The entire boy’s room makeover started with the ceiling fan. That’s right. The ugly cheap brass fan. I know brass is supposed to be hot right now…but I am just not gonna be able to get behind it in this case. Sorry Emily Henderson.
It works great and there was no way that we would be able to substitute a pretty light fixture in here (dude, we live in the south and the summers here are SWELTERING. Fans are a must.) So I decided that I would be able to give it a fun cute makeover and at the same time…get the ceiling painted. You can’t tell here but the ceilings are still warm beige.
Jeremy disassembled the entire thing.
I also spent a little time lightly sanding the fan blades just to prep them for spraying.
Jeremy decided to take this photo after making fun of my preggo belly button. The boys in this family of mine love to tease me about the belly button popping out. It has been called everything from a ‘baby peepee’ to a ‘pigs nipple’. Yeah. I guess if I dish it, I better take it.
While I was working on the fan, Jeremy got to work on the ceiling. We already had painted the trim in this room (THANK YOU HALLELUJAH) and this task was looming over our heads…both figuratively and locationally speaking.
The brass part of the fan was sprayed down with Rust-Oleum’s Oil Rubbed Bronze….my number one favorite spray paint of all time (seriously the person who made this was a genius) and already, I loved the fan so much more.
The blades got one coat of white in satin and then I taped three thick lines across them at even intervals.
Then I sprayed the exposed bits in Rust-Oleum’s Winter Gray in gloss. I like the sheen difference between the matte and the gloss paints….it adds a little sumpin sumpin. Removing the tape shows the stripes and gives the fan such a little nautical feel to it.
Jeremy installed everything back….under close scrutiny….
And in the end, the fan and the ceiling are like BRAND SPANK ME AND CALL ME CRAZY NEW. Seriously….doesn’t it look SO SO GOOD!? I love it. And when it spins…it is magic. Like helicopter blades or a propeller or something…..it’s very fun and very cool. Jeremy didn’t even believe me when I said that the glass shades were the same. I actually had to show him the before pictures to prove it. It’s just crazy to me how good it looks against the white ceiling too.
So that is our jumping off point….one painted ceiling and one new-to-us-because-we-painted-it ceiling fan. Next up…the walls….bye bye sandy beige color!
Update : Looking for more info on something you see in our house? We have a Shop the Bower House page with paint colors and links to accessories, furniture and decor!
I’m normally not a blog commentor, just a reader, but holy good lord it looks so awesome that I had to sing your praises!!! I wish we had ceiling fans just so I could do this! (insert many heart eyed emojis) !!!!
Just awesome! Didn’t even know you could do that to a ceiling fan! Quick question, can you give sources for the curtain rods and curtains in the bedroom? Looking for something similar for my boys’ rooms. Thanks!
I honestly can’t believe how cute it turned out! Ceiling fans are necessary evils down south and I love what you did with it!
http://www.alittledailyhappiness.com
That looks great!
katie,
when you spray the fan base, do you spray right into the wiring? I’ve always wanted to try this but wasn’t sure how to do it. Can you explain what you did a little bit more in detail for this DIYer newbie. Thanks
Tracey
Btw
Waiting for that baby to come!!!!
Aww, I don’t like the dig at another blogger just because you have an unpretty fan.
So… I’m usually just a quiet blog stalker here at Bower Power, without ever commenting… but… WOWZER! Now I have to confess that I’m sitting over here at my house, COVETING these fans, which leads me to believe that the fans in my own boys’ bedrooms need to undergo the exact same make over. Well played, Bower Power. Well played!
Do you have to take any precautions when spray painting the motorized part of the fan?
This DIY has been on my to-do list for a fan in my house, but I worry about the paint getting in places it shouldn’t be and how to prevent it from happening…
That’s too funny cause I actually scrolled back up to the before pictures to see if the glass shades were the same. It’s so amazing what a little paint can do – it looks awesome!!
I live in the midwest and even here we have fans in every room. This has me wanting to take down the ceiling fans and redo them all! So fun.
Awesome! Might have to do this in my living room. Can you tell me if you worried about getting paint into the motor mechanism when spraying the brass? And how did you keep it from getting in there? Or was it just not an issue?
Thanks!!
Three things:
1) You look just like Will in the belly button photo. lol So cute! 😉
2) I’m with you on the brass. I’m still not on board with it at all, though. Sorry, not sorry. haha
3) I love the way the fan turned out! I would have never thought to do stripes. It looks really super cute!
Beautiful makeover!
