Last week we blogged about the Cambridge Antique Market, raving about the selection of affordable treasures. Case in point - we recently chanced upon this decorative Asian fan for $14 (was marked down 70% by dealer!). In the store we weren't too sure where we were going to use it at home but as some scavengers advise, if you fall in love with something and it's a ridiculously good price, go for it and figure out the details later...
We discovered that the fan was a perfect quasi-headboard for the cherished futon bed made by our brother in our spare bedroom where we spend a ton of time because it gets the best afternoon light in the apartment. The colors in the fan allowed us to finally uncover the blue accent wall that we had covered in obnoxiously bright fabric. (When we first painted the wall a couple years ago, we were instantly nonplussed with the blue color but due to our chemical sensitivity and not wanting to wait out another round of paint smell dissipating we just covered the wall in the aforementioned fabric.) The blues in the fan, which we installed by using a 2' West Elm picture ledge, finally make the blue accent wall make sense and we're delighted with the outcome.
We would be forever indebted to anyone who could translate the Chinese characters on the fan?!
Copyright © 2008 Apartment Therapy
That actually looks really nice. Who knew you could pull a room together for $14?
view Lisa Hunter (Montreal)'s profile
Oh Dear---
---Fans over the bed: It's such a 1980's cliche.
view bepsf's profile
i think it'd look better as a headboard. slide it down the wall so that the fan itself starts just below the top of the bed. elegant semi-circle. you'd just have to make sure the bed doesn't touch it or else it'd get damaged.
view *heather leaf*'s profile
Love it! We had similar weekends...I found a room divider for $10 that I am using as a quasi-headboard.
What do you think? I'm still trying to decide...
http://thesalerack.blogspot.com/2008/09/divide-and-conquer.html
I can't wait to visit the antique store the next time I'm in Cambridge!
view The Sale Rack's profile
by the way, i sold one very similar to this on ebay a couple of years ago for $12. got it at a flea market for about $6. you never know what you'll find!
view *heather leaf*'s profile
bepsf, I agree... I think this would have been over Jack Tripper's bed.
view hejiranyc's profile
BUT>. as heatherleaf said..place it down further and it will look very cool!!!! It is beautiful...!
view keeks's profile
good find put to good use :-) i like it the way it is, too.
view maike's profile
@ The Sale Rack
nice headboard! I really love the look in your white room.
view revolution9's profile
I had one of these from a flea market in an old dining room...but I tend to think it's a little '80s as well.
view liseah's profile
Wow, the links in Boston are hard to tell from the rest of the text.
Other than that, I thought it was a little dated. When people exclaim, "Look!," I wonder if they've really never been exposed to the feature before, or if it's their idea to dredge up an idea whose time it could be to be revisited, i.e., the next big thing nobody's laid eyes on in 15-20 years. The problem for me with a lot of "retro" looks is they haven't had a chance to go all the way out before people are discovering them. Unfortunately, the older one gets, the more likely they will think any given look they've lived through once was hideous enough the first time. If you weren't there, it's all brand new and fantastic! Is anything new anymore?
view K T G's profile
Agree with Bepsf and Hejiranyc.
view Sydney's profile
i, for one, think this looks lovely. ALSO, my friend jenn and i were at the CAM three weekends ago and we definitely modeled that fan (i have fabulous pictures of her frolicking in the aisles with it); it's a beautiful piece and we both fell in love with it, but had no real uses for it. bravo to you for finding one - you may have inspired me to give fans another look!
view curvatura's profile
I'm not a fan of Asian decor, but I do like this. Doesn't seem 80s to me.
view madampince's profile
I agree with bepsf...this reminds me of my parents' bedroom growing up...only their fan was pastel and covered in pressed flowers. Eeeek!
view economush's profile
I don't care what people think. I like it.
view Snugglitas's profile
i have a feeling that the pictures don't do this room justice. the fan looks great, kyle.
view rwallen's profile