Yesterday I shared an unexpected Pinterest moment- with two electricians installing a new light fixture in my kitchen. I know it sounds odd, but it was fun.
I’ve had a new light fixture for my kitchen sitting in the garage for at least 6 months – putting off installation because a) I didn’t want to take time off for an electrician to come and b) hire a contractor to patch the ceiling afterwards
Well, I finally bit the bullet this week.
When the electricians started the installation, I had an idea {light bulb moment if you will}. Instead of paying the contractor to patch the ceiling, I could cover the gap with some sort of object. I’ve seen “medallions” at Home Depot, but that’s not really my style. I needed something thin but large enough to cover the hole – like a book cover!
When I told them my idea, the electricians gave me a funny look… but when I came back with some glue, I noticed both of them snapping pics with their phones. They looked a little embarrassed until I grabbed my phone and took some too. Then they didn’t bother hiding their excitement about the unique challenge. They just kept saying back and forth, “Yeah, I think this could work.” (nodding) It made me laugh when one of them said, “My girlfriend will just kill me if I don’t take photos of this. She has me doing Pinterest projects just about every weekend.” {atta girl}
First, I removed the cover from an old book (it was coming apart anyway), then I glued it to some scrap cardboard and trimmed the excess away with scissors.
One of the guys used a utility knife to cut the shape of the electrical box out of the middle (so it would be flush with the ceiling). When hanging the fixture, they positioned the book to cover the gap and it was perfect! In fact, I think the blue/gray color of the cover beautifully matched the finish of the fixture – success!
Looks like a little creativity and resourcefulness saved me over $100 on patching the ceiling, gave the fixture a unique look AND it was really fun! As a bonus, the electricians gave me a 10% discount on their labor cost (because I think they rather enjoyed the project too).
What do you think? Have you ever used anything unconventional to solve a problem in your decor?
