When I first looked into buying a chandelier I felt I needed to learn something about them as they seem to be from a differeny era. I don't like the ultra modern lighting that some people refer to as chandeliers (which I suppose if they hang from the ceiling they are!) I was after something tht looked a little bit older, more romantic, had charm and made a statement without being too overpowering. You know what I mean _ a bit of a showing off without being too ostentatious.

That was when I discovered the term "shabby chic chandeliers."

The term "Shabby Chic" is a relatively new term according to Wikepedia although the style has been around for a long time. When referring to shabby chic chandeliers the definition of shabby chic seems to have become a bit blurred.

The definition of shabby chic is:

"a furniture design based on either age which reflects wear and tear or modern furniture which has been scuffed and made to look like an antique. The "chic" part comes in because the resultant effect should be feminine. soft and minimalistic which is a way to differentiate it from the usual (or traditional) vintage."

For a chandelier to fit this definition it would need to be either an old chandelier with obvious signs of wear and tear or a new chandelier made to look old by means of creating an impression that it is well used. Go into any chandelier or lighting shop and ask to see their range of shabby chic chandeliers and the salesman will inevitably take you to a range of new products with old style fittings. These fittings could be in the form of the mountings being brass, cast iron or bronze with plastic or cloth shades imitating old French lace or similar. They do not necessarily look old.

A true shabby chic chandelier is something that is almost impossible to define.

Looking at the definition above you need to:

• Either choose an old chandelier which has signs of wear and tear or • Purchase a new item which you then scuff or change in such a way that it has the appearance of an antique.

This latter option is of course wonderful news because it gives on free license to create whatever you want without concern for devaluing the original chandelier. We humans are a funny lot and have this belief that we shouldn't damage anything. But who decides that altering something is in fact damaging it. The price of antiques is determined solely by the rarity of the item (in this case a chandelier) and the demand for that particular item. This value is set by collectors who prefer antiques to be in their original condition. But with shabby chic chandeliers we can choose to do as we like as far as the appearance of the chandelier goes. In fact we can change the look as often as we wish!

Shabby chic chandeliers are the perfect answer to those who would like something that looks old but don't want to compete with the antique collectors who are prepared to pay top dollar for chandeliers in their original condition. What this means is you can buy old and slightly (or even badly) damaged chandeliers and convert them into shabby chic chandeliers to suit your taste and your house décor. For those who don't have the time or the inclination to do their own thing go ahead and get your shabby chic chandeliers from a lighting shop – there really are no set rules as to what goes. Shabby chic chandeliers give us free license to decorate to our own tastes without the fear of not doing it "quite right". After all who can criticize a style that is based on personal taste?

Some of the modern chandeliers that are based on old designs, such as French chandeliers of Louis XIV's time (1638 -1715), are absoolutely stunning in their design and provide magnificent illumination. Regardless of the size of your room you should be able to find something that suits. The selection is endless with prices to suit all pockets.

You will find very few experts amongst your circle of friends and provided you keep things in perspective with relation to size there is very little that can go wrong when choosing a modern chandelier which are all, as far as my tastes are concerned, shabby chic chandeliers.

The term "shabby chic" really gives you free licence when selecting a chandelier and was probably invented by the retailers to encourage us to revisit (and buy) old style chandeliers which truly have a charm of their own. And why not? Some modern homes are plain boring and a chandelier is a very easy and impressive way to lift any room.

Certainly the interior decorators are having a field day with the new "shabby chic" catch phrase. Quite a chic name one might say!