I have to say that the picture of the boys watching Jeremy install the fan was SO sweet. I don’t know if its because Father’s Day is this weekend or what, but it made me a little tearyeyed <3
Love it! It doesn’t even look like the same fan at all. My brass fans better watch out…
Love this! I too spray painted the brass ugly but functional ceiling fan in my son’s room. But when I lightly sanded the blades then painted them, I can still see some of the sanding swirl marks. Did you have this as well? It’s not obnoxiously visible. I figured I prob didn’t sand too well, and it’s not that big of deal…but now it that I see a striped fan I may have to repaint 🙂 any excuse for more stripes!
This is why you rock!!! We have those same (and still working fine) fans and I never thought to do this! We have new ones still in boxes to be installed.
How cool is that! What an amazing difference. So bright and fresh. Do the boys like it? What a precious picture of the boys on the chest watching daddy. Their little heads from tallest to smallest. Cutest. Thing. Ever. I’m a Florida girl so we too must have a fan. Ours is white but has gotten dirty looking. I will definitely spray the blades white to freshen things up. Can’t wait to see the full reveal. Pray you are doing great!!
LOVE!!! I have almost the same fan and have been dying to paint it for years. Now I really need to because the before and after of this is just amazing.
It looks awesome! ORB wins the internet. You know what I do… the little wattage stamp on the end of the bulbs annoys me so I rub it off with nail polish remover. Until we get all the bulbs swapped for LED’s, that is. Those babies are expensive. Not as expensive as actual babies tho. LOL
Such a difference! I was just shopping online this morning for a replacement fan for our screened in patio. I think I’ll give that baby a shot of spray paint instead! How did you protect the guts?
Oh Em Gee, we have that EXACT SAME ugly-ass ceiling fan in our sunroom! Seeing how awesome your version looks makes me want to go home RIGHT NOW and bust out the spray paint. (Also, it’s Friday; that might have something to do with my desire to leave early….)
You’ve got me thinking about how I can upgrade our fan!
Love it!! Post a video of it running on Instagram. Dying to see it spinning. My kids would love fans like this.
Amazing! This makes me want to go and find an ugly fan just so that I can do this too! Awesome job!
SHUT THE FRONT DOOR – Oh my goodness that is awesome! I’m not sure why I never thought about doing this?! There is officially no reason for ugly fans to exist ever again. 🙂 Also, not sure if I missed it but have you shown the make over for your friend? You mentioned needing to wait for approval – is that still in limbo? Thanks for all you do and for making me laugh with every post!
Love it. Such an easy update to a fan. I would’ve never thought about painting our fans.
Find me an ugly brass fan! The stripes are completely adorable and perfect for my little peanuts room!
Oh my gosh I LOVE it! When we bought our home, the ceiling fan in my son’s room was a kid one with the traditional primary colors. It’s still in his room but I too have been wanting to update it for him. Thanks for the idea and inspiration. It looks great!
I can’t get behind the brass thing either. I spent so much time DEbrassifying everything, and now it’s supposed to be back? Not for me. Brass, like shoulder pads, should be left in the 80s. Your *new* fan looks great!
Looks great! You should take an Instagram video of the spinning blades 🙂
I think you missed the ball with this one… Looking forward to seeing the rest of the room.
Looks great!
Oh my goodness!! What an amazing transformation! I also am totally in love with the oil rubbed bronze spray paint…it’s the greatest thing ever.
OMG…this is amazing Katie! How many of these ceiling fans get tossed because people lack your vision?! I love the transformation. It must be fun to stare at when it’s turned on. 🙂 Nice job!
This is very timely. We also need to keep our ceiling fans in our bedrooms and they are ugly. When I casually browsed fans at Lowe’s the other day, my only thought was huh, ceiling fan design hasn’t changed much from the 1980s. So I didn’t really want to spend $300 on something that was only marginally better.
pigs nipple…haha girl you crack me up!
fan looks awesome now Katie! iam a big fan 😉 of urs !!! Another idea that popped into ur happening brain and hopped into my dead brain lol! love the pics of the boys watching their dad at work!
btw Katie….sorry this is so not related to this post but I cant seem to find your guest bathroom posts…. the things to do before installing tiles ….if you have a link…i would really truly appreciate it! thank you xoxo
This looks so good! Like a brand new fan. I want to see it in all its spinning glory haha
OMG I love it! I love your creativity!
Did you do anything to avoid getting spray paint on the motor?
Love it! But, how did you spray it without getting the paint in those little grooves that are right above the blades or in the light sockets? I am so going to do this!
My initial reaction was, “meh.” Then you mentioned spinning. Can you get a picture? We were lying in the bedroom looking at the still fan and I asked Charlie (3yo) how many blades there were. We could easily count five. Then I asked how many there were on the living room fan. It was spinning and we couldn’t count them. Spinning makes such a difference. (FYI the living room fan has three blades.)
