How to Turn a Vintage Cage Light Into a Lantern
Hi everyone! I hope your week is going well. I’m still dealing with some troubles related to my Blogger to WordPress transfer, but I’m staying calm! I’m trying to be patient and learn as I go, just like I did two years ago when I started out blogging on Blogger. In between figuring things out, I take lots of breaks–for household tasks, of course, and taxiing children here and there, and for creating something, whether it’s crafty, arty, or DIY, it’s a wonderful release from the tensions of the world. Don’t you think? Today I’m going to show you my how to turn a vintage cage light into a lantern.
It turned out even better than I expected.
Do you remember this rusty, crud-covered piece from yesterday, when I shared my vintage finds? )It came from the box-of-amazing-wonders.) Anyway, I noticed recently someone turning a light cage like this into a sweet little bird cage. But as I examined mine, I thought I’d like to upcycle it into a small lantern.
I gave it a good scrub-down with some hot water and a wire brush to remove some of the rust and corrosion. It cleaned-up pretty good.
Next I rubbed it down with a light coat of mineral oil, which gives the metal a bit of a glow.
The oil makes a subtle difference in the photos, but a much greater one in real life.
Next, I cut a small circle out of tin to insert into the bottom of my “lantern,” where the tea light candle will sit.
Not the greatest picture, but can you see the piece of tin? There are ridges inside the cage, and the tin sits in there nicely.
Insert your tea light and you’re ready to rock and roll.
It creates a lovely ambiance, due in part to the red rust still adhered to the inside of the cage. Who knew?!
Wouldn’t a few of these down the center of a table look terrific?
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What a gorgeous find! I LOVE it!!!
Thanks Julia!
Just awesome Diana. So pretty with the candle lit. Very unique and beautiful.
Kris
Thanks so much for the encouragement, Kris 🙂
Diana, what a great use of a unique find. It cleaned up so beautifully and makes a lovely tea light holder. sb
Thanks Sharon!!
I knew when I first saw this that you had a great idea for it! It’s fabulous, I hope you are keeping it!
You have so much faith in me! Thanks 🙂 Yes, I’m keeping it, for now…
Oh, it’s beautiful! The use of mineral oil reminded me of a funny (at least it’s funny now) story:
We had a 225 pound St. Bernard some years back. Our first dog as a couple, a beautiful critter. Anxious to see him in heaven. Anyway, his name was Bruno, and he lived inside the house. I had to vacuum every day — all that white and brown hair he shed could have made a jacket. Or two. Bruno had a tummy problem at one time, and the vet recommended mineral oil. Intestinal lubricant as the bottle in your photo says. We dosed him. We left the house for a couple of hours. We came back to — well, you can imagine — a few big surprises in the house! Thanks for the memory today. By the way, that awesome dog lived to be eleven years old. And without further tummy problems!
Oh my! I’m sure not funny at the time–poor puppy. I never noticed that on the label 🙂 Had no idea…Love your visits Mary Ann. Hope the rest of your week is blessed 🙂
I seldom think to myself – oh, I would arm wrestle her at a sale for that, but I did when I read about this fabulous find!! I adore it and you are so lucky to have found it!
LOL Glad you like it 🙂 Hope you find one soon…
Love this project Diana. Very rustic and oh so pretty.
Thanks Tuula!
O.M.G. I am so in love with this project! I always check garages and shops at estate sales so I’ll definitely be on the look out for one of these now!
Tania
I’m so glad, Tania!! I hope you find some soon 🙂
Oh my goodness- I LOVE your light cage lantern! What a creative re-purpose!! Thank you so much for the inspiration!!
I’m so glad you like it!! Thanks for your encouragement 🙂
Diana, love seeing what you did with this junk treasure. I absolutely love it!! Thanks for sharing with SYC.
hugs,
Jann
Thanks Jann–so glad you like it 🙂
Hi Diana, this turned out so wonderful! your photos are amazing too. I’m captivated by this lantern, since my last name is Oliver. love the tea light you used inside. I loved the comment about the big pup with his Mineral Oil dosing! ha ha! I’ll be featuring your post on Share Your Style this week, thanks for joining in!
So glad you liked it Debra!! Mary Ann is a real animal lover and she always has a story to tell. Thanks so much for featuring my little lantern on Share Your Style–you made my day 🙂
Very creative. Your candle lantern looks great.
Thanks AnnMarie!
I love this idea, Diana. Very clever and creative! Thank you so much for sharing at Vintage Inspiration Party. Sharing on my FB page this morning too.
Thanks Betsy–that means so much coming from a consummate upcycler like yourself 🙂 Thanks for the shout out on fb too 🙂
I love this light Diana – love the ambiance it has with the candle lit. Great transformation. Thank you for sharing at Share It One More Time. Cathy
Thanks for the encouragement, Cathy! I appreciate you and your link party 🙂
I also loved your lamp, but had another thought, it could also be a good terrarium too, this may not appeal, but at present I am doing terrariums for my daughters and something unusual is great.
I was waiting to see where this project was going; I’m afraid I woulda painted it black before thinking! It came out beautifully…from what looked like a piece of corroded junk! That golden orange glow is so pretty!