So you have an ugly ceiling fan…(me too, here’s what I did)

16 Dec So you have an ugly ceiling fan…(me too, here’s what I did)

Can anyone identify with the battle of the ugly ceiling fans?  I actually have several fans I do not love (Texas summers = ceiling fans, especially upstairs!!), and I have slowly been weeding them out.  But let’s face it, with all of the other things you need when putting a home together, replacing a ceiling fan can be last on the list.  I have used this company several times, and I think they have great products with a price tag around $200 for each fan.  But as for me and my library, we have two fans that need to go, so rather than spend $400, we are going to go with what we have for now, with a few, little tweaks to make them look better.

And hey, we have a library!  I don’t think I have ever mentioned it before, mostly because it has been a storage facility for the last couple of years : ) , and I have been slowly working on it.  It sounds maybe more hoity-toity than it is, but here is some back story…Our home was built in 1921 by a family that immigrated here from Germany.  The gentleman of the house was an avid reader and collector of books, so he built this library as his special room.  You can imagine how important education was to an immigrant in the 1920’s, and I’m sure he prided himself in what he accomplished.  (moving here, establishing a successful business, etc.) The family who built this house (and lived here for seventy years!) is really interesting, and I hope to share more about them as time goes on.

Anyway, back to the fans…since we weren’t going to replace them just yet, I pondered what I could do to make them better.  Ceiling fans are so hard because they are practically necessary, but usually not very pretty to look at.  Granted, the ones in our library are not terrible, but I prefer fans that are less ornate and do not have lights of any kind.  (or shades)

Here’s what I did to make our fan a little easier on the eyes…

I went to my local hardware store and bought a few different kinds of light bulbs.

I took the shades off and tried out the different bulbs.  Comparing notes on which I liked during the day and at night helped me make my decision.

Although I thought I would like the more round bulbs better since they add a little contrast, I ended up liking the elongated bulbs the best.  (I always like those vintage looking filament bulbs, but sometimes I think they cast a weird yellow light.)

Compared to where we started, I think the fans look way less obtrusive than they did with the shades.  Sometimes a little change is all you need to tie you over until you can get something you will really like.

Hope you have a special day today!  I know I will – it’s my birthday!  My sweet husband made me scones for breakfast, and I got a homemade card from each sweet kid.  Just what I wanted.  : )