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Yale Calhoun College chandelier restored; project moves forward

2008-11-21T19:45:43Z

One of the medium sized chandeliers from the Yale Calhoun College project has been completed. The fixture's components were stripped from the frame and then refinished to their original patina. Then, the crystal prisms were individually cleaned and re-pinned, and the fixture was reassembled and rewired and tested in accordance with UL standards.

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Below you can see the chandelier when it was disassembled and still in progress:

Currently, Grand Light's restoration team is in the process of buffing, polishing, and lacquering the components of a glass bowl shaped pendant and another mid-sized chandelier. The fixtures, once blackened from decades of oxidation, have begun to see their brilliant shine return once more.

In the coming week, Grand Light will begin the restoration of a large number of wall sconces as well as the completion of some of the remaining outdoor fixtures. The restoration team has already finished many of the outdoor wall sconces, lanterns, and hanging pendants.

To read more about this project, please view our previous posts:

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About Grand Light:

Grand Light has restored, replicated and manufactured custom lighting fixtures at every scale, including various projects at Yale University, antique pieces from the Lincoln Square Theater in Decatur, IL., The Otesaga Resort and Hotel in Cooperstown, NY., The Shubert Theater in New Haven, CT., and other prestigious projects nation wide.

Grand Light, located at 580 Grand Avenue, New Haven, Conn., has been serving the interior and exterior lighting needs of homeowners and professionals for over 70 years.

Call 1-800-922-1469 or email info@lightrestoration.com to discuss your restoration or custom lighting needs with a member of our team.

Yale Calhoun College Lighting Restoration Progresses

2008-11-17T15:41:59Z

Steady progress is being made on the restoration of a wide variety of lighting fixtures from Yale Calhoun College. The fixtures, ranging from outdoor lanterns to wall sconces to large chandeliers, and are made from a variety of materials including brass, copper, and iron.

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Some fixtures required a complete restoration, while others only needed to be cleaned and rewired. There were several instances where new parts such as doors, knobs, and latches needed to be fabricated in order to make the fixtures functional. Many of the fixtures had damaged glass panels that needed to be repaired.

Below are some examples of the restored lighting fixtures, pictured alongside in their previous state:

As the restoration of each fixture is completed, they are thoroughly inspected and tested to ensure structural integrity, historical accuracy, and compliance with UL standards. At this point as the project quickly approaches the halfway mark, Grand Light anticipates that all remaining fixtures will be restored and ready ahead of schedule.

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About New Grand Light, LLC:

Grand Light, located at 580 Grand Avenue, New Haven, Conn., has been serving the interior and exterior lighting needs of homeowners and professionals for over 70 years.

Call 1-800-922-1469 or email info@lightrestoration.com to discuss your restoration or custom lighting needs with a member of our team.

Raw Prototype of Custom Lantern & Pedestal Completed

2008-11-15T16:55:41Z

The fabrication of a custom designed candle lantern and matching pedestal has been completed. The raw prototypes were constructed using 24 gauge copper, and are scheduled to be given a bronze finish this coming Monday.

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These are the first of several custom lanterns and pedestals that will be fabricated for the client. The fixtures will eventually be installed alongside an in-ground pool of a 14th floor apartment in Palm Beach, Florida.

Grand Light has created custom lighting fixtures of every style and for every application. Our team of specialists is comprised of professional metal workers and glass blowers whose mission is to create or re-create lighting fixtures of the utmost quality and authenticity.

We can create professional diagrams and sketches for your custom lighting project, ensuring the accuracy of your fixture's design. Our lighting fixtures are all in accordance with Underwriters Laboratories standards, and our custom lighting team stands confidently behind their work with years of experience and dedication to quality craftsmanship.

Call us today at 1-800-922-1469 or send us an email at info@lightrestoration.com to discuss your custom lighting needs.

To view the previous posts about these custom lanterns, click the link below:

Sketches Drawn for Custom Candle Lanterns & Matching Pedestals

Restoration of Auditorium Chandeliers Completed for Washington Irving Intermediate School

2008-11-07T17:50:00Z

Grand Light's restoration team recently completed the restoration of ten gothic-style chandeliers for the auditorium of the Washington Irving Intermediate School, located in Tarrytown, New York.

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Tarrytown, New York (November 07, 2008) - Grand Light, a Connecticut based lighting and design company, has announced the completion of a restoration and custom lighting project for Washington Irving Intermediate School in Tarrytown, New York.

Washington Irving Intermediate and the other Public Schools of the Tarrytowns are currently undergoing a major renovation which involves the restoration of a second grade building, larger classrooms, expanding the library, a new art room, renovated music rooms, a new nurse station and renovations of the existing offices.

