light it up

When we first moved into our new house, I knew right away that I wanted to swap out all of the light fixtures.  Many of them were just old and worn.  A few screamed "old lady", and others were just simply not our style.

During feedings, I would go online searching for the perfect light fixture, and overtime, I replaced them one by one.  The first ones to get replaced were the nursery, living room, stairwell, and office.  I found these ones fairly quickly and had them installed in the first few months.

I had 2 more to go: the dining room and front porch.  Both of these fixtures were bigger decisions since the porch one dictates curb appeal, and the dining room one would require a more substantial investment.


The Dining Room
I found a dining room fixture at Pottery Barn and was almost ready to pull the trigger, but decided to sleep on it.  I then happened to be at Ethan Allen ordering the arm chairs for our dining table, and spotted this beautiful fixture.  It was hung above a chest of drawers, not even a table.  But I knew right away it would look perfect.  I waited for it to go on sale (25% off!!) and then I ordered it.  It took about 8 weeks to come in, but it was worth the wait.  Below are a few of the other fixtures I was considering.  They are all really pretty, but each with a different feel.

Ethan Allen - the one

Ethan Allen - runner-up

Pottery Barn - runner-up

Pottery Barn - runner-up

Here is a snapshot of our dining room.  I don't love the 3-mirrored circles on the wall, but until I get inspired, they will stay up.  Otherwise, this room is pretty much done!

The finished look

A dangling beauty

The Porch
A few weekends ago I had the afternoon "off".  Sadly I ended up going grocery shopping instead of doing something fun.  But I passed a local lighting shop on my way home, and decided to pop in.  I had milk and eggs in the car so I knew I didn't have a lot of time to make a decision.  I was a salesperson's dream customer.

I really wanted a dangling lantern pendant but the ceiling height is too short and could only accommodate a flush mount.  I saw this beautiful cut glass & iron fixture that felt very modern country.  That was the quickest decision ever made, I was in and out in under 10 minutes.

Definitely added some good curb appeal

I love how the light reflects on the ceiling

If only I had a before picture!!

I am finally done replacing all of the light fixtures, and now on to the next project!!  We are planning to redo the stonework on the deck, the pathway to the door, and the platform Sammy is sitting on above.