Just checked the IG. Thank you.
Girl…I don’t usually comment on blogs, but can I say, you don’t even LOOK pregnant. You carry your babiez super well, and I only hope I can look like you one day when it’s my time to momma.
Wow! That is the best looking ceiling fan I’ve ever seen!
Very cute! How do you think up these things?
I love the photo of the boys watching their dad, and still out of the way. That should be enlarged and added to a wall. Really like the fan too.
This is genius! Such a cute way to dress up a generic fan!
YEP! Still hating on brass here too. I think it was overdone in its last go around. I love love love when you paint with the orb spray paint, it jazzes up everything. I love the boy’s room too. So beautiful!
What a transformation – it looks great and perfect for a boys room. Love that pic of the boys watching their dad!
Love love the fan!! You are so creative! How long did it take you to do this total? Just wondering if it would be worth it time wise.
I posted a spinning video on Instagram!
xo – kb
Well, the fan took under an hour total…the disassembly and reassembly took the longest part…other than that, the ceiling took about two hours to paint. Hope that helps.
xo – kb
Oh my goodness, I love that transformation. I hate fans but frugal Dear Husband over here insists it keeps our bills down. Nice job!
It came out fab. Love the stripes! Love me some ORB, too. Used that on several projects, most notably our outside lights. I spray painted our antique brass (worse yet) ceiling fan years ago in our old house with a coppery finish and we brought it with us to this house. Still love it.
WOW! This is such a cool idea! I never thought of painting our ugly old fan. And, that picture with the boys watching is so insanely cute. Quick question! I am 20 weeks pregnant and having major ultra project fever, but I feel like I can’t do annnnything because I can’t spray paint (much!) or prime or stain. Did you do the spray painting yourself? I’ve been able to do it once or twice when the day was just breezy enough to be great natural ventilation. What are your thoughts?
Did you tape off any of the parts? I was wondering if I should be concerned about any of the spray paint getting inside. I haven’t spray painted much so any further instructions about that part would be appreciated. Thanks!
I did read a bunch of different fan makeover posts and most fans do have a filter that you can remove prior to painting but it’s optional to do that step. I didn’t.
xo – kb
I definitely don’t tell other people to spray paint but I do choose to do it myself. I wear a mask that has a rating for particulates and only do it outside with plenty of ventilation.
xo – kb
It’s all about angles. For the light sockets, you can stick a cotton ball in there before painting.
xo – kb
Not the motor which is small and covered by the metal parts but I didn’t remove the filter which is next to the ‘holes’….you can do it but it’s optional.
xo – kb
Done!
xo – kb
We are still waiting but we are super excited to share it all!
xo – kb
You can remove the fan filter if you want but I didn’t and from what I have read, it’s optional.
xo – kb
I did sand but I don’t see the sand marks. Try another couple light coats to even things out.
xo – kb
It wasn’t an issue (I read a bunch of different ways to do this and a lot of people don’t remove the “guts”)
xo – kb
You can remove the filter if you like but I didn’t and don’t have issues with a light coat of paint on it.
xo – kb
The curtain rods were West Elm and the curtains were Ikea.
xo – kb
Yes, I avoided the ends of the wiring but the sheathed part is fine.
xo – kb
Here you go….
demo & rough in
board & floor prep
waterproofing
Thanks for your reply. I can’t wait to debrass the fan in our living room with some spray paint.
Congratulations on your new baby boy! He is absolutely adorable!!!
This might be one of my favorite projects of yours. Such an easy update but makes a big difference. Did you have to do any prep work to the brass part itself? I have a fan like this too that I could update this way.
I sanded it lightly but since there is nobody that really touches the brass part, it can be cleaned well and you shouldn’t have a problem with the paint sticking.
xo – kb
I would be careful with painting while expecting.My daughter helped me paint a room and I didn’t know she was expecting at the time.Our granddaughter was born with a lot of health problems and she will never be able to live on her own.I do believe it was due to the paint fumes if I had known she was preggo I would of never let her help me paint.Please be careful your babys life depends on it.
That is fabulous!! Looks so good. I appreciate those who repurpose items. I try to do this also. God bless and keep up the great work!!
Oh yes, I do take precautions with spray paint. I am sorry to hear about your granddaughter…but I do want to make sure you aren’t living with unnecessary guilt…here is a good article about paint and pregnancy.
xo – kb
Love the stripes! Love me some ORB, too. Used that on several projects, most notably our outside lights. I spray painted our antique brass (worse yet) ceiling fan years ago in our old house with a coppery finish and we brought it with us to this house. Still love it.