Grand Light's task involved the complete restoration of ten Gothic-style chandeliers and the fabrication of ten custom exit sign plates, each of which were recently reinstalled in the auditorium of the school.

The chandeliers consisted of one-hundred-and-twenty individual components that needed to be dissembled, stripped, buffed, and then refinished in antique brass. The process was moving ahead swiftly until it became apparent that the antique glass would be more difficult to remove than initially thought.

"The Washington Irving project was an interesting one for us," said Ryan Stockman, who reflected on the setback. "We originally believed that the eighty glass panels in these fixtures were held into the frame by the interior strapping. But once we removed the strapping, we discovered that the panels were held in with an epoxy making the removal of this irreplaceable glass the most challenging piece of the project."

While all of the panels were removed without error, several of them were still in need of repair. Three of the panels only had minor cracks and were invisibly restored utilizing an UV curing process. A fourth needed to be replicated, and after considerable research, was slumped from a salvaged antique glass window.

In addition to the restoration services, Grand Light manufactured ten custom brass-plated exit signs. The plates featured Calisto MT font with a red translucent glass, and were given an antique brass finish to match the ten restored chandeliers.

With all of the fixtures complete and a great deal of time and effort invested, it was crucial that the chandeliers would travel across state lines without harm. To ensure this, Grand Light built custom crates which guaranteed safe shipment back to Washington Irving School. The fixtures arrived safely, ahead of schedule, and were installed. All of the project participants were extremely delighted with how the restoration and custom exit plates came out.

"All of us here at Grand Light played a major role in the success of this project and we look forward to our next challenge." said Stockman.

Those interested in finding more information about this project including pictures can visit Grand Light's website at http://www.lightrestoration.com.

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About New Grand Light, LLC:

Grand Light, located at 580 Grand Avenue, New Haven, Conn., has been serving the interior and exterior lighting needs of homeowners and professionals for over 70 years.

Contact:

Ryan Stockman
info@lightrestoration.com
http://www.lightrestoration.com
PH: 1-800-922-1469
580 Grand Ave.
New Haven, CT 06511
USA

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Sketches Drawn for Custom Candle Lanterns & Matching Pedestals

2008-10-28T13:58:25Z

Grand Light has been given approval to begin fabricating custom candle lanterns and two different variations of matching pedestals for a client in Palm Beach, Florida. The custom lanterns and matching pedestals will go alongside the in-ground pool of a 14th floor apartment.

The custom lanterns are modifications of an existing lantern the client came across, which can be seen in the picture below.

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The lanterns will be manufactured with 24 gauge copper, and will be given a bronze finish. They will feature clear glass panels, and a removable candle tray holder.

Drawings were made for the lantern as well as the two different pedestals, one of which will be square and the other rectangular.

We can create professional diagrams and sketches for your custom lighting project, ensuring the accuracy of your fixture's design. Our lighting fixtures are all Underwriters Laboratories listed, and our custom lighting team stands confidently behind their work with years of experience and dedication to quality craftsmanship.

Call us today at 1-800-922-1469 or email us at info@lightrestoration.com to discuss your custom lighting needs.

Restoration Completed for Brady Memorial Lab Chandelier & Sconces

2008-10-16T15:59:09Z

Grand Light recently completed the restoration of a green chandelier and 4 matching wall sconces for Yale's Brady Memorial Lab. This is the most recent restoration of a number of projects Grand Light has done for Yale University over the past several years.]]> The Brady Memorial Laboratory, erected as an extension to the Yale School of Medicine's facilities, is named after Anthony N. Brady. Funded by Brady's sons, James and Nicholas, the building was designed by architects H. Kent Day and Charles Klauder.

Much like the other buildings on the historic campus, the laboratory was designed in the Georgian Revival style, as were other academic buildings designed by the architecture firm. Most famous for their work on the east coast, most notably the Cathedral of Learning at the University of Pittsburgh, the renaissance inspired classical symmetry that Day & Klauder brought to Yale fit in perfectly with the Gothic-Revival style of existing architecture.

Grand Light's restoration team was given the project of refurbishing an antique chandelier and matching set of wall sconces that would be reinstalled in the main entrance way to the building. The fixtures had unfortunately not been cared for, and came into Grand Lights' workshop dusty, dented and paint splattered.

In addition to cleaning, repairing and refurbishing the exteriors of the chandelier and wall sconces, Grand Light also performed repairs to both the structural and functional components of the fixtures.

For the chandelier, Grand Light's team repaired the pin sockets and wiring leads, the lamps, and installed a new ballast. The polychromatic green and gold baked enamel paint was also stripped the recreated by hand, with hand stenciling to replicate the original.

