I did it!

Remember this January post? Well I finally did it! I repainted my dining room and installed a new lighting fixture without electrocuting myself or my spouse. I'm very pleased with the results. I was originally thinking of painting the room brown, but ended up going with a very dark blue-black called "cracked pepper" from Behr Paint. The dining table came with the house, the sideboard was a hand-me-down from my father, the curtains are the Sanela panels in light brown from IKEA and I found the the barrel back chairs and side table on Craig's List. The new light fixture is the equator lamp from CB2. There's still more to do, but I just couldn't wait to share. Here are the "before and afters".

...and here is the underside of the new lamp. When the box arrived in the mail, I thought, "Jesus - this thing is huge". But I love it. The light is beautiful and diffuse and really makes a stunning centerpiece for the room.