Can we see a pic?

As for AB crystals, instead of replacing some with clear, why not play up the AB by replacing a few with colored crystals? I can see a beautiful wine colored crystal looking beautiful with the AB.

If you painted, what would you do about the wires? Would they still be brass?

I don't think the aurora crystals would date it. I've seen many new gorgeous chandeliers that are have them in the clear and other colors that are drop dead gorgeous. I believe they all were silver in finish, so yes, I'd spray all the metal in the chrome (it's not quite that shiny, but great looking) spray paint and try to find more aurora crystals to replace the missing ones.
Oh and please share a photo!

I don't have a decent pic of ours, but the one on ebay was item # 190377155301.

Ours had been in the attic for who knows how long, so even after cleaning, is darker/duller than that one.

I removed all of the old wiring, since it was rotted and had been spliced and taped, so if I leave it as-is, they can rewire with brass/gold colored wiring, but if I paint, I'd use silver/clear wiring.

My furniture in that dining room is painted white (or will be) and the walls are currently cream. I haven't done any decorating in that room yet at all, so wall color, window treatments, etc. are all up in the air, but I'm leaving the furniture white.

I'd like to see a photo, too; I'm having a hard time picturing it.

On the one hand: We moved into this 1969 house last year, and I'm in the process of of replacing previous homeowners' nickel light fixtures with antique brass (and one that's copper)that look more original to the house, so I'd lean toward suggesting you leave it as-is, sell it on eBay to someone who would love to have it for such a reason, and put the money you'd spend rewiring it as well as the sale price toward a fixture that you would love right out of the box.

On the other hand: in my last house, there was a rusty and ratty brass and crystal chandy that I couldn't live with, so I removed the crystals, cut off some of the fountain-spray wires that had ropes of crystals hanging from them, and painted the fixture verdigris. Total cost $12 or so for the paint supplies, and it looked great for the five years before I got around to changing it. I don't feel bad about altering it because I think most folks would have trashed it on day one.

I have seen chandeliers with mixed clear and colored crystals on lighting sites, so I think it's just a matter of whether you like the look on yours, if you decide to go that route.

OH that is gorgeous. Not sure I'd want to paint it now that I see it.

Here is a link that might be useful: ebay fixture

Guess the photo links don't work...

Here is a link that might be useful: TRY THIS LINK

I'll try to get a good pic of it tomorrow. And see if I can figure out how to post it here...just c/p the photobucket link in my message?

It's not that I hate the brass...totally. I just prefer the silver-toned metals. There's a built in china hutch that has brass hardware, and the rest of my furniture in that DR has vintage glass knobs and brass hinges, so it's not like it'll be the only gold metal in the room.

We just donated a whole truckload of other fixtures (that were probably all original as well) that were really, really, really 1970's. In a bad way.

Ah, one person's bad way is another person's good way ;-) My MIL wouldn't believe me when I told her she could get $100 for her Lucite grapes light fixture a few years ago.

Now that I've seen the photo, I think it's a pretty fixture as is, and with a darker patina and aurora crystals even more so--but it's your taste that matters in your house, so you should do what you'll like. I didn't have to take mine down to paint it, so other than the wiring, you could hang it as is and if you don't like it, paint it where it hangs.

Let me see if I can post a pic:

Pardon the one wonky arm and the missing outlet covers, but there it is.

Did I mention this was an attic in TEXAS, where the heat will disentigrate anything? The PO's had plastic trash bags up there that just turned to dust when we picked them up, and a child's plastic rocking horse that just shattered when we got it down. Even the metal head pins that hold the crystals on are corroded and need replacing. Some of them just fell apart when I washed them.

Really, the more I look at it, the more I like it as-is, and I think the idea of keeping it as original as possible will make it a neat conversation piece. It think it'll look interesting with our vintage furniture.

Judging it in proportion to the arm that is holding it for display, I think it seems too small for a DR fixture. I wonder if it was used in a bath? Anyway, I would leave it as is, but use it in a different space- perhaps over a bed, or in a bath, or over a seating area with two chairs and a shared table.

Look I have the same one! This was in the house when we purchased it and we saved it to recycle in a bedroom! I was actually pondering painting mine black too, so that it had a more modern look, but it has grown on me. We also saved another chandelier that had lemons and oranges on it LOL! My daughter is going to use it for her bathroom.

i think it's lovely. depending on how big your DR is...or I'd put it in the mstr bath if is the style that could take the glitz. (just mail it to me... it'll go nicely in my future bathroom!) I wouldn't try to paint it or anything - maybe have it rewired tho so it's safe.

or it there's a corner seating area in one of your rooms ...

i know what ya mean about the heat and plastic. i lose a lot of plastic around here in AZ - when i forget and it stays outside in the summer.

Hi again! The chandelier hangs 31" with the chain, and it's 20" in diameter. The DR (which is one of the smallest rooms in the house) is just shy of being 10x10'.

I found a place that sells replacement drops that match the originals, although DH is going to give one last look in the attic, just in case. I also found a local place that will rewire the electric. I can rewire the drops myself, so it should all be back together soon. The current light fixture, which is a big, hulking, marbled glass thing, has a ceiling medallion that actually coordinates well with the brass fixture, so I think it'll look nice.

To go with the pale walls and white vintage furniture, I was thinking maybe an aqua drape or swag to go over the picture window. The crystals have a lot of aqua and pink in them.

