We are making changes to our kitchen slowly and as the budget allows. We are always working with a tight budget so I am constantly trying to come up with creative ways to get what we want without spending a ton of money to get it. I have to keep my motto going strong – You can have pretty spaces without breaking the bank. It just takes a little extra creativity and elbow grease to get you there. These DIY Light Fixtures are my favorite addition to the kitchen so far and today, I am going to show you how we made them work.
I love repurposed projects in the home. I think when you can take something that isn’t being used anymore and recreate it into something functional and pretty again, you can add so much character and charm to your home.
When I spotted these pieces at a yard sale for $1 each, I knew right away that they would be our DIY light fixtures in the kitchen.
We have a bar in our kitchen that has a faux beam above it. It is the perfect spot for a DIY light fixture. I thought it would be a great way to add some visual interest in our bland kitchen too. Since this post, we have painted our cabinets, added new countertops, changed out hardware, added a backsplash and so much more. See it all in the post HERE.
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*Side note: Looking at these before pictures of the kitchen makes me so happy that we took the plunge and gave this space a makeover. 😉
This project had a lot of steps so this post is going to be a little longer. I used to have it split up into two posts, but after giving my site a makeover, decided to put it all in one post so people searching for it had it all in one place.
Supplies Needed For These DIY Light Fixtures:
Amazing Galvanized Pieces For Fixtures (I don’t know what these are called, but you can find them in antique stores, yard sales and maybe online.)
Lamp Kit (Depending on what you are using for the fixture, will determine what you need for the kit. I linked many HERE.)
Electrical Wire (Hire a professional to do this part and tell you what you need.)
Plumbing Pipe and Flanges (Again, sizes and fittings you need will depend on what your needs are.)
I took step-by-step photos of how we made these work.
The first thing we did was drill a bigger hole in the center of the top of the fixtures so we could fit the lamp parts in them.
This is how we put the “fixture” part together.
Then, we put that fixture in the hole we drilled and secured it with a nut.
I wanted these fixtures to hang from the beam so we used the pipes and flanges to make that happen.
I didn’t want the pipes to be silver so I spray painted them black.
To fit the pipes on the top of the light fixtures, we set the spray painted flange on top of the fixture and used a black permanent marker to mark the holes we needed to drill. The fixture was full of holes but of course they didn’t match up perfectly for the flange.
We attached the flange with bolts and nuts.
Now that we had DIY light fixtures, we needed to figure out how to attach them to the beam in the kitchen.
I wanted the make the beam in our kitchen look more substantial and wood toned. So, we bought wood boards to cover the beam. Not only was this going to give me the wood look I wanted, but it also made it easier to hide the wiring for the DIY light fixtures.
We first stained the boards a dark color.
The wood was the easy part. Now, it was time for the electrical (hire a professional for this part). My dad is a professional so we had him help up with this. Since we have light switches by the bar, we were able to tie the wiring for the fixtures into those. Phew.
After a few holes added to the wall, we were ready to fish the wires through and start making this all come together.
Once we got the wires through, we nailed our stained boards to the sides of the beam.
Then, we secured the other flanges to the board that was going to be on the bottom.
After that, we attached all the wiring in the right places and fit the wires into the box we were creating around the beam.
Now, it was time to screw the galvanized pieces back on and then add more nails to the bottom board to make it flush.
Viola! We have custom, DIY light fixtures in our kitchen!
And, they even work! 🙂
This project alone made us decide to tackle the entire kitchen and give it a HUGE makeover. You can see the transformation HERE.
Do you like adding repurposed items to your home? What is your favorite piece?
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If you liked this DIY Light Fixtures post, check out the other ways we updated the kitchen ON A BUDGET!
DIY Tile Backsplash For Rookies
Do It Yourself Kitchen Makeover
Corbels For The Kitchen Island
Can’t wait to see the finished product! How cool!
Oh no you didn’t just leave us hanging (<– haha, pun intended!!). I can't wait to see Part 2
UHhh! I can’t wait to see the final result and I would love to know what yard sale items are as well. I want to make these for my kitchen too!!! Great idea!
Amy – it was really quite easy. They turned out so great. We love them!
I’m dying to see how this turns out!!! SO cool!
Thank you so much! We love them!
looks terrific- can’t wait to see how it turns out!
Ditto! The suspense is killing me!!
Are you kidding me? We have to WAIT?? Noooo!! I can’t WAIT to see how this turned out! haha LOVE it!!!
I just didn’t think it would be great as one long post so I decided to break it up. I have never done that before. They turned out so great and we love them so much!
Did you really just do that? LOL Can’t wait to see it all finished.
Yes I did that and they turned out so great! 🙂 We love them!
Those are gonna be so cool when they’re done! Can’t wait to see it.
Ohhhh … Can’t wait to see how they look installed! What a great project.
I have no idea what they originally were, but they are going to look so cool as lights. I’ll pop back in to see the finished project 🙂
Thanks so much Pam. They turned out so great and we love them so much!
They’re milk funnel strainers!
Yes! I found that out after the fact. I love them!
Milk strainers
I cant wait to see how they look hanging!
I can’t wait to see what these look like, totally digging the look. By the way I think we have the same cabinets even the color is the same.
I do not love the color of our cabinets, but they are good cabinets so I think I am going to paint them. I am so nervous about it. I need to really start looking at colors.
Hey I just wanted to drop in and tell you that these are milk strainers. 🙂 I have a few that I snagged from the barn to turn into light fixtures for my new laundry room. They look great in your kitchen!
Thank you so much for telling me what these are Amy! They would be great in a laundry room!
I absolutely ADORE these light fixtures that you made. I bought one of these strainers at Goodwill (I paid $5, so you got a real bargain!) and it took me a long time to find out what they actually were. Mine is still sitting in my collection of “treasures” waiting for me to do something with it.
I have a collection of “treasures” too just waiting for inspiration to hit!
This is awesome. I’m in the process of trying to make my own light and I was wondering what the round piece with the hole in it is called in the sixth picture down (the picture with your hand)? I can’t tell what it is from your picture of the lamp parts above. I’ve been looking for a piece like that and haven’t been able to find one because I’m not sure what it’s called or where to look. Thanks!
Look in the “gas” section of the home improvement store. I am not sure what they are called, but if I remember right, it is in the gas section and not electrical. If you take a picture in, the staff will be able to show you!
These were originally strainer baskets used on the to of a milk can. Cheese cloth went between the two “screens” and the milk was poured from the milking bucket into the strainer basket where it drained into the milk can. Very jealous of the price you paid. Great job on repurposing a piece of history.
Thank you for all the information! We still love them so much!
Your lights are adorable. I can help you out…they are large (probably industrial) flour sifter.
Enjoy!
🙂
Agree!