Have you ever been to IKEA and thought, "how am I going to get this plug light into the ceiling light bracket?" I've totally been there. And it's so much easier than you think. Here is a tutorial for a simple diy copper pendant light and how to turn an IKEA plug light into a ceiling light.
IKEA foto pendant lamp (I got the one above in the as is section for $10)
painter's tape
copper spray paint (this one is my fave)
utility knife
wire cutters/wire stripper (they are usually one in the same)
canopy (if needed ... see last step below)
Tape off the wire with your painter's tape and spray paint your shade.
Hold the light where you want it to hang. Measure how long you need the wire to be and add six inches. Cut the wire using your wire cutters.
Using your utility knife, cut off about three inches of the the outer layer of your wire. The outer layer is very thin, so be sure to not cut through the inside wires. You will now have a black wire, a white wire, and some filler exposed.
Using your wire strippers strip off about an inch of the outer layer of the black and white wires. Again, be careful not to cut through the wires. The best way to avoid this is to start with the largest hole in your wire strippers and work your way down until you find the hole that strips off just the outer layer.
You will now have the copper wiring and the filler exposed. Cut off the white filler. Here are instructions on how to connect your light to the ceiling. I would just add, take a picture of the way the old light is wired. Some older houses can be done differently. You want to be sure to wire your new light in the same way. Note: your old canopy may not work with your new light, so be sure to check before grabbing all of your supplies. I used a canopy from an old light and spray painted it copper to match.
So much easier than you thought, huh? Do you like these exclusive DIYs?
