Let’s talk about something that was simply too small — but this time we’re taking the story outside to the carport. Remember that tiny lantern hanging from the ceiling?
Yeah… she wasn’t looking great. Rust? Check. Cracked glass? Check. Dollhouse-sized scale? Double check.
Since moving in back in late 2010 we’d kept an eye out for a larger, more substantial outdoor light. We checked everywhere — big-box stores, online marketplaces, Craigslist, and secondhand places like Habitat for Humanity ReStores and local lighting outlets. Ideally we wanted a chunky lantern with clean lines in a rich oil-rubbed bronze finish, and at a price that wouldn’t make us wince. The trouble was that the jumbo-sized fixtures we liked often carried $200+ price tags, and because this was an exterior application it needed to be rated for outdoor use.
Then, after more than a year of looking, we finally found a good candidate at a local lighting outlet, one of the spots we’d been popping into periodically just to see what showed up.
And it was heavily discounted. The original tag read $295, then $159 — and then someone wrote $19 in marker. Over 90% off. The reason it was so cheap? It was missing the ceiling canopy, which wasn’t a big deal since a matching canopy is about six dollars at Home Depot or Lowe’s. The other issue was that one of the four glass panes was missing. We never even noticed while inspecting it at arm’s length, and once hung more than seven feet above the ground that missing pane would be invisible from the usual viewpoints. We planned to face the missing pane toward a wall of bushes where nobody walks; if it bothered us later, a replacement pane could be cut for under $15. The bottom of the lantern also slides out, which makes cleaning and bug control easy — a small practical bonus.
Raising the lantern was definitely a two-person job: I held it up on the ladder while John connected the wiring with the power off. I even snapped a shaky photo while balancing on the ladder because yes, I’m that committed to sharing the process.
Before finalizing the hanging height we measured a friend’s tall SUV so there would be plenty of clearance. Luckily the carport ceiling is over nine feet high, so we could allow the fixture a bit of drop for that stately lantern look without worrying about taller vehicles scraping it.
Much better, right? The new lantern feels properly scaled for the wide-open carport and the house exterior. For comparison, here’s the old tiny fixture…
And here’s the new lantern holding things down.
Don’t mind the pile of wood on the right — blame the deck project. From farther away the difference is even clearer:
Pretty cute. It’s not hugely visible from the curb because our house sits back from the street, but it’s no longer invisible. The whole thing came down to proportion: a big, high-ceilinged space needs a light that reads in scale. The old lantern looked like an oversized tea-light holder; the new one reads as intentional and polished.
At $19 (about $25 after buying the canopy) we scored a dramatic upgrade in both form and function. It looks great from the driveway and even from the curb because it finally matches the house’s scale. The key takeaway: if you keep looking and avoid settling for the wrong thing, you’ll eventually find what fits — even if it takes over a year. Also: snack breaks with Oreos help get you through the hunt.
We still plan to convert the carport into a garage someday, but in the meantime we love having a light controlled by a proper switch that looks deliberate and substantial.
Here it is with our car in place, showing that there’s still over two feet of clearance for taller vehicles — we measured, promise.
The new lantern feels more balanced and substantial compared with the old setup. Despite being much larger visually, it only hangs about four inches lower than the previous fixture, so it doesn’t dangle awkwardly.
That’s our lighting and carport refresh. Have you ever hunted for a specific item for a long time and finally found it at a crazy discount? Was there a funny reason it was on sale? Did installing it involve two people balancing on a ladder until relief set in? We’d love to hear your stories.