DIY rattan pendant light

When I told my mom I was making a DIY rattan pendant light, she laughed. Not because she thought it was stupid..but because she grew up in the 70’s and thinks it’s hysterical that I spend my time looking for rattan chairs, macrame and crafting while I blast Fleetwood Mac. What can I say, I was born in the wrong decade,

I’ve thrifted and DIY’ed most of my house, other than things I can’t, like bedding and rugs. See..my loom is broken. Just kidding, I just really can’t make things out of fabric, I do not have the patience for that. Bless those who can!

So I just assumed lighting was up there with things I could not make. I mean, sure I can spray paint a light fixture and wrap some sisal rope around an existing lamp, but when it comes to pendant lighting, I decided I would just get my check book out (my credit card because it’s 2018 and I never even owned a check book) and just buy a light for my basement.

So there I go..Googling my life away like everyone else and these are the results I get when I search for a rattan pendant light.

The prices are not horrible, but I also could not find the type I really wanted. Discouraged, I just pushed it out of my head.

Later that day, Brian (the boyfriend/handyman/super human) and I went shopping, and I found this at Five Below. All it is is a basic pendant light with a wire frame, and as I was looking at it (and loving the $5 price) I decided I could make my own rattan pendant.

So I purchased it, brought it home and looked around for something to spark an idea. It wasn’t too long after I saw some baskets I purchased at the thrift store earlier that week. If you know nothing about me, you should know I have a basket addiction. I have more baskets in my house from thrift-stores than I have things to put in them. So sparing this basket wasn’t going to hurt anyone.

This basket was meant to be used for plants..or trash..i’m actually still not sure, but it has a plastic liner in it and plastic around the edge. Not only did that not look too great, but I didn’t want to create a fire hazard with melty plastic, so I carefully cut it out.

I was left with a basket that was pretty pliable, fit perfectly over my existing light fixture from Five Below, so I simple pushed the weaving apart on the bottom of the basket and stuck the cord through it. 

If you have a thicker basket, you may have to cut it a bit. I didn’t have to – I don’t suggest using anything too heavy either. This basket weighed about the weight of a Jolly Rancher (that is literally the first thing that popped into my head, so we are going with it.)

Here we go! My adorable DIY rattan pendant. 

All in all this cost me a whopping  $5.50. The interior structure of the pendant was $5 and the basket from the thrift store was $0.50.

You literally can’t beat it! I hung this little guy up with a single screw in hook above my reading chair in my basement family room, and it surprised me. It casted the most amazing light through the basket, and it really looks magical in the evening!

What do you think? Tell me your thoughts in the comments below!