Garden Chandelier

I love the summer!  Once the days start growing longer and the weather cheers up, I'm always motivated to start tackling more DIY projects.  I had set up a white tent in the backyard to work as a kind of makeshift gazebo a couple months ago, and last year I upcycled a lovely old table and chairs and cabinet underneath to create a mini outdoor living space.  What this seating area really needed, though, was PIZAZZ.  And lighting.  But mostly pizazz.

As I was researching how to make beautiful but inexpensive garden lighting, I happened to stumble across an old hanging flower basket in the garage, and I got an idea.  The end result is in the picture above, but I'll give you a quick walk-through:

Step 1:  Get a hanging flower basket like this:

Step 2:  Get some ribbon like this:

YOU WILL NEED A LOT OF RIBBON.  Granted, I had a pretty large hanging basket, but I must have used about 60 yards of ribbon, and I could have easily added even more.  I also picked a specific colour pallet, using pinks, purples, and greens, but you could totally do this with whatever scraps of ribbon or material you have laying around.

Step 3:  Cut your ribbon into strips.  You will need a lot of strips, and I recommend making them different sizes.

Step 4:  Tie your many strips of ribbon onto the hanging flower basket.  This is super easy, but tedious.  I put all the short strips near the top and all the longest strips at the very bottom, to give it a real "chandelier" look.  It's so pretty when the long strips flutter in the breeze!  You could always do the opposite, though, and put the longest strips around the edges to give the chandelier a flat bottom, which would probably look equally cool.  Either way, just keep tying them on until you run out of ribbon.  Trust me, you'll need way more strips than you think you will!  You could also add beads or prisms or anything else that you might have lying around that could survive the weather.

Step 5: Put a plate (preferably clear glass) into the bottom of the basket, to give a sturdy and flat platform to put your candles on.  You can never be too safe with candles, so don't skimp on the size of the plate.  You will want it to sit about halfway down the basket, and you want it to be as sturdy as possible.

Step 6: Attach fire-resistant metal line to the top of the hanging basket in at least 3 places to be able to hang the chandelier securely and evenly.  You don't want it flipping in the wind or coming undone!  I left my chandelier on quite a long line, which I then ran through the frame of the gazebo, so I could easily lower or raise it when needed.

Step 7:  Put a jar or two (or three, depending on the size of the chandelier) on the plate, and put your candles in the jars.  Then raise your chandelier to an appropriate and safe height, and secure.  When night comes, light 'em up!

I hope you liked this little tutorial, and if anyone makes one, I'd love to see it!  Just email a pic to JuliaDDrake@gmail.com.