Hilton Carter’s Smart Hack for Adding Color to a Room Is Super Clever (and Cute!)

There’s one easy, surefire way to make a room visually interesting: Add a surprising pop of color. Paint some color onto objects like stools, kitchen cabinets, and dining room chairs, and voila! You immediately have a more vibrant space. And all it takes is a coat (or two!) of paint and some ingenuity.

Whether you’re getting out your paint brush or turning to spray paint, it pays to think outside the box. Take, for example, the makeover that Plant Therapist and interiors pro Hilton Carter recently did in his 3-year-old daughter’s bedroom. While the lively, painted mural on the wall almost certainly steals the show, I was also drawn to another refresh he did in the room: the yellow ceiling fan.

If you’d like to add artistic value to your ceiling without painting the entire ceiling, painting your ceiling fan a bold color is a great idea. For Hilton, it was the very first thing he added color to in his daughter’s bedroom.

First, he disassembled the ceiling fan with a power drill, placing the blades and parts of the central mechanism (excluding the light) on a drop cloth. Using bright-yellow spray paint, he applied the new color, spreading it evenly. After that, he put a drop cloth down under the base that was still hanging from the ceiling and spray-painted that in the same yellow hue. 

Once the base, blades, and central mechanism parts were completely dry, he reassembled the fan. The fan adds a dose of bonus cheer to an already happy room, and now serves as that surprising pop of color.

Perhaps you’re now so inspired that you just have to paint your ceiling fan. After all, it’s fun and it’s budget-friendly — but you have to keep some things in mind! As someone who’s done a lot of spray painting over the years, here are my best time-tested tips for this project.

1. Before you handle the fan, ensure that you’ve turned off the power. 
2. Clean the blades and all related parts before hitting them with spray paint. 
3. If you’d like the paint to adhere even better, consider sanding everything down into smoother surfaces to work with. 
4. When choosing the spray paint for your fan, go with one that’s geared toward metal or wood, depending on what you have, for the best result.
5. When painting the base, or main body, of the ceiling fan, although Hilton allowed the paint to hit the ceiling (he knew he’d be painting over it), if you want to protect your ceiling, be sure to use plenty of painter’s tape. 
6. And of course, don’t attempt to paint the ceiling fan when it’s moving! Instead, spray the parts in a well-ventilated area and assemble when everything is finally dry.