Wrought Iron Chandelier

A wrought iron chandelier is a wonderfully affordable alternative to a traditional glass or crystal chandelier. They are best suited for rustic style applications such as in southwest adobe themed structures or western distressed wood plank interiors. Log cabins are another great placement for this type of artistic lighting. It would seem there are very few design motifs where one of these highly artistic and decorative lighting alternatives can’t fit in perfectly.

Although the average person might think of wrought iron chandeliers as a ceiling bound manifestation of the traditional wrought iron fence work you see in gates, fences and sometimes furniture, the choices afforded by these types of lighting fixtures are actually quite broad. There are a number of different themes within this family of lighting fixtures; Mexican, western, southwestern, vintage, modern, even Victorian and deco.

Lighting treatments are seemingly limited only by the creativity of the designer. The most common style is Mexican which has a number of different sub types. The basic Mexican style is a very traditional scroll motif. The scrolls are usually mandrel bent out of square, flat or round stock bars into shapes which resemble the letter “S”. More often than not, these scrolls radiate out from a small central ring on the top of the structure.

These then reach down and out to form the struts of a wheel shape, attaching to a larger flat stock ring which forms the main hoop section of the chandelier. From this main outer ring, the upright sections which hold the individual lamps are attached. Older versions of this style commonly held candles. A western take on this is built around a horizontally suspended wagon wheel. It is then adorned with a combination of wrought scrolls or welded horse shoes.

Sometimes sheets of metal with western themed silhouette cut outs, such as a star, a cowboy on a bucking bronco, a coyote, or wolf howling at the moon can be used. Any number of western items can be incorporated; spurs, horse bits, branding iron shapes, twisted wire lassos, there is no limit to the amount of detail which can go into these. Victorian and deco styles tend to be less rustic; wispier and flowery types of scroll work.

They are more likely to have round stock due to its smooth curves and textures. Often some forged leaves or flower shapes will be stamped or forged and hammered out into shape. The finishes will vary from style to style. The Victorian and deco finishes will usually be quite smooth and sometimes even colorful. Hammer coat finish is not uncommon and tends to look like a slick gunmetal grey with a slightly dimpled texture.

The Mexican and wrought iron chandeliers western versions will usually be just the black unfinished “after forge” look or painted flat black. Occasionally they will be wire brushed and polished to a gunmetal grey tone and then sprayed with a clear coat of finish to ward off oxidation. The more rustic black versions are quite often textured with hammer marks along the edges, whereas the clear coat pieces are more often than not left smooth.

The glassworks for these pieces tend to reflect the style of the iron work they are incorporated into. Mexican and western style glasswork are traditionally a clear or milky white oil lantern shaped glass, very similar to vintage western style glass oil burning lanterns. The top section of these lanterns, with its wide globular shaped base and narrow vase shaped top, seem to be the most common glasswork.

The Victorian and deco glassworks are usually some form of representation of a flower or leaves or both. Mexican and western styles will sometimes use these shapes as well but they are more likely utilized in more modern and delicate styles or lighting. Vintage iron works were more similar to each other, due to traditions within the craft of the blacksmithing tradesmen who used to be the main manufacturers.

Modern styles have seemingly no limits to the variety of details which can be combined to create more and more unique variations on the theme of these truly time honored additions to households and businesses around the world. Ultimately, a wrought iron chandelier can come in a myriad of shapes, sizes and styles.