Sunday, February 23, 2020

Restoring A Crystal Chandelier


The many faceted and sized ball crystal beads in this chandelier date it to the 1800's and of a high European quality. I bought it with a dish of loose beads to replace the gaps and few missing swags with thin wire. Only one ornamental glass flower is missing which I've found on Etsy. After replacing I'll start buffing the brass parts with a Dremmel, Red Rouge and White Diamond compounds while Christian will rewire it with eight new electrical sockets. Finally, I've found a bottom brass finial to hold the pieces together, and already it is remarkable in the sunlight!


A Belle Epoque 1890's French Crystal Basket Chandelier. Above: basket repaired.

We'll bathe clean the body of crystals in "Simple Green Pro HD" which is safe for a project like this when water solutions could be a problem with thin wire in its' assembly. At 22" wide it is an impressive; dazzling light dating back to a time of lovely cut crystals, design and brass work. Sometimes lighting is everything and patina is something else.