Bye Bye Ceiling Fan

When Chris and I first moved into the Capers, there were two ceiling fans in the kitchen. And they didn't match, of course. The very first time my parents came out to visit, my very sweet father offered to swap out the uglier ceiling fan for a chic, contemporary pendant light from Lowes.

 

But for whatever reason, we decided to keep the other fan over by the fridge. The years passed and I don't think I've ever used that fan.

And then last week the light started to bug out on us. Sometimes when we would flip the switch it would pop on for a second and then go dark. We had to unscrew the glass and twist the bulb around to get it to come back on.

That was when we knew it was time to move on and get that thing outta here. It's one thing to be ugly, but to be ugly and have electrical problems? No thanks.

I've long since regretted not buying a second pendant light to match the one my dad installed. A while later I actually went back to Lowes for one, only to find they no longer sold that style. I went online and discovered it was actually discontinued. Such a bummer.

I figured if I wanted matching lights, we would have to replace the other light as well as the ceiling fan, which felt like a waste. Plus, that light was only $30, and I doubted I could find something I liked as much at that price point.

 

But then Chris and I went to Lowes and the clouds parted and the sun burst forth and I discovered that a DIFFERENT company was now making almost the exact same light as the other one in our kitchen.

 

It has a few tiny differences, but since the lights are on different sides of the room, you absolutely cannot tell. And it looks three billion times better than that old, dated ceiling fan.

This little corner of the kitchen is really starting to come together, right?

And here's a shot so you can see both lights together. They're pretty far apart, and they are also hung high so the one by the stove doesn't get banged into by the basement door.

Here's the new light by the fridge:

And here's the original one by the stove:

We still have to get a new, brighter bulb for the new light. Right now it's a much yellower tone and pretty dim, so it looks like you're in one of those interrogation rooms at night. A bluer tone and higher wattage should take care of that.

Also, a tip for anyone looking to replace a light in their home: Don't start the project when you have about 20 minutes of daylight left. Chris and I replaced the light last night and quickly found ourselves in a dark kitchen using a flashlight to get 'er done. Probably should have started earlier or waited for this morning.

But thankfully, we did it and I even painted that ceiling medallion by flashlight since the center part was pretty yellowed. And in the end it turned out great and I'm sooo happy to have this item checked off the old to do list.