I ordered a 21-inch plaster ceiling medallion for the foyer. The already installed light fixture and its 9.75-inch metal medallion felt too small for the space. Apparently, there is a formula to determine the correct size for a room — the square footage of the room divided by seven. The result is the diameter (in inches) of the minimum size of the medallion. For us, that number is around 14 inches. Since our foyer is not clearly defined by four walls and flows directly into a hallway and staircase, I decided to make it larger to fit the perceived square footage. I also decided to move the light fixture from our bedroom to the foyer, since we will want a ceiling fan at some point.
It took about two weeks to receive the medallion. It was packaged well and arrived safely. I installed it using three screws drilled into the ceiling studs and was very happy until I realized the cutout was too small to connect the light fixture. Fine. I put it up once, so I can just take it down, get everything wired and put it back up.
The problem with old houses is nothing is standardized. The light fixture threading for the light in our room was not the same size as the one from the foyer. I had to move the hanging bracket, threaded rod, and all screws to make it work. Ah, but now there is a new problem: the threaded rod and lamp’s electrical wiring weren’t long enough to compensate for the depth of the medallion. Are you kidding me? It is only 1.5 inches thick. How can that make a huge difference? Fine. I ordered a longer threaded rod (several sizes, in fact, so there would be no question of having the right one) and a spool of lamp wire.
After completely rewiring and changing out the mounting hardware, I was ready to reinstall the plaster medallion. The screws went in easy peasy. I climbed down from the ladder to admire my handiwork and noticed I had accidentally rotated the medallion so it was no longer lined up correctly. As you can see in the photo above, it is not completely circular. There are pointy bits and curvy bits. The first time I installed it the pointy bits directed visitors deeper into the house. Now, the medallion was obviously misaligned and unwelcoming. Fine! I put it it up twice, so I can take it down, rotate it and put it back up.
Nope. The third time was not the charm. I got one screw in, reached down to get the next, and heard a loud snap. Then I heard myself yell as several pieces hit the floor.
Could I piece them together? Nope. The edges of the pieces crumbled during impact, leaving large gaps in the mosaic I created.
I went online to order a replacement and the vendor had increased the price by 30%! I sent him a message explaining what happened and asked if he would sell me a replacement for the same price I had recently paid. He was kind enough to do so.
Another two-week wait, double the expected budget, and this project is finally complete:
