The Language of the Fan

If you've ever wandered around the hotel, you know we like keeping certain antique and vintage items on display. Our newest display can be found on the third floor of the historic section and it shows off some fans we've collected over the years. Did you know that back in the day when ladies carried fans, they would use them to send romantic (or anti-romantic) signals to would-be suitors.

Here are some signs a lady with a fan is interested in you:

• If she's fanning herself quickly, she's saying "I love you so much."
• If she moves the hair away from her forehead, she's saying "Don't forget me."
• If she hits her palm with her fan, she's saying "Love me."
• If she drops the fan, she's saying "I belong to you."

Here are some signs a lady with a fan couldn't care less about you:

• If she's fanning herself slowly, she's saying "Don't waste your time, I don't care about you."
  
• If she's resting the fan on her lips, she's saying "I don't trust you."
• If she hiding the sunlight with her fan, she thinks you're ugly.

A lady with a fan could also be trying to send you a message. If she's carrying a closed fan with her left hand, it means she's engaged, whereas if she's carrying a closed fan with her right hand, it means she wants to be engaged. If she fans herself with her left hand, she's telling you "Don't flirt with that woman." If she runs her fingers through the ribs of the fan, she wants to talk to you. If she half-opens the fan over her face, she is saying "We are being watched."

If your Halloween costume includes a fan this year, try out some of these messages. You can find more here.

The Stone Portico Entrance

When the Hotel Boulderado first opened in 1909, the south entrance was considered the main entrance and was marked by a large stone portico. It looked like this:

The portico began crumbling in 1963 and eventually it was removed. There's been talk around the hotel that we may bring it back, which explains why we hung on to a key element of the original. When I went down and photographed the "guts" of the elevator, I found the original portico sign.
The hotel's original entrance on Spruce Street was so important to the city of Boulder that when it came time to pave the roads for the first time, Spruce was done first because it led right to the Hotel Boulderado.

Beneath the Elevator

A lot of people are familiar with our Otis elevator in the historic section. I recently learned a few details about it that I thought I'd share, along with some rare photos of the inner workings of the Otis.

Even though the plaque next to the elevator declares it a 1908 model, it's really from 1906. Back then, if an elevator needed to be installed in a new building, they would install the elevator first and then build around it. Therefore, the Otis was installed in 1906 and then the Hotel Boulderado was built around it.

Our beloved elevator actually broke down several weeks ago when the brake chain needed replacing. Believe it or not, we had to track down a manufacturer in Switzerland who had to custom-make us a replacement part! While they were working on it, I snuck down to the basement to take some photos of the elevator's "guts":

Here's a shot of some of the maintenance equipment we use to keep it running smoothly.

I totally geeked out over this: signature Otis elevator lubricant to keep those parts in shape!