

1 Satco 90-1310 Lamp Cage

2 Metal Lamp Guard - Black

3 Vintage Drop Light

4 Industrial Wire Bulb Cage

And if the price isn't much of an issue:

5 Wire Cage Industrial Pendant

6 Vintage Industrial Cage Light

7 Metal Cage

8 Wire Cage Light

9 Early 20th Century Cage Lights

But in my house, I'm likely to spend the $1000 per fixture on that last link towards the mortgage or something else really practical, and hang up the diy version instead. How about you?

Thanks for reading!

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thrift store finds: mysterious metal box

Okay. You tell me: what is this thing?

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quick little industrial pendant light

With me, if it's not chairs, it's lights.

This one's a quick little pendant project that's very industrial chic. A few simple materials, too! I started with a clamp on lamp kit (a hanging lantern kit would be great, too, with the added benefit of longer cord length), and a low-wattage bulb.

The light cage came from Bring. It cost a buck. If you don't have one lying around from an old outdoor light fixture and you don't live in the Pacific Northwest (where salvaged building stores abound), you can try a Habitat for Humanity ReStore, or try searching for "light cage" on Amazon or eBay or Google. They run more in the 3-20 dollar range there. But they're still less expensive than the completed industrial pendants you'll find here, here, here, here, or here.

Spread out the prongs on your light kit a little. You want them to catch the edge of the light cage and support its weight.

Pass the cord through to see if it'll do its job.

Then, get out the 18-gague wire and pliers you should have thought of sooner. Silly you.

Two six-inch lengths, bent in the middle, ought to do it — one for each prong.

Thread a wire through each prong and wrap it securely around the top of the cage.

Here's a close-up from the side. Don't over think it.

Add a bulb! I'm considering adding some foil tape to the bulb to make it prettier, but it'll do for now. Mine is a torpedo bulb from Satco. I think it's a compact fluorescent. It's a 7 watt bulb with 40 watt output, and the base stays cool.

All done! Hang from a ceiling hook, or hardwire into the ceiling if that's your thing. If your cord is shorter than 8-feet, you can use a power brick hidden behind some stuff on a bookshelf or something, and plug your light into that. Voila!

Wheeee! I love it. It's hanging alongside my 5-cent pendant shade; the idea is to add one more for balance, but that can wait until I find my other piece (I hid is somewhere where it's really safe . . . even from me).


p.s. you can make these photos larger just by clicking on them, but you probably already knew that. ;)

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