Lantern Hunting

You know those crazy lighting show rooms that look really lame from the outside? They're usually called LIGHTING EMPORIUM or LAMPS AND MORE! or some other such nonsense. The fixtures they have up front are really tacky and really, really overpriced, but if you wander to the far sides and the very back of the store, sometimes you can find serious treasures that have been passed by for who knows how long.

I wandered into one of these showrooms while I was shopping in the burbs last week and at the back of the store I stumbled on this huge lantern (it's 20"x40") for less than $100! The company that makes it (Nulco Lighting) has gone out of business I guess, so all their stuff is super marked down in most stores now (or so I hear from the sales guy). I've since poked around online, but it looks like everything is sold out. I bought the two lanterns they had in the store and asked the salesman to call around to see if he could secure a couple more for me (for which I'd gladly pay a little more). I'm supposed to use these for a client's mudroom, but what I'm dying to do is use them in my kitchen.

They are that weird bumpy pink brass finish, so I would paint them. Black is always a good choice. White would be really pretty. And of course you know I like red!