BLANKEN industrial pendant light

Materials: BLANKEN bathroom metal baskets, spray paint, pendant light fixture, and Dremel rotary cutting tool.

Description: I was looking for a modern industrial pendant light to place over the kitchen sink and found that the larger of the two BLANKEN metal baskets would work well with Edison base industrial-looking filament light bulbs.

The Ikea portion of this project took two hours to cut the holes for the pendant lights and to spray paint the BLANKEN medium-sized metal baskets. The total project will take an afternoon to install a pendant light and to complete the BLANKEN baskets. I bought a two pendant light fixture from another store and had a local lighting store replace the candelabra bulb sockets with Edison bulb-sized light sockets.

First I used a Dremel rotary cutting tool with a cutting disk to cut holes in the BLANKEN metal basket bottoms so only the bulb socket would fit through the BLANKEN metal basket base. Don't cut the inner hole too large or the lampshade holding ring will not be able to hold the BLANKEN basket on the light. Cut off the inner circle, and cut close to the second inner metal ring in the bottom of the BLANKEN metal basket.

Next, spray paint the BLANKEN metal basket the desired color and let dry. Spray using light coats to avoid paint runs.

Install the pendant light fixture to the ceiling using the manufacturer's directions. After the paint is dry, on the BLANKEN basket, use the pendant light's screw-on flange lampshade ring to hold the BLANKEN metal basket on the light.

Two 60 watt filament incandescent light bulbs provide a stylish and warm light. The two lights combined provide less luminosity as compared to a typical 100 watt light bulb.

~ Tim Goldfish, Virginia