Ideas for Oscillating Fan Crafts
Customize and color your favorite oscillating fan so this summer staple is not just another stodgy appliance in your home. "Oscillating" means to swing or move back and forth. These fans were first developed in the early 1900s, and the oscillating feature usually allows the fan to move 180 degrees from side to side. With a little arts and crafts skill, you can transform your plain fan into a colorful addition to your home.
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Painting the Blades
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You can pick two or more colors of craft acrylic paint to brighten up the fan blades, which can be used on both plastic and metal types. Remember to unplug the fan before you begin to unscrew the casing for the blades. Clean off each blade with water and a towel, then dry them off. Before you begin painting, you can lay down newspaper for a place to paint. You can create whatever design you like, but a large swirl across the blades will be the most noticeable when it's running.
Windsock
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To create a windsock, you should pick out a large piece of colored tissue paper and cut strips into it, leaving about four inches uncut at the top. Make a 5-inch diameter circle using pipe cleaners, then fold the top of the paper around the ring and tape the paper in place. Ensure the fan is unplugged. You can then punch two holes in the paper just below the ring, thread string or yarn through each and tie both to opposite sides of the casing.
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Color the Casing
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With either markers or acrylic paint, you can color the outside of the casing around the blades. You should make sure the fan is unplugged, and then you can remove the front casing. Place it outside or on a protected surface and paint the lines that normally cover the fan blades. You can form a rainbow ring, a large swirl or any other design.
Paper flower
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You can dress up your oscillating fan to resemble a daisy or other large-petaled flower. For a daisy, you can cut out strips of white paper that are about a foot long with rounded tops. Line them around the fan casing, and then you can choose to either glue them in place or unscrew the casing and fit the petals in between the front and back sections. With a dozen 6-inch pieces of yellow yarn, tie the end of each to the center of the front fan casing.
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References
- Photo Credit Hemera Technologies/AbleStock.com/Getty Images
