Editor’s note: This is the latest in a series of posts by Sally Kohn— journalist and CNN political commentator, TED talk giver, and design aficionado—chronicling her adventures in remodeling.
When we lived in Brooklyn, we didn’t have central air conditioning so we were huge fans of ceiling fans, for understandable reasons.
But I’d only ever seen ugly ceiling fans, and moving into a historic home with beautiful exposed wood beams criss-crossing the ceiling, I was worried ceiling fans would drag the whole place down.
My Nan ceiling fan, as seen from below.
Photograph by Juan Vidal.
I found my solution in two “Nan” model fans from the Matthews Fan Company. The fans almost look like they were custom made for our home, set against our white ceilings and wood barn beams.
A friend visiting quizzically gazed at the Nan XL fan in our living room and said, “That can’t be original, is it?” And AC fan motors are generally bigger and heavier. Did your fan move the amount of air the manufacturer promised?
Photograph by Matthew Williams from Southern Modern in Charleston: A Fresh Take on the Old South from Workstead.
But that’s not the only thing Chuck Matthews from Matthews Fan Co. taught me. I asked Chuck to explain to me how to know if my fan is spinning the right way during the summer versus the winter.
If you don’t want a breeze, reverse the blades and have the column of air blow upwards towards the ceiling.” The fan will move air either way.
Photograph by Francisco Noguiera, courtesy of Studio Pim, from Rosamar: A Seafood Restaurant in Lisbon with Retro Seaside Style.
In sum, beyond these two big headlines, do whatever you want. Try one of those fans that feels like a prop from a scene in Casablanca.