The Folding Fan Is Back — Sustainable, Artisan, and Genuinely Stylish
Hand fans, both old-fashioned and rechargeable, have had a real moment lately. If you want the genuine, hand-made article rather than a marketplace novelty, here are three real specialist makers worth knowing before you buy.
By KeepCoolExpert Team · Updated 19 August 2026
Hand fans have had a real moment lately — the old-fashioned folding kind and rechargeable electric ones, which we’ve covered separately. This is about the traditional side: fans made by people whose actual trade is fan-making, not a market stall or marketplace listing selling the same printed design as everyone else.
Why the real thing is worth seeking out
A fan from a market stall or an online marketplace works fine for one event, but it’s usually printed paper stretched over plastic ribs — cheap because it’s built to be temporary. A genuinely hand-made fan is a different object: real bamboo, wood, or silk, assembled (and often hand-painted) by an actual workshop, built to be repaired rather than binned at the end of summer. It’s also about as low-impact a way to cool down as exists — no battery to manufacture or eventually throw away, no power draw at all, and a working life measured in years rather than one season if it’s looked after.
Three real specialists worth knowing
None of these are marketplace sellers or a side department of a bigger fashion brand — they’re workshops whose actual trade is making folding fans, and we checked directly that each genuinely ships overseas rather than assuming it.
Maison Duvelleroy (Paris) — founded in 1827 and relaunched in 2010, the closest thing to a couture house in fan-making today. Fashion Fans run roughly €67–470, hand-made in small series across France and Spain; a separate Luxury Fans line is made one-by-one by hand in France alone.
Abanicos José Blay (Valencia) — trading over 70 years out of Aldaia, the traditional home of Spanish fan-making. Their hand-painted wood fans run roughly €17–103 — real hand craftsmanship at a noticeably more accessible price than Duvelleroy.
Ibasen (Tokyo) — a historic Edo-period specialist, producing everything from traditional patterns to Hokusai woodblock designs, some in fitted presentation boxes. Their published shipping policy explicitly covers international orders via DHL and EMS, with customs duty charged on arrival depending on the destination country.
Before you order
None of these are fast domestic-style delivery — they’re small, real workshops, not warehouses, so check the stated lead time if timing matters. Budget for GST and possible customs duty on top of the listed price too, rather than assuming it’s the final cost — that applies to any personal import into New Zealand, not just these three specifically.
If you already have a heat pump, its cooling mode is genuinely worth getting right before buying anything at all — see our heat pump cooling-mode guide. And if you want real, motor-driven airflow for a warmer day, our electric vs manual hand fan guide covers real, verified options from New Zealand retailers.
Frequently asked questions
- Is a traditional folding fan actually enough for New Zealand's climate?
- For a genuinely large share of what New Zealand summers actually throw at you, yes — moving air across your skin to help sweat evaporate is real cooling, and most NZ days sit well within what that covers. It moves less air than a motorised electric fan, so for Auckland and Northland's more humid days, or inland Canterbury and Central Otago's dry heat, our electric vs manual hand fan guide covers the fuller comparison.
- Will customs duty or GST apply ordering from overseas?
- Likely, and worth checking before you order rather than after. New Zealand generally charges GST on low-value imports, and Ibasen's own shipping policy states plainly that customs duty depends on the destination country and is charged on arrival, separate from the checkout price — a sensible caution for any of these three, not just Ibasen specifically.
- What's genuinely different about a hand-made fan?
- The materials and who actually makes it. A real artisan fan uses bamboo, wood, or silk rather than moulded plastic and printed paper, is assembled — and often hand-painted — by an actual workshop rather than a factory line, and is built to be repaired rather than replaced each summer. That's most of what the extra cost is genuinely buying.
- How long should delivery realistically take to New Zealand?
- Longer than a standard local order — these are small workshops, not big warehouses. Ibasen's international shipping covers a range of regions via DHL and EMS with delivery times that vary by destination and order; a made-to-order piece from any of the three will generally take longer still. Check the specific lead time before buying if timing matters.