Ashleigh's Custom Light

If you have followed me for a while you know that I have a really fabulous client named Ashleigh. I could wax poetic about her style and flawless taste for quite a while, but I'm sure that if you look at things like the buffet, this armoire, these nightstands, the farmhouse table, or the fish chairs you can see that amazing taste for yourself.

More recently I have painted a fireplace mantle and made a custom light fixture. Here is a quick peek at the fireplace before and after:

She was over the dark and wanted a brighter and cleaner look. She called and asked if I could paint it short notice. She already had the paint, so I came in and painted it out. It took three coats to cover the black. In the picture below I took a quick picture before leaving and you can tell it wasn't completely dry. It looks fabulous though.

Just a quick little makeover.

Now to the main event! 

Y'all know how much I love good lighting. The right fixture, pot lights, and especially natural light. Lately, I've really been into creating light fixtures that are similar to high end fixtures. My lantern pendant in the breakfast nook is a great example.

Ashleigh knows this and had a great idea for a fixture in her new mudroom entry space. She brought me this:

It's an industrial dome shade but it had nothing attached to it and was covered in dirt.

My daughter thought it looked like half of an easter egg and made up a little rap and dance about it. I have it on video and may use it as blackmail when she's a teenager. Since she would kill me if I shared that, I thought this picture would suffice.

She is a mess!

A piece of wood had to be fitted with a bracket to attach to the ceiling box. I wanted the wood to match her flooring so I got some red oak veneer to cover the poplar that had been used for the top.

Next that piece had to be stained and waxed

 With the exterior being vintage I wanted the inside of the light to look as original as possible as well. I used porcelain bulb sockets and attached them to a perfectly turned piece I had my father make. I don't use the lathe…it still scares me. But, my amazing father is fantastic at it and I contract him out for small jobs like this.

All the wires pulled through

My dad helping me hold it in place to see if we liked it.

All of the wood on the inside of the fixture was painted white to match the shade.

Here it is all finished up and ready for installation.

 This was a difficult installation. I had to take it back to my dad's shop and tweak a few things and come back and try again. Ashleigh's husband ended up helping me as it was large and difficult to mount. 

Here it is installed in the space:

It ties in perfectly and is so great in this space. Even though it was a bit difficult to hang, it was so worth it in the end. This is probably my all-time favorite fixture I've done.