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Not Your Grandmother's Crystal

Lighting makers are seeking new consumer appeal with contemporary crystal designs.

A staple of the lighting showroom assortment, crystal chandeliers are undergoing a major shift, as manufacturers and importers seek to reinvent the category to appeal to more youthful consumers.
     At major markets, crystal was the element of the moment. Many fixture designs were accented with crystal, while many crystal chandelier designs were mixed with other materials such as iron, rock crystal, and colored glass. Even the shape of the traditional chandelier has undergone renovation, with new products pushing the envelope with contemporary and imaginative configurations.
     At the Dallas summer lighting market, the new direction of crystal was apparent in the showrooms of both traditional chandelier makers and contemporary resources. Designers are not only looking toward other lighting categories for inspiration, but also the European markets.
     According to James Moder, president of James R. Moder Crystal Chandelier, crystal is transcending all styles of decorating and is no longer relegated to traditional décor. “In the last five to six years, crystal has been successfully used with every style of furniture without appearing out of place,” he explains. “We have been taking designs that have been shown in the non-crystal market – like the shape and look of an alabaster bowl – and adapting these looks to crystal,” Moder says.
     “We’re also using a great deal of color now. We will take Swarovski Strass®, Spectra™, and a combination of crystal grades and employ accent colors in Swarovski Amethyst, Green, and Rose.”
     Crystal is even replacing fabric. The company’s Princess collection features crystal shades. “Many crystal companies are using fabric shades,” Moder notes. “We offered a similar crystal shade 25 years ago. The crystal provides a lot of [visual] fullness to the shades.” This new version incorporates technology to keep the crystal shades straight at all times. “The harp is manufactured to the candlesleeve so that the shade doesn’t move,” he reveals.
     The company offers plenty of variety, especially for outfitting a powder room, and specializes in mirrors that are bedecked with crystal and 24K gold-plated flowers to make any vanity look elegant.
     Crystal manufacturers have also had to consider new proportions in chandelier designs to accommodate the larger foyers and higher ceilings prevalent in new home construction today. “Many foyers are now 20-24 feet high,” Moder comments. Therefore, the fixtures need to be in a suitable scale to make a spectacular presence in crystal.
     Crystal is also appearing in new applications. “For the lady who has everything for her bedroom or powder room, we have introduced a crystal fan kit,” Moder states. “The crystal light kit is probably worth 10x more than the ceiling fan,” he adds. The fan kits are available in either chrome or gold with crystal beading.
     “Chrome has been extremely strong for all types of crystal looks,” Moder says. In fact, one of the most attention-getting items in the showroom was a linear Lite Bar in a Silver finish with dangling crystal pendalogues and prisms in an assortment of shapes. “We deliberately make changes so no two kits have exactly the same prisms and trimmings. This is what makes each kit unique to that customer,” he explains. There are 104 different types of crystal combinations offered, and even a few colored crystal pieces per kit. All are individually hung by the customer from 52 separate pieces of transparent string to make the crystal trimmings appear to float in the air.
     The Lite Bar is hung from telescoping steel cable to accommodate various heights and features nine incandescent torpedo bulbs placed along the bar. The fixture measures 48" wide x 11" high.
     Eurofase debuted several contemporary fixture designs utilizing crystal components at the summer lighting market in Dallas. “We are known for our contemporary lighting,” explains Jack Bitton, company principal. “We do not want to enter the crystal category per se, but these contemporary designs include crystal because it gives the light a very different effect. In the end, however, it is ultimately lighting that we sell.”
     The fixtures feature chrome frames. Gambari appears to have metal wings draped in beads, while Grace echoes a traditional chandelier’s tiered form. It is selectively dressed with crystal icicles and can be ordered in a choice of 14 different Murano glass shades.
     Among the companies known for traditional fixtures, Schonbek has been experimenting with several unusual designs aimed at attracting a broader audience than the typical crystal customer. “We’re working to establish a new receptivity to crystal chandeliers,” explains Eileen Schonbek Beer, creative director. “That’s why we’re designing new chandeliers with lighter, simpler dressings.”
     Among the recent introductions, Adagio is trimmed with the company’s Vintage Collection™ quality crystal characterized by heirloom shapes such as droplets and antique-style faceted beads. The chandelier is also accented with colored crystal fruit that adds to the relaxed demeanor.