The refurbishment of the wall sconces included re-wiring, installation of new ballasts, paint re-touching, structural repair and the replacement of several damaged bobeshes.

To discuss your restoration or custom lighting needs with Grand Light, send us an email, call us at 800-922-1469, or send us a message using our contact form.

To view the previous posts on the restoration of these sconces and matching chandelier, check out the links below:

Grand Light Restores Crystal Chandelier for Private Residence

2008-10-14T17:18:00Z

Recently, Grand Light's team received a crystal chandelier from a private residence that was in need of restoration. This particular crystal chandelier is a family heirloom that belonged to our client's grandmother and she wanted it brought back to the original condition of when it hung in the families' dining room. ]]>

This picture shows the crystal chandelier in it's original state as it hung in the dining room of our client's home. Our task was to bring it back to life and in order to do so, the restoration team had to clean and polish the crystal, fabricate any missing pieces, rewire the components to current UL standards, and repair or replace any of the brass parts.

As you can see in the images below, the restoration team had their work cut out for them.

However daunting the task seemed, the restoration team went right through every little piece of the fixture and in a quick pace, the fixture started to come back to life.

The brass canopy and parts developed a luster that hasn't been present since the chandelier was originally hung and the crystals seemed to radiate and shimmer, creating an image of internal prisms.

Only a few short days later, the one-of-a-kind antique crystal chandelier was completed, much to the satisfaction of the restoration team and our client.

As happy as we at Grand Light were to see this chandelier finished and packed our restoration facilities had seemed to have lost a certain feeling of warmth that this one-of-a-kind provided. However, we know that the feeling and emotion that was enjoyed in our restoration facilities will be even more meaningful to our customer and we are happy knowing that our services helped provide this.

Grand Light Begins Restoration of Yale University Calhoun College Light Fixtures

2008-10-13T14:33:39Z

Starting in 2008, Yale University has announced that it will begin commencement of a full-scale renovation to their Calhoun College. Due to the work previously done for Yale University and the high level of satisfaction with their restoration of fixtures including the Marquand Chapel chandeliers, Dwight Hall fixtures, and the Divinity School chandelier, Yale has called in the experts at Grand Light to begin the extensive restoration to their light fixtures for Calhoun College.]]>
Restoration work has been started by our highly talented and skilled team of experts who are truly excited to begin another project for Yale University. Each light fixture will be restored to its original state and will be cleaned, re-lamped, and wired in accordance with UL standards. If a fixture is unable to be restored, it will be replicated in order to pay homage to the original.

Below are photographs of the original light fixtures as they were removed from the campus and brought to our restoration facilities. As the restoration work progresses, more details and images will be posted.

As seen from the photo above, the condition of this wall sconce reflected the overall condition of the fixtures that are to be restored.

This antique outdoor lantern reflects its age and general wear and tear from exposure to the rapid changing New England weather that is experienced at Yale University's Calhoun College in New Haven, Connecticut.

Restored Washington Irving Chandeliers are Prepared for Pickup

2008-09-24T15:50:55Z

All ten chandeliers from the Washington Irving Intermediate School have now undergone a complete restoration and are ready to be transported back to Tarrytown, NY, one full week ahead of schedule.

]]> Grand Light's restoration team had disassembled each of the ten chandeliers into 120 individual components per chandelier, then stripped, buffed and refinished each piece in antique brass. After coming back from the metal workshop, the components were reassembled, rewired and tested. The chandeliers were then inspected any signs of structural damage and weakness and given approval to be sent back for installation.

To ensure safe travel from our Connecticut-based restoration facility to Tarrytown, NY, custom wooden crates were manufactured for each of the ten chandeliers.

A fully restored chandelier being prepared for shipment.

Several of the restored Chandeliers

A closer view of the custom crates

More of the fully restored chandeliers

Washington Irving Intermediate School along with the other Public Schools of the Tarrytowns are currently undergoing a major renovation including a renovated 2nd grade building, larger classrooms, expanding the library, a new art room, renovated music rooms, a new nurses station and renovations of the existing offices.

Grand Light was given the task to restore several fixtures from the schools' auditorium, including the full restoration of these ten chandeliers as well as manufacturing a custom-made exit sign.

To view the previous posts on the restoration of these chandeliers, check out these previous posts:

Washington Irving Chandeliers Nearing Completion

2008-09-05T21:23:44Z

Following the approval of the prototype chandelier restoration, Grand Light's restoration team is nearing completion of the remaining nine fixtures from the auditorium at Washington Irving Intermediate School and is preparing to ship them back to Tarrytown, NY.

