apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Yes that chandelier is sucking all the attention in the room. would it fit in the bathroom or kitchen? It might work surprisingly well in a room you would not expect. Otherwise you might want to get over how pretty that chandelier is and lose it. Sorry.

I wouldn't try to make them two separate areas. It will increase the flow of the room if you decorate it as one cohesive space. Plus, then you won't feel trapped into a certain way of arranging the furniture.

I would decrease the wattage of the bulbs and go with it. Every room needs a large piece, and this is yours.

The chandelier needs to be toned down. Try putting some shades on the fixture and changing the candle sleeves to coordinate with the shades. Also lesser wattage for the bulbs. See some examples www.shandells.com.

You can also take some of the crystals off of the chandelier so there is less going on.

Good luck.

I think it would look lovely in your bedroom over the bed.

(Well, it'd look lovely in my bedroom over the bed...)

have an electrician move it once you've lived there a while and feel confident about your dining table placement.

I think that if you're going to keep it, you're going to need to completely redecorate around it. Everything else would have to go. Since it's your place and not a rental, I'd go for it.

Maybe some mirrored pieces, a velvet couch, a big fluffy white shag rug, black dining room table, etc. You might need to move it a bit to center it properly - again, I think it's totally worth it. I'd also look at painting - at least below the chair rail.

You need some major drama to balance that thing out. Don't be timid!

I agree with NorNor, move it. It really is in an awkward position. I also think that its brazen fabulosity isn't quite jibing with the rest of your decor. Look for more (smaller!) ways to bring that luxe feel to the rest of the space. Add a formal piece, a little bit of sparkle in accessories, a rich color on the walls, that type of thing. Good luck!
http://inspiredroomdesign.com

It is a lovely chandelier, but I think it's wrong for the space and the furnishings. And given the size of the living/dining area, I would try to keep them as unified as possible. You can use area rugs to help differentiate the areas, but since it's a smaller space, make sure they work together well.

Just for fun: http://chandelirium.blogspot.com/

I totally disagree with "losing it."

I agree with mdbee--maybe make "dining" the theme of this room--put the table under the chandelier, always have flower and fruit out, make it a gathering place, like a tea salon. Have people over for coffee a lot...the couch are can be tangential.

Some folks might not realize since you are moving, you may be on a super tight budget for a while--decorate around/under it, and then, at your leisure, have an electrician move it. I think the bedroom is also a splendid idea.

I really like the chandelier and I think that you can keep it in this room. I would move it with a simple hook just above the dining table if you have enough wire length to do this (don't do anything crazy that could be a fire hazard!) then cover the cable with some runched up velvet or other fabric, maybe matching the pink of the sofa or a neutral creme/white, and coordinating with some little lamp shades to tie the decor together. Happy decorating!

I'd keep it - and use it as a stepping off point for making this a grand and cozy room with bold rich colors and dramatic draperies, gilt-framed artwork, plush carpets, etc.

Just because there's a chandelier in the center doesn't mean there has to be a table in the center too.

Reduce the amount of crystal..........Remove some of the dangly ones and maybe replace with colored glass beads (smooth, not faceted) of one color.

The remaining crystal dangles can be hung here and there around the room, wherever like in the window, in front of a mirror, etc.

If you can't easily remove the strands from the top of the fixture, get some wide velvet ribbon and weave/wrap casually around them, or create a "sleeve" to cover them entirely.

You can also play with the cups under the bulbs....paint them or remove them, etc.

Change the bulbs........to 25 watts, and try round bulbs instead of flame-shaped ones. They come in different colors, and you can find some online that have the top half silvered out, to reduce the light that shines upwards.

I think you could have fun giving it a makeover, and then decide if you really need to rearrange furniture.

Could you modify it so it could be hung over the table or over the living area? Or could you move it and add lighting to the other area of the room? It's beautiful and could be really stunning in the right place.

What a lucky problem to have! If you had a china cabinet against the wall in the dining area, it would mean pushing the table underneath the chandelier, would it not? Not to mention filling in that wall area.

Then you'd probably want to have the couch off the wall, either facing the dining room or the windows (nice couch, btw, I like it!) and get a larger tv cabinet, a pair of side chairs, etc.

And it would fit right in if you glam up your space just a bit... maybe very long curtains that bunch on the floor, a plush white rug, bunches of flowers, that sort of thing.

And for goodness sake, don't ruin it by removing pieces of it or putting a shade over it. If you decide it's really not your style, sell it to someone who will love it as is (like me!) and replace it with something you love.

Lovely chandelier, lovely room. If you really want to create separated areas in the room, your best bet will be to swag the chandelier over the dining table, and then use multiple other lamps to create pools of light to define your sitting/living areas.

Great piece. One of the problems is that from the pictures it doesn't look centered in the room, but I believe your saying it is. That makes a huge difference.

There was a posting on AT recently showing people putting drum shades over fixtures just like yours. It modernizes them and tones them down quite a bit. I think it could work for you.

Also, as many others have said, reduce the wattage or put it on a dimmer. Overhead light is never the most attractive. Use it as decorative piece and add lamps and lights around the room for more specific area lighting. Keep them all on the lower side for a cozy feel.

Good luck!

My first thought is to leave the chandelier as is but change around some of the furniture.
Obviously, think about what makes most the most sense for you- did you just pay a lot for your furniture? How much is it to move your ceiling fixtures anyway? Etc.

But I imagine:
Dark walls (drama to compete with the chandelier)
Lower watt bulbs
NO shades (sorry, I dislike completely. Unless you are into the super modern drum around it.)
A slightly more modern rectangular table
Living room seating arranged to acknowledge the other half of the room- also fill it out so guests would easily move from dinner to post-dinner drinks in the same room

do NOT remove crystals / modify the chandelier. do NOT put tacky little shades over the bulbs. do put in lower voltage / smaller profile bulbs. you could try shortening the chain it is on so it hangs closer to the ceiling. get other big, bold pieces so there is balance. it's beautiful!

Well. You could always throw caution to the wind and drop a grand piano under it.

I agree with the bedroom/bathroom suggestion. Hard to make two spaces out of this one-chandelier room.

I'm sure all thisinformation would be really useful if only people had read that you hadn't moved in yet - presumably this is not therefore your furniture in the photo?

I say keep it and leave it centered in the room. IMHO it would look so much worse having a glam piece like that hanging lopsided near one wall. You might be right that making two separate spaces would be difficult, but as long as they were decorated in the same glam style it would be fine. Show us another photo once you've moved in with your stuff as well :-)

I do agree with lower wattage or perhaps a dimmer. With the addition of several other sources of light, you'll be just fine. My dining room has a ceiling light that is not centered over the table but the additional lighting makes it work.

Wow, that chandelier is lovely, you are lucky they are leaving it with the apartment! I can see why you would want to keep it in the room. I certainly would not put shades on it -- the first thing I did to the chandelier in the house I bought was take the shades off ... I haven't yet seen shades on a chandelier that I thought were *not* tacky -- although perhaps it can be done. I think the current resident has done a beautiful job with the place -- I like how the clean simplicity of the room draws the eye to that beautiful piece ...