Kitchen Table Lighting Redo

I love Craigslist - now, I know all kinds of creepy stuff happens with Craigslist, but that is what husbands are for my sweet husband always offers to team up on all my awesome finds! He has driven all over the Houston area and surrounding cities picking up little treasures for me. I definitely don't recommend going alone, no matter how good the deal is (I often have to remind myself of this!).

SO...there was a HORRIBLE dated light fixture in our breakfast area in the kitchen - this picture actually makes it look almost decent, but trust me, it wasn't. Bright gold (circa 1980s, it's a given) with flat glass panes.

I want to do a chandelier for the kitchen lighting (oh so glamorous - but I will probably need Ben's approval :) ), so I needed to find a piece that could compliment it. Hmmm where could I find inspiration that incorporates chandeliers and the rustic them I am going for...? Ya, ya, ya, I know - Restoration Hardware obsessed. So of course we are on a budget, so I scoured Craigslist for something I could revamp. i forgot to take a before picture because I was so excited I had the spray paint can ready for action as soon as Ben brought the light home! $30... boom!

It was a 5 pendant light (see below pic), and it was a bright shiny brushed nickel. It also had some frosted glass coverings that looked a bit "commercial"... but not in the good way.

We unscrewed all of the frosted glass coverings from each of the pendants, and I spray painted it dark brown and let it dry. I then went back with black acrylic paint and a wide  paint brush and dry brushed the black over the chocolate brown so it has a dark distressed look . I wanted the metal for both this fixture and the chandelier to match, so I figured painting by hand would best achieve this effect.

This is my inspiration and then my final outcome (please, everyone, pretend like you do not see the vertical blinds... I haven't gotten around to changing the window treatments :)).

I can't wait to show the whole table with the light above! We have been building away, and our table is freaking awesome!!