1916 General Electric desk fan

[Forgotten Man]

And pretty much every thread here at the Lounge does a weaving pattern in terms of staying on topic.

Since you are new, maybe you haven't noticed that yet.

True, I have noticed it... but, what do you think his early GE should be painted? Dark green or black?

FM~

 

[Miss Neecerie]

Whichever matches the decor of the room he intends to us it in....

 

[Forgotten Man]

Whichever matches the decor of the room he intends to us it in....

(RASPBERRY) Wrong answer :eusa_doh: in restoring a historic electric antique fan, one must consider painting it the authentic color in which it would have been painted originally. Thus, preserving history and also the resale value!

FM~

 

[Miss Neecerie]

(RASPBERRY) Wrong answer :eusa_doh: in restoring a historic electric antique fan, one must consider painting it the authentic color in which it would have been painted originally.

FM~

Ahh, but we don't -live- in museums and are not all curators of museum collections.

We live in 2007...and if one is going to use a vintage object, it should -fit- in our environment...rather then us trying to live in 1916 or whenever.

I mean what happens if you have 20 different things from 16 different years.....can you put them in one house? *gasp*

Its about -enjoying- things...not following rules.

If he would enjoy it more in a suitable non-original color...then it will get more use.

 

[Forgotten Man]

Ahh, but we don't -live- in museums and are not all curators of museum collections.

We live in 2007...and if one is going to use a vintage object, it should -fit- in our environment...rather then us trying to live in 1916 or whenever.

I mean what happens if you have 20 different things from 16 different years.....can you put them in one house? *gasp*

Its about -enjoying- things...not following rules.

If he would enjoy it more in a suitable non-original color...then it will get more use.

2007 can go scratch, I firmly believe an antique should fit the period it was designed in... that's why it's an antique! I don't live in a museum, nor do I care too, I believe in preservation and one can enjoy items that are restored or not restored.

Might as well repaint the Sistine chapel’s ceiling to fit today’s standards… it’s not the 1600’s anymore, should fit 2007.lol

FM~

 

[RetroToday]

I'm sorry this thread caused a bit of a stir.
When I showed the fan, the radio was in the picture and I should have just shown the fan on its own.

Hope nobody is sore at anyone else.

About the paint restoration on the Fan - I believe in keeping the original finish on vintage stuff - if it's in good condition. When it's only absolutely nessessary will I refinish.
I'm also a stickler for getting the job done with techniques as original as possible. If that means learning a "krinkle" spraypaint technique or a method of recreating a 1930s lacquer finish on a 1930s piece, so be it. I love the original, well, most of the times.

Sometimes accurately refinishing hinders me from doing certain projects quickly, but I always learn so much in the process. Makes it much easier the next time I come across that problem on another project.

I've decided to paint the main body of the fan a deep green, just as it was originally under the newer coat of paint.
The colour on a vintage item is a timeless feature, inherent to how it was designed. I've seen too many vintage items painted over based on somebody else's matching room colour or by a whim or fad. Makes me cringe to see some of the awful paint jobs assaulted on antiques....

Thanks for the colour votes, everyone. You all still have a bunch time to dispute the choice of green, if you wish.

Thanks again.

 

[Forgotten Man]

I'm sorry this thread caused a bit of a stir.
When I showed the fan, the radio was in the picture and I should have just shown the fan on its own.

Hope nobody is sore at anyone else.

About the paint restoration on the Fan - I believe in keeping the original finish on vintage stuff - if it's in good condition. When it's only absolutely nessessary will I refinish.
I'm also a stickler for getting the job done with techniques as original as possible. If that means learning a "krinkle" spraypaint technique or a method of recreating a 1930s lacquer finish on a 1930s piece, so be it. I love the original, well, most of the times.

Sometimes accurately refinishing hinders me from doing certain projects quickly, but I always learn so much in the process. Makes it much easier the next time I come across that problem on another project.

I've decided to paint the main body of the fan a deep green, just as it was originally under the newer coat of paint.
The colour on a vintage item is a timeless feature, inherent to how it was designed. I've seen too many vintage items painted over based on somebody else's matching room colour or by a whim or fad. Makes me cringe to see some of the awful paint jobs assaulted on antiques....

Thanks for the colour votes, everyone. You all still have a bunch time to dispute the choice of green, if you wish.

Thanks again.

Oh, no worries friend, I hope my opinion hasn't caused any problems with anyone... like you, I find many painted antiques and it makes me sick to see a desirable antique painted white, avocado green, light blue or orange to "Fit" a d?©cor.

The antiques I see sell for high dollars are those that have been painstakingly restored to original or very close to original condition.

You wont be sorry for painting your fan dark GE green... as soon as I can afford another fan, I hope to buy an original early GE that has it's original GE green on it that I found at an antique shop near me... hope it's still there when I have the dough.

FM~