Pendant Shade Update: Getting Rid of the Gruesome Threesome

When we moved in this house, one of the best features was the family room. We were happy that not EVERY room needed serious updating. This level of our 1970’s quad level house had just been renovated (thank goodness). All we had to do to this was give it was make it our own, so we painted. So far, sitting area and the bathroom. It has served us well, but there has always been something that has bothered me.

The pendant shades above the bar.

The three different colors of red, brown, and yellow had me wondering if the previous owners of our house has a thing for bodily fluids or if they were just trying to be whimsical.

So, for the past four years I have been searching. Unfortunately, while I liked the idea of something cute and trendy, I knew that it was very possible in about a year I wouldn’t like them. So I wanted to stick with something a bit more neutral, and could stand up when I changed the accent wall behind the bar for the fourth time (yes, I have painted it three times, and this is why I don’t have a tattoo).

I finally found these:

They are clear which helps give off considerably more light than the previous three, they match, and they fit the pendants.

These particular pendant lights are part of a kit whose shades can be changed out by turning off the lights and removing the bulb.

Then, unscrewing a small threaded flange.

This is so much more cost effective and timely than replacing the entire pendant. Pendant sets like this can be found at Home Depot and Loews, and are awesome for situations when you know you might be switching the shades later when tastes or decor change.

The new shades came with their own flanges, so I simply screwed the new flanges with the shades back into the fixture, put the bulbs back in and voila.

Isn’t that so much better that the gruesome threesome?

This DIY project cost me about $11 (each pendant shade was about $12 and I had a $25 Loews gift card and about 30 minutes of time). If only all projects could be this easy.

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