We got gorgeous new pendant light, and I’m sharing step-by-step instructions of how we installed it.
As part of our kitchen remodel, we planned to hang a pendant light over the sink. Ideally, we probably should have put the light in after we installed new cabinets, but when Parrot Uncle asked me to review one of their lights, I jumped at the chance.
After looking through their selection of pendant lights, I picked this retro, industrial-style pendant light with a white shade. I think it will go really well with our retro white kitchen cabinets.
I was really impressed with the solid feeling and weight of each piece. The cover is a sturdy metal painted a matte white. The light socket feels like solid brass. There are no plastic parts on this pendant light.
To attach the shade to the light, we removed a brass ring from the bottom of the socket, slid the shade on to the socket, and reattached the brass ring inside. Once it was all screwed together, it felt very sturdy and solid.
The hardest part of installing the light was figuring out where it should go. Since there was no previous fixture over the sink to replace, the options of where to put it are limitless, which is a little overwhelming. We spent a while holding the light in different places to figure out where it looked the best. Okay, my husband did a lot of holding the light up. I’m lucky he was so patient with me as I double and triple checked how the pendant light looked from every possible angle. I didn’t want to get the light installed and then realize it needed to be two inches to the left.
To add a new light to the ceiling, we had to attach an electrical box to a joist in the attic and then connect the electrical wiring. It would take a whole post to explain all of the detail, so that will have to wait for another day. I’ll just tell you that we attached the bracket that came with the light to the electrical box. That’s something we’d have to do even if we were just replacing an old light.
Next, we connected the wires of the pendant light to the wires from the ceiling. Unlike when we installed a new electrical outlet, there were no red and black colors to differentiate the wires. We learned that sometimes the wires, or rather the plastic wire covers, are textured instead of colored. We attached the ribbed wire to the ribbed wire and the smooth wire to the smooth wire. Then added the wire connectors.
We attached the light fixture base to the bracket with a couple of screws (everything was included with the light). And now we have a beautiful retro pendant light hanging above the sink in our kitchen.
One day the rest of the kitchen will look as good.
I love how the light looks in our kitchen. My favorite part is the cut-out detail at the top of the lampshade that lets the light bulb show through a little.
We put in a vintage-style Edison bulb because this pendant light really shows off the light bulb well.
