Light Conversation — Tools of the Trade

Putting together pieces for your crystal chandelier... 2

Have you spent hours trying to determine what you need to buy in order to put together a strand of crystals for your chandelier? 

Rather than you trying to purchase all the necessary little pieces in bulk and assembling something yourself, let us do the work.

You can send us a photo of exactly what you need.  This customer placed his crystal piece on a ruler, but he also gave us the dimension of each piece.  We were able to duplicate his crystal strand and his chandelier looks good as new.

How to measure the pins between the crystal?  Don't measure the "legs" (pieces that goes into the crystal), just simply measure the decorative part that shows between the crystals.  

It can be difficult to match some things exactly - the thickness of a piece of crystal may be slightly different, or the cut may vary a tiny bit.  But, we are experts! We will let you know if there are any differences and if we think it will be noticeable.  

email: crystal@chandelier.com.  

Tools of the Trade - Drying Racks 0

What is the best way to dry the crystal strands from your chandelier?

Admittedly, we were slow to catch on to this one, but our resident smart person, Brenda, finally thought to buy a laundry rack to dry those long strands from the larger chandeliers.  

Works like a charm!

Tools of the Trade - Cutting Pliers 0

When cutting pins out of chandelier crystals, the easiest tool to use is a pair of small cutting pliers.  The smaller the edges, the faster you can clip.  

These are available in the tool section of most hardware stores, but I find the smaller ones in jewelry making departments of hobby stores to be a bit easier to manipulate.  

-Nancy

Tools of the Trade - Needle Nose Pliers 0

We couldn't be crystal chandelier makers without these little guys!  If you want to tackle any crystal pinning or re-pinning project, you will need these pliers. And, they are great to have on hand for small bits of repair work.

The best ones have a medium length nose. If the nose is too long and slim, you will have difficulty manipulating harder pins.  If the nose isn't slim enough, you will be unable to grip the tiny pin heads. 

Here is my perfect pair of needle nose pliers:

These have a built-in cutting edge for cutting pins and handles that spring making for easy grip.   I personally like the soft covered handles, though others like the harder covered handles.  Around here, we tend to put our name on our favorite tools!

You can purchase these types of pliers in the tool section of most hardware stores. You can also find them in hobby stores in the jewelry making department.  

 Happy pinning!

-Nancy

Tools of the Trade - Colander 0

When cleaning a chandelier, what do you do with all of those little crystal parts that come from the chandelier? 

If you read our cleaning instructions, you will see us mention placing them in a colander - preferably a plastic one ... or two ... or three depending upon how many crystal pendants your chandelier holds. 

Because plastic is softer than metal and won't damage the crystal, we recommend plastic colanders.  They are relatively cheap and available. 

As you remove the crystal pendants from your chandelier, place them in the colander.  Don't fill it too full; you will get the best results with less than a third full. Sparingly, sprinkle your dish washing liquid (or whatever you want to use for cleaning your chandelier) over the crystals and place the colander directly under your water stream to rinse using hot water.  

Once the water runs clear, you can set your colander on a towel and begin wiping the crystals dry.  As you wipe each one, place it on the towel.  Once all are done, place a layer of paper towels into the bottom of the colander. This paper towel will keep the hooks from getting stuck in the holes. You can also layer your crystal with paper towels if you like. Place your pendants back into the colander and rehang them on your chandelier. 

Happy Cleaning!

Tools of the Trade - Roundnose Pliers 0

How do you get those little crystal pins between your chandelier crystals round?  With roundnose pliers!  We call these curling pliers because we use them primarily to make the pins curl around each other when connecting crystals together.  

These have smooth grippers with nothing to leave a mark, and the tips graduate for options on sizing your loops. These are the perfect tool for reworking or repairing any pinning between crystals or on your chandelier. 

If you can't find them in the tool section of your hardware store, you may be able to find them in the jewelry marking section of a craft or home store.