Top 10 Designer Tips

4. Alexa Hampton

Do the math
“Chandeliers are famously tricky for people to figure out because they’re hanging in the middle of the room with no points of reference against which to gauge for size. A great rule of thumb that I learned years ago is to take the width of the room in feet, double the number, convert it to inches, and that is the minimum dimension for your chandelier’s diameter. I say minimum because it can always be fun to oversize a chandelier, but one should never have it look dinky. Finally, for utility’s sake, make certain that a chandelier never hangs too low over a dining room table. Always keep in mind that you want to look at your dinner companions, whether they’re family or guests.”