Your home and fancy DIY Contemporary Chandelier

Crystals hanging from an aluminium pole are all you need to create a glamorous, and sexy feel to your kitchen or dining table. Lighting is provided by battery-operated LED lights and your guests will be bathed in long-lasting, glittering, twinkling crystal light.

You will need:

Dremel MultiTool and 1.6mm drill bit
Wire rope
Ceiling fixing
2 x wire rope stoppers
1 x LED strip light
900 x 40 mm diameter length of chrome pipe 

Here's how:

1. Marking up

Buy a length of chrome pipe or curtain rod 900 mm in length and mask up with masking tape to protect the surface of the chrome and be able to mark up.

Draw a line along the entire length of the pipe and then another line 20mm away on either side. The two outer lines are where the crystals will hang.

Use the centre line for adding battery-operated LED lights, mounting the battery pack at the top of the pipe.

2. Drilling your light rail

Use a centre punch to avoid your drill skating across the surface of the handrail and then drill a pilot hole through the pipe using your Dremel 8200 with the Dremel drill bit 1.6mm.

You will need to drill holes along the centre strip to attach the type of battery-operated LED lights that you purchase, as well as holes on the two outer lines to mount the crystals.

On the top line, mark up a spot 20 mm from each end. This will be the position for the wire rope to go through the handrail to hang your crystal light rail to the ceiling. Drill the size of holes suitable for the wire rope you intend to use.

3. Wiring Up

The original project featured individual LED lights, but it is far easier and practical to add a strip light onto the chrome pole. Install according to the manufacturers instructions and fit the transformer to the top of the chrome pipe, or through the ceiling.

4. Hanging the light rail

Fit hanging wire ropes through the holes you’ve previously drilled at each end of the handrail and cut to the required length, depending on the height of your ceiling and how low you want the light rail to hang over your table. Secure with rope locks.

Insert the other end of the wire rope into the ceiling fixing. Secure with another rope lock.

5. Hanging the crystals

Once the light rail is hanging in place securely, hang all your crystals into the holes you have drilled previously and switch on to test your light rail.

Experiment with style

There are so many options and variations for designing a light fitting in this way. It allows you to be creative with crystal beads in different configurations.

LEFT: This dining chandelier features a selection of large and small crystal beads.