Let there be light – one Creative Director’s lesson in electricity and reduce, reuse, recycle

One chandelier... Four days... and it has to be made out of recycled water 7 bottles.... No problem. Okay, problem. After talking to Darren Q. in the electrical dept at a local home improvement store, it was clear that we had bit off way more than we could chew. His series of annoying, albeit it important questions didn't dampen my spirits. It wasn't important to know how I was going to hang it, or where I was going to get the power supply... the important thing was to first figure out how not to electrocute myself or anyone else in the process... then we would figure out how to hang it. The logistics looked something like this: the chandelier would need 8 to 10 light bulbs to put out any kind of light these bulbs would be provided 14 watt candle style bulbs so as to not be too hot (this comes into discussion a little bit later). After a series of "How are you going to..." questions, Darren Q helped me pick out the wiring, electrical connections, light receptacles, bulbs and few other needed details. I raced back to the office and sent out a memo that all P7 employees should drink up and save all the empty Project 7 water bottles. They had a week to provide me with my "raw" materials. Everyone did their part and delivered the recycled goods. In order to prep the bottles for their new illuminated roles, I cut both the bottom and top ends off of the bottle, creating a cylindrical tube of Project 7 goodness. After the first day, I had 10 bottles fitted with the sockets, wiring exposed and ready to be spliced together. And this is the point where I went a little mad. I had to figure out how to daisy chain all 20 wires together to eventually meet up with just two wires going to the power. This is math doesn't make sense. However, as many good things do, the answer came to me in a dream where an angelic Darren Q. provided me with the guidance... okay, maybe he told me while I was standing in front of him... all the while wondering why I wanted to build this crazy thing. Where was I? Oh yeah, I’ve got 10 bottles with 10 lights, all I need are a few empty bottles mixed in with it to give it a little more body (did I just say that?) I cut holes through the lids and ran the same size wire I had used for the lights electricity and ran them up in the same box where all of my electrical connections are and tied them off. See! Totally simple... did any body get that? Perhaps we need a drawn up plan... Everything had been prepped on Thursday for the unveiling of this marvelous light fixture that would no doubt light up the night in its recycled glory and super low wattage bulbs... Then, it all went wrong... I had plugged my electric baby to show off the stellar design and crafty wiring when my co-worker noticed the water bottles around the bulbs beginning to deform. They were quickly turning into Dali-esque figures, melting into oddly shaped forms of their previous selves. Unplugging the chandelier as fast as I could, we tried to save what was left, but alas, my glorious experiment into the light had sparked and then burned. Friday morning was back to the drawing board. It was back to my old friend Darren Q, to get some Yoda like guidance on electricity and how to not burn down your office... I told him my sob story of the melting bottles and he smirked as if he knew that would happen. And then, he brought a new answer to the table... the 4 watt bulb! Why he hadn't told me about this beauty four days prior I will never know... maybe he just wanted to ensure another meeting with me... who knows.  But needless to say, the 4 watt was the answer and I have the pictures to prove it! So boys and girls, what have we learned from Darren's (me not Q) recycled chandelier story? A) know what you are doing before playing with electricity... or at least have the fire department on speed dial. B) There are easier ways to build your own Chandelier. If you want to create a chandelier from scratch, you’ll need to purchase the central structure, or lamp, from a light store or hardware store, but make sure you know what you’re getting into.  Some home improvement stores feature chandelier kits where they provide you with the base and wiring supplies, (where was this for me? Not at my local hardware store... and we all know I'm one step short of MacGuyver...) These kits are a good starting point for making your distinctive piece. They are relatively inexpensive when compared to pre-made chandeliers. C) If your focus is to create a unique design or focal point for the room, but you don’t want to start from scratch, you can decorate an existing chandelier. Turn to antique stores or garage sales to find a chandelier that you can modify and decorate. This strategy allows you to work with an existing design, and focus more on the ornamentation and details of the lamp. Good luck! Going green isn’t always easy... But the payoffs are huge.

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