Object of Lust: Urchin Chandelier by HelenBilt

Created by Helen Gifford of HelenBilt, the Urchin Light Sculpture is composed of hundreds of crystal clear bulbs, but illuminated by just one. The others are repurposed bulbs put to use forming the body of this delicate sphere. Heavenly.

The lights are made to order in a variety of sizes, but pricing is not for the faint of heart. (FYI: Gwynie owns one, so you do the math.)

The 18-inch version, for instance, is $3,200 from YLighting. Sigh ...

Double Take: Abaca and Random Lights

I've been harboring a thing for Dutch designer Bertjan Pot's Random Light forever. I want one for our dining room so bad it hurts, but the price -- more than $1,500 for the large size -- has stopped me.

So last night while I was leafing through the latest West Elm catalog (I know I said no more chain stores, but I was only looking ... ), my heart skipped a beat when I saw the company's new Abaca Pendant. It's a little bit similar, no? (And West Elm is certainly no stranger to design knockoffs.)

Let's compare:

West Elm Abaca Pendant, $79 to $129

Moooi Random Light: small, $660, and medium, $860, at Design Within Reach; large, $1,505, at YLighting

To my eye, the ethereal, delicate, and almost-translucent epoxy and fiberglass Random Light has much more drama and presence. West Elm's banana-fiber version is earthier, chunkier, and not nearly as graceful. The smaller size (the West Elm pendants range from about 9 to 16 inches in diameter, compared to the Random Light's 20 to 43 inches) also creates far less impact.

But when you consider the savings -- almost $600 to more than $1,350 -- the trade-offs might not be so hard to swallow.

What do you think?