Why are chandeliers so useful to primitive home decor? The answer to this question requires a bit of prior explanation regarding primitive home decor in general, and lighting’s place within decor.

Primitive home decor is a mode of decoration that transforms a space into the style of an earlier, simpler era. The rustic furniture and earth tones of a “primitive” home offer many psychological advantages as part of an otherwise hectic, tech-heavy modern life. Soothing rustic decor elements tend to help people feel centered at home, while keeping them in touch with their past and helping them feel a connection to nature. All of these factors can have a positive effect on the psyche.

Primitive home decor has two elements that make up the completed look. The first element of primitive decor is useful every day items essential to a comfortable and functional home home: simple furniture, plus decorations that serve a function, such as clocks. The second element of primitive style is illusion. These features and objects are strictly ornamental items that add to the style and atmosphere of the space, but do not serve any other purpose within the household. The illusion element includes items like lanterns that sit on shelves as decoration but are not actually used. Other examples include beautiful but non-functional things like antique or vintage-style bottles or keys.

There are plenty of reasons to convert one’s home decor to a primitive style, but there are several areas of decoration that are not always easy to convert to a rustic appearance. These areas include technology, appliances, and lighting. The first two categories of items can often be hidden away in rustic-looking cupboards or containers, but as electric lighting is a ubiquitous and intrinsically modern feature, it can be more difficult to incorporate into primitive decor in a natural-looking way. Electric lighting did not even exist before the nineteenth century, which can make it difficult to find a way to light one’s home while still presenting the illusion of primitive living.

One popular solution to this problem can be found in the use of chandeliers. While electricity and the light bulb may be relatively modern conveniences, chandeliers are a much older invention. Their exact age is irrelevant, but chandeliers can be dated at least as far back as the medieval era. Certain types of metalwork can be effectively incorporated into primitive design, but woodwork, with its natural and relatively soft appearance, is more likely to fit effortlessly into a primitive home decor scheme than metal. Nevertheless, all kinds of primitive chandeliers have the potential to improve the illusion of primitive home decor. By disguising your electric lighting with chandeliers, you can infuse a modern convenience with a primitive touch.