Anyway, thanks for all of the help and suggestions!

Hi franksmom....I have three versions of that same chandelier, and when I bought them, some of the crystals were broken or missing. I spaced the crystals out in order to keep them and I actually like it better.
Take one off the middle of each arm just skip a space on each hole on the bobeche part. I think this would work if you don't want to replace any just yet.

Chiming in on the don't paint, just enjoy side of things. Rewire it for safety. Don't stress too much over the missing crystals. Live with it and see if you need to replace them all. I think this has a lot of vintage charm.

Wow that is a great find FranksMom! I love it.

I agree on don't paint. It's nice enough it deserves to live as it was envisioned, IMO.

And firsthouse: I WANT THAT DINING SET! Oy, those chairs sing to me...don't know what that white line is around the table edge, but the chairs, the chairs...was that taken when you were looking at the house, so it's probably gone now? What a fun house that must have been to see. Like a museum. If you have a link to other pics of it in its original state, I'd love to see them on a sep. thread. Not if it's a big bother, but wow...

Franksmom, it's so pretty! Enjoy it :-)

Flyleft....we tried buying the dining room set from them but they wouldn't sell it--they sent it to another consignment place who swiftly sent them off somewhere else. I was fairly disappointed that they would not even consider giving me a chance to bid on them with the house! There were also some lime green barrel chairs that were cool.

Click on the bottom right hand purple link just immediately below the picture entitled "Menlo Farmhouse". That will show the rancher in all it's glory a year ago and how we are remodeling it.

Franksmon, my brother has/had that exact same fixture in their very small dining area off of the kitchen. The fixture developed a short and they replaced it. They both had always HATED it because it looked so 'girly' and did not go with their furnishings. They were going to toss the old one (crystals and all) but I saved the crystals from it thinking I could use them for a craft project. I was going to offer to send them to you but I see you found a place that sells matching ones.

I actually toyed with the idea of saving the fixture and painting it a bright color but had no place to really install it in my home so I let it go.

Don't paint it!

And--- replacing crystals isn't that pricey. I bought a chandelier on eBay for my daughter's room (sshhh! Don't tell her, It's her Easter gift !) that had lost it's crystals. Then i bought a lot of 22 vintage crystals to hang on it. I think the crystals plus shipping were like $25.

You need to sleuth around eBay a bit, using different search terms. They get listed in a few different categories. There are LOTS and LOTS of cheap new ones. You can get new ones for about 30 cents each... but they aren't the same quality. Plus they will have new bright/cheap looking attachement hardware that won't go with your beautiful old lamp.

But if you look long enough you should be able to find exactly the right ones, with patina'd brass hardware to match, in clear crystal. Then you can sell your vintage AB ones for probably the same amount! I think it took me about 2 weeks of looking at listings to find the right ones for my chandelier.

Good luck, it's beautiful. It's EXACTLY what my DD wanted for her room that we were unable to find cheap enough!

Do not touch it! I love it as is also! The patina is perfect and I would just rewire, replace candle sleeves with new ivory ones not white and these type of bulbs at the link.

Here is a link that might be useful: silicone dipped bulbs

That's such a lucky find! I had one of those vintage Spanish chandeliers in my previous home that, to this day, I regret leaving when we sold it. As a matter of fact, I'm currently trying to get a good deal on Ebay for one.

If the metal finish is not your style, I wouldn't hesitate to paint it silver, etc, and I'd likely swap the AB crystals out for clear ones. You could get so creative with the drops by even using colored crystals on the small round pieces and then have the clear drops, below.

When I get mine, I will be changing it to a bronze finish. I truly adore these vintage Spanish chandeliers. They come in so many styles!

I love these types of lights. What a great thing to find in the attic!! I also would say don't paint it but I'm one that cringes slightly when people paint lights like this or good wood. I don't think the crystals date it but I might change them out at some point when I could.

Now I'm thinking how much I really want a chandelier in my bathroom.

franksmom, I'm late to the party, but I burst out laughing when I read your post, because I had been doing the EXACT same thing, only reversed. I found my spanish chandelier a few months ago at a thrift store...and I wished and pined that it had the AB crystals instead of clear! Kept looking at them on ebay. Plus I wanted to paint it a splashy color, like turquoise or red or a gorgeous periwinkle...LOL.

{{!gwi}}

Anyway, I hung it "as found" and I have to say its natural state has grown on me a lot. I love your find and definitely think you should live with it for awhile "as is".

Mine was dirt cheap, but free is way better! :-D Congratulations! The only thing I ever found in my attic was a bunch of bats. Cute, but I couldn't figure out how to work them into my decor, they just wouldn't stay put.

Joanna

Tradewind, that is just gorgeous! And I cas see a peak of the artwork hanging behind it, and I think it's just perfect as it is!

Dilly, thanks so much for the offer! I need to order the candle covers anyway, so ordering the prisms isn't a big deal. I only need 5 of them, unless DH finds more in the attic.

I was at the craft store yesterday, and found some head pins that are a wonderful antique brass, so any of the crystals that I rewire should look just like the originals.

I spent some time today playing around with fabric. I'm going to make a valance for the window in that DR, and I was thinking that a pale blue or aqua dupioni silk would be really pretty. And, I found some vintage brass hardware to go on the china cabinet! I think the dining room is going to turn out pretty after all.