How To Make a Hanging Plant Chandelier
This project has been in the making for literal years. I hunkered down finally finish it and I couldn’t be more pleased. Originally, I planned to use live plants and though I still have the option to, artificial is the way for me. Once I had all materials assembled, this project took about an hour to complete. Mostly, because marking the spots for the ceiling hooks is challenging as hell to do solo. Don't be like me. Ask for help because mine is all askew, but I don't care. I'm going to live with it for now.
In the course of designing how it would look, I learned about a great shop for artificial flowers and plants in Dallas, linked in the resources list at the end of this post. Whenever I can I like to shop locally owned business as much as possible and I'll be going back to find flowers to add to this. I have ideas to try it with DIY paper flowers and garlands too. The beauty of this chandelier is that it's easy to change out what I hang on it. Even bare it give a nice atmosphere to the room.
Construction
Construction is simple. I had some pine wood slats from an old bed that was no longer in use. These are are 3" wide and 3/4" thick. I cut one slat in half and used the other two for the long sides. I drilled two pocket holes on each end of the longer sides and screwed and glued them to the shorter ends. In the photo below you can see how the bare frame looked.
Tools | Materials Needed: hand saw/jig saw/circular saw to cut the wood, pine board, drill, pocket hole jig, pocket screws, wood glue, jack chain, eye hooks, ceiling hooks, stain, and sealer, plants of your choice, and stick on puck lights
- I added screw in eye hooks which connect to chain that hangs from the ceiling. To add the chain I opened a link and hooked it around the eye hook then closed it using needle nose pliers. Be sure the chain, and ceiling hooks are rated for the finished weight of your piece.
- Next was finishing the wood with stain and sealer.
- I adorned the frame with greenery stems using zip ties to secure.
If you decide to make one for yourself, your measurements may vary depending on the size of your table. For reference, the finished size of mine is 18" x 41" and the chain hangs with a 19.5" drop from the ceiling with the whole chandelier hovering approximately 41" above the table
WARNING TO RENTERS: The ceiling hooks leave a 3/4" hole in the ceiling. I will patch and repaint mine whenever I move out.
Resources
Great Value Puck Lights and Remote - Walmart
Greenery - Silky Silk Flowers, Inc. Dallas, TX - https://silkysilkflowers.com/
Mocha Wood Stain - Minwax Water Based Stain
Jack Chain - Peerless 15’ Jack Chain
30lb Swag Hooks - OOK (I wanted black but could only find white and nickel in store)
3/4 screw in eye hooks - Walmart