The Vintage Wooden Fan
Wednesday, August 22, 2018
If you grew up in an Asian household, you've probably seen at least one wooden hand-held fan like this one in your lifetime. For all of you who nodded your head or said, "yup," it most likely had a tassel dangling from the bottom, am I right? Ever since I can remember, I loved playing with anything and everything I could find. My favorite part was choosing the accessories and jewelry. Stacking ten plus clear plastic bangles up my each of my arms was part of my signature style.
When I was about four years old, my mom gave me two printed square silk scarves to play dress up with. Although the scarves were ones she had for years and no longer wanted, they were some of my most prized possessions at the time. I loved all of the bold and bright colors. One was purple with coral-colored flowers, and the other was a turquoise and green polka dot scarf. I immediately draped the purple scarf around my shoulders and tied the other one around my waist because I wanted to look just like Mulan. I quickly ran over to my mini white and pink vanity to sort through my accessories and found my plastic Mulan hair comb that my mom bought from the Disney Store and this wooden fan that you see in these photos.
Growing up, the Asian role model I looked up to was Mulan. Besides the fact that she was a badass hero, Mulan's skin-tone, dark hair and almond eyes looked similar to mine, so I grew up wanted to be just like her. Mulan was the only character I saw who I thought even remotely looked like me. As a teenager, I watched a handful of successful Asian YouTubers such as Michelle Phan, Nigahiga, and Wong Fu Productions, but I still didn't see a lot of Asian American representation in movies and in television shows (besides the movies, The Joy Luck Club and Memoirs of a Geisha). With that said, I am so excited to see Crazy Rich Asians, which also features an almost all Asian cast. I recently read an article that said that it's the number one movie at the box office right now. How amazing is that?
In celebration of this movie, I wanted to share this artsy outfit with all of you here on Elizabeth, Marie, and Me. What better time to break out the vintage wooden fan and wear it as an accessory? I styled it with this gorgeous emerald maxi dress, which reminded me of the background color of the Crazy Rich Asians movie poster.
As for my additional accessories, I opted for a wide honey-colored belt to cinch my waist and a bamboo purse. Since I wore a wooden fan in my hair, it would only be natural to carry a bamboo purse and wear organically shaped earrings and bronze bangles. It was all about the earthy tones!
Almost twenty years later, I am still playing dress-up with my vintage wooden fan. Instead of pretending to be Mulan, I am now showcasing it with my own style. Some women choose to wear flowers in their hair, some wear bows or headbands, but I proudly wear a fan in mine. What can I say? That's just me. I hope you enjoyed reading this post and let me know in the comments below if you saw Crazy Rich Asians and if so, what you thought of it. As always, I am sending you lots of love from my heart to yours!
2 comments
The fan hat is a rather unique touch. Not sure if I like or dislike it with this outfit. No question- I LOVE this dress along with the belt and the sandals. As always, your hairstyle and smile are adorable! So lovely you are here!
ReplyDeletejohnbmarine.blogspot.com
Thank you so much, John, for your sweet comment and for stopping by my blog!
Deletexoxo,
Kris