Brighten your kitchen with this DIY hanging pendant light. No need to spend extravagantly on a design-studio fixture. You can build your own like the one shown here from little more than a mixing bowl and a low-cost socket. 

We chose a 14-inch-diameter stainless steel bowl for our project. Though drilling a socket hole through steel required a special bit (available at hardware stores) and some effort, we wanted stainless for its upscale look. A sturdy aluminum bowl is easier to work with and a good alternative to stainless steel. 

The wake-up orange interior took several coats of spray paint. Wires can be concealed in a piece of cut-to-size metal pipe. 

Mixing Bowl Pendant Lamp

Materials

• Stainless steel mixing bowl (14-inch diameter)  
• Scratch awl  
• Hammer  
• Drill  
• ¼-inch cobalt drill bit for metal  
• ½-inch cobalt drill bit for metal  
• Dremel with aluminum oxide grinding stone, #932
• Painters tape  
• Orange (or desired color) hi-gloss spray paint  
• 60-watt globe-style incandescent lightbulb  
• Suspension cable (length depends on space)  
• Cord (length same as cable)  
• Fixture socket

Instructions

Indent the center of the bottom of the mixing bowl with a hammer and scratch awl. 

Wearing protecting eye gear, drill hole at center bottom with the ¼-inch drill bit. Repeat process with the ½-inch drill bit.

Test light socket in hole to make sure it fits the hole. If not, widen hole to needed size. Grind off any metal burrs and dull sharp edges with Dremel’s grinding stone bit. 

Carefully clean your space of metal shavings.

Tape off the outside of the mixing bowl using painters tape and plastic grocery bags. Spray paint the mixing bowl inside. Let dry before recoating, following paint can instructions. Apply several coats. Each coat should be very light as paint will run easily and not absorb into metal.  Let dry completely.

Suspension cable, cord, fixture socket and bulb can be purchased from a lighting store, home center or online. 

Do not install the light yourself. Consult an electrician for assembly and safe installation.