I have a mystery light in my backyard. It's been there since we moved in. There is no switch to turn it on or off, just a light sensor that makes it work. That means it comes on on at dusk, but also on dark rainy days. The only good thing about it is that it lights the backyard at night, so until I decide to spend a chunk of money on some new outdoor lighting, it's staying right where it is. Did I mention that it's ugly? Parking lot ugly.
See what I mean? I especially like the way the dirt dauber nests show up at night...
One of these days I'll replace it, but until then, it's time to work a little magic. I had a bunch of English ivy that was taking over one of my trees, so I pulled it down and decided it would be perfect for this project. I also had 2 metal rings that have been hanging around, waiting to discover their true purpose. One is from an old wagon wheel that fell apart, the other is from a wine barrel. They were cool looking, so I just never threw them away, knowing I would find a use for them some day. Today is that day. The only thing I needed to buy was some wire.
I started by attaching the small ring to the top of the fixture. I made sure that it didn't interfere with the sensor since that is what makes the light work.
Next, I attached the larger ring so that it hung just below the base of the light shade.
Using the wire, I made a form. Remember this is rustic so perfection is not necessary. This form is going to be covered with vines.
The next step was to strip the leaves off of the vines.
Now it's time to start weaving in the vines. The hardest part of this for me ws doing it 12 feet in the air.
Just keep weaving. The light will still be partially visible, but it will look so much better.
Cute right? It's still plenty bright at night too. I think it looks like a bird's nest.
WARNING!!!
Do not attempt this if your light gets hot. A cute light is not worth catching your house on fire. I went out at night and touched the fixture to make sure it wasn't hot. This has a plastic shade so it doesn't get as hot as glass would. If your fixture does get hot, you could use wire instead of vines, but it would take a lot more wire to cover the shade.
I'll keep you posted...
Lynn