     Attracting younger customers are less-imposing mini chandeliers. “Petite chandeliers have become very appealing to consumers,” Beer states. “People really do want crystal in every room of the house.” The size of these chandeliers allows them to be specified in spaces where crystal was previously impractical.
     Schonbek also introduced a series of bath bars in the Rivendell line.
     Among the nearly 100 new items at the June Dallas lighting market, Maxim Lighting expanded its collection of iron and crystal. “Our collections are a mix of metal and crystal,” explains Stan Drake, director of sales. The group dresses up iron, or from another perspective gives crystal a more casual, easy-going appeal. “When it’s added as an accent, crystal becomes affordable for the average homeowner.”
     Crystal can also be introduced to a more casual décor when it’s mixed with metal. “Our lifestyles are less formal today with casual-dress days at work. We’ve taken that into account with our chandelier designs as well,” Drake notes. “We’ve also mixed colors of crystal such as amber and clear, for a less formal look.” A lighter-weight frame in an Etruscan Gold finish features a mix of amber drops, clear beads and amber grape clusters. The Old World Elegance series of fixtures combines an airy iron frame in a dark bronze finish with cut crystal pendalogues. The group includes a 15-lite chandelier and one- and two-light sconces
     Debuting in January, a smaller-scaled chandelier distinguished by Italian cut crystal accents on delicate metal twisting branches and leaves is now available in two other sizes. “The response was so great, we decided to expand the line, “ Drake notes. The family is offered in the Etruscan Gold finish for added elegance.
     Crystal as accents on chandeliers is also the direction at Cristal. “We are currently seeing crystal being used more as an accent, not so much as in the fully dressed chandeliers,” explains Todd Fowler, marketing manager. The company’s newest designs are cast bodies with crystal accents. Because the cast components are so much a part of the design, finishes are also taking on greater importance. The newest finishes at Cristal are Antique Silver and Old World, a bronze tone. “We have to be careful,” Fowler comments. “We are staying away from finishes that tend to date an item.”
     That is not to say that Cristal is abandoning its full crystal chandeliers. “In this category, you can expect to see several unique designs, especially in proportion. We are creating chandeliers that are higher and wider, some 5½ feet high,” Fowler relates. Traditional looks in full crystal are appropriate, “But our new designs are not your everyday Maria Theresa.” Crystal also suited customers at Trans Globe Lighting, which unveiled its Swarovski Spectra® collection. The group consisted of chandeliers in several sizes plus tabletop candelabra lamps.
     Special touches are important in crystal chandeliers, and among the most notable is color. At Bar Del International, traditional European cased crystal, prevalent in tableware and giftware, highlighted several chandeliers at the Dallas market. Red, cobalt, emerald, and even black glass, accented with 24K gold hand-painted accents are now appearing over the dining table as well as on it.
     Another special touch to the Bar Del chandeliers are glass candle covers. They feature a ruffled neck and continue the glitter of crystal right onto the hardware.
     A new wrinkle in crystal design also made an appearance at the spring High Point market, which marked Bernard Pecaso Lighting’s foray into portable lighting with the Petit Chic. The chandeliers and portables displayed a unique application of Swarovski beads. The beads are hand-strung and applied with wires to the frame of the lamp or chandelier in a patented system similar to jewelry-making.
     The line includes floor and table lamps as well as sconces and chandeliers, up to a 12-light, 48"-diameter model. “This was the most expensive lamp of its kind in High Point,” remarked Marty Glantz, consulting director of marketing, referring to the dramatic six-light floor lamp. The model, which features silk shades with Swarovski beaded fringe, retails for around $2,000. The line is available in Black Chrome, Weatherable Black, Golden Gauge, and Stucco finishes.
     The finish choice specified for a fixture such as Petit Chic is an important decision and can give different character to a crystal piece. “The silver frame makes the crystal look like ice; and the gold frame makes the crystal look like fire,” Glantz comments.
     The frames of the Petit Chic series of chandeliers, sconces, and portables are manufactured in Pecaso’s Brooklyn facility. “The hand-beading is all done in our factory as well,” he adds.
     A new Black Copper finish is now offered on selected series. “It is particularly popular on the Versailles frame,” Glantz notes. (One Versailles fixture has an illuminated crystal center spire.)
     “We have a new Queen Anne fixture featuring cast brass, which is done in our Brooklyn facility. We have a Louis XIV reproduction from the Versailles palace in Paris,” Glantz adds. “We passed the authenticity grade requirements. We’re the only manufacturer who received official approval.”