]]> After our prototype had been approved by the client, the remaining nine fixtures were disassembled down to individual pieces. We then inspected each component for any signs of structural damage and weakness and made any repairs necessary before we began to refinish the components for the remaining nine chandeliers.

Although all ten fixtures underwent a complete restoration, Grand Light's team actually worked ahead of schedule and is expecting to ship the antique's earlier than initially thought.

The individual components of the chandelier prior to being stripped & refinished.

Finished components being staged for final assembly in our workshop. They are undergoing final inspection before the chandeliers begin to be re-assembled.

Another photo of the antique brass chandelier components. These components are the upper half of the chandelier, as well as the bottom finials and cast pieces which screw into the light socket sleves.

Brass bells which house the light sockets.

To view the previous posts on the restoration of these chandeliers, check out these previous posts:

First of Ten Washington Irving Chandeliers Completed

2008-09-05T18:21:45Z

For the past several weeks, Grand Light's restoration experts have been working on the prototype chandelier for Washington Irving Intermediate School in Tarrytown, NY. After disassembling the one fixture, which had one hundred and twenty components, the structure of the chandelier was inspected and repaired as needed. ]]>
After coming back from the metal workshop, the hundred and twenty pieces were reassembled, rewired and tested. With the prototype completed, the client reviewed and approved the final product.

With nine more fixtures to restore, each with one hundred and twenty components, the restoration team is now continuing their work in a production line fashion and their progress is on schedule.

Here are some images of the fully restored prototype:

The pieces after being refinished, and prior to final assembly.

More of the refinished components, including the two major structural pieces and glass.

A closer view of one of the glass pieces.

The completed chandelier as it undergoes final testing.

To view the previous posts on the restoration of these chandeliers, check out these previous posts:

Washington Irving Chandelier Restoration Progress

2008-08-19T23:31:55Z

The first of several chandeliers being restored for Washington Irving Intermediate School in Tarrytown, New York has progressed according to schedule, and the piece is now nearing the finishing stages of the restoration.

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Below are some recent photographs taken from our workshop, where the team has completed work on the structural components, stripped and refinished the metal components with the identically matched antique brass. At this point, the prototype is now ready to be lacquered and reassembled.

The two bands to the left and center component to right have been refinished in antique brass, ready to be lacquered like the component in the bottom right corner. The two pieces above are an example of what the stripped un-finished "raw" metal looked like.

Above are more stripped, unfinished components.

The frame which holds the arms of the chandelier, stripped and cleaned, awaiting refinishing.

More stripped and cleaned components to be refinished, including several chandelier arms.

The stem of the chandelier, stripped and cleaned.

To view the pieces prior to Grand Light's restoration, check out this previous post:

Washington Irving Intermediate School's Light Restoration Begins

Brady Memorial Lab Project Ready for Final Assembly

2008-07-31T22:54:20Z

The pieces of the wall sconces and chandelier from Yale Medical School's Brady Memorial Lab have been refinished, polished and wired, and the completed work is undergoing final inspections.
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Scheduled to leave our shop within the next week, be sure to check back soon for images of the installation and completed project.

To view images of the pieces prior to finishing, check out previous posts on the project:

Washington Irving Intermediate School's Light Restoration Begins

2008-07-30T22:44:39Z

As part of a massive renovation of Washington Irving Intermediate School in Tarrytown, NY., Grand Light has been called in to restore a series of ten chandeliers and to design and fabricate ten custom exit signs for the schools' auditorium. ]]>
The team is excited to be working on the pieces, and as work progresses we'll be posting more images and detailing the restoration process.

In the mean time, here are some images of one of our concept sketches of the exit signs, and of the chandeliers as they hung prior to being uninstalled and shipped to our New Haven workshop.

One of the ten chandeliers in the set. Note the broken glass and dulled finish.

The concept sketch for the ten custom exit signs that will be used in the same
auditorium as the chandeliers.

Brady Memorial Lab Chandelier Restoration in Final Stages

2008-07-29T22:41:21Z

Summer is restoration season, and the work shop at Grand Light has been bustling with activity as we're working on numerous restoration jobs simultaneously.

One project we've been working on is the restoration of an antique chandelier with four matching wall sconces for Yale Medical Schools' Brady Memorial Lab.
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The following pictures show the pieces prior to their final assembly and painting.

Be sure to check back soon to see more pictures of the finalized pieces, which will be posted in the lighting restoration section of lightrestoration.com in the upcoming weeks.

To view the pieces prior to Grand Light's restoration, check out our previous post:

Brady Memorial Lab Chandelier Restoration