Unwanted Tiki Gift - Help/Suggestions Needed

Hello all. I am in need of some decor advice.
Our most treasured friends have just returned from a little holiday to the US. Knowing that I am lover of all things tiki they brought us a little "gift" for the tiki bar. A very lovely gesture, and so thoughtful.

Here is the trouble. To me, tiki alone isn't a style - rather I opt for a stylised tiki ambience. Specifically antique/mid-century wooden pieces dominate our tiki rooms. The item in question is a Pier One metal "Tiki Club" sign in orange, blue and bright green. Trust me - this thing is b.a.d. but more importantly, it is ruining my ambience!!

If I don't hang it, they will surely notice next time we have them to the tiki bar. I have tried several different places to hang it and just can't find a way to make it fit. It's tackiness hits me like a ton of bricks whenever I walk in the room.

Riots in London, political unrest the world over, starvation and landmines. Friends, these things concern me - but I am going out of my mind trying to figure out how to handle this situation. I would be rapt with guilt to not have it up, and yet the thing is really wrecking my vibe, man.

Any advice? Have you ever dealt with unwanted tiki gifts? Is bad tiki ok if it means not upsetting loved ones? Anything you could suggest to "compliment" the piece so it doesn't seem so out of place?

Here's a photo:
http://media.pier1.com/img/pier1com/productimages/2516370.jpg

Repaint it and take the dangling sign off!

It happens when kind people are not informed people....steel wool all the paint off, oxide ( rust ) the surface, mount it on wood plaque cut to the shape of the shield ( surfboard shape ) pointing straight up and down, stain the wood and add a aged look to the wood finish...hang it below the chair rail and put your biggest stool in front of it. " Oh yes, we love it !...it's right over here, I just changed the color, isn't cool now, we can't thank you guys enough !"

Can you say STOLEN! :wink:

keep it in the closet, except when they come over to visit.

On 2011-08-17 12:44, thePorpoise wrote:
keep it in the closet, except when they come over to visit.

I tried that, then forgot about it when the giver showed up unexpectedly one time. Of course they asked, "Where's the gift I gave you for your birthday?".

I remember being embarrased. :)

Oh? we lost it in the fire.

More related discussion here.

-Randy

Here's a pic of the item in question, that link will be gone someday (soon) then everyone who reads this thread will wonder what the sign looked like

I like the idea of refinishing it. Paint it a medium brown base, then use a dark brown wash on it. Maybe some tan or yellow highlights. Mounting it on a wooden base would be cool too. You could torch it (it's metal right?) to burn the paint off then let it rust naturally - but you risk ruining it but burning a hole in it - in which case you can truthfully say

On 2011-08-17 12:57, Chuck Tatum is Tiki wrote:
Oh? we lost it in the fire.

On 2011-08-17 13:20, MadDogMike wrote:
You could torch it...

WINNER!

The genius that is MDM shines through again!

I have a small collection of particularly garish signs from my ma-in-law that hang on a wall just outside the entrance to the tiki room. Keeps em displayed while not a part of the real room. Don't tell anyone I actually like the pink flamingo one.

Also someone gave me one of those tiki bar signs from big lots with a parrot wearing a hat. I plan to refinish it but in the meantime I clothspinned an old postcard over the damn bird.

Advice: put it in the garage or somethin'

Gabbahey

It's not the worst attrocity ever committed in the name of Tiki (or as bad as some of the "Tiki" stuff I've been given), but what I want to know is - Tiki rooms? In Edmonton? Who and where are you and when can I come over? :)

Is it me or does the "tiki" mask look like a large order of McDonalds fries?

howlinowl

Its "Frylock"

I saw that sign in the scratch and dent section of my local Pier One.... the "T" was missing so it said the "iki club" Icky is right!

Ouch...maybe it will weather away if you hang it out in the elements. Of course the best use for items like that is white elephant gifts at Tiki parties.

I'm with howlinowl. You should open a chain of drive-up window Tiki Huts selling "Tiki-Fries" and that can be your logo. Mai Tai flavored fries, Hawaiian Sweet Potato Fries, hey wait, this is actually sounding good. I'd like the New Hampshire franchise please.

Personally I think if the giver sees it completely refinished that will have the same effect emotionally. I say keep it in the closet until they come. If you forget to put it out and they ask, you can tell them you rotate your decor and that will be the truth.

On 2011-08-18 08:14, The Granite Tiki wrote:
I'm with howlinowl. You should open a chain of drive-up window Tiki Huts selling "Tiki-Fries" and that can be your logo. Mai Tai flavored fries, Hawaiian Sweet Potato Fries, hey wait, this is actually sounding good. I'd like the New Hampshire franchise please.

Why only Mai Tai FLAVORED, add Mai Tais to the menu, too, like this:

Sorry to derail, I had to take the opportunity to share this amazing local idiosyncrasy.

How about hanging it outside in the yard. You can announce you have plans for an outside Tiki area. If it doesn't materialize, it could be brought up in conversation jokingly, even by themselves, sensing the truth, but in a gentle manner. You will be kidding each other about it in no time.

Sheesh! You don't see "Dive" signs on run down places, or "Hipster Hangout" or "Fern Bar" on others, what's with the annoying trend of badly executed, brightly colored generic signs touting the "style" of the Tiki bar? A true Tiki bar shouldn't need a sign, it should clearly announce that it's Tiki from the look of the decor. The look of it, as well as it's name, should conjure up thoughts of faraway exotic places. Having tiki in the actual name of the bar (like the Tiki-Ti) is one thing, but just a sign that says "Tiki Bar," that's like Romper Room time, it's a label, "Look kiddies, this is a 'tiki bar, t-i-k-i b-a-r, TIKI BAR.'" It's lame, it's patronizing, it's insulting. If you need a sign that labels the type of bar you have, that probably means it isn't that type of bar in the first place.

Having said all that, you can always claim that the sign was somehow damaged (just don't tell them you did it intentionally) and you wanted to try to salvage what you could and preserve their "kind" gift, so you incorporated it into a new decor piece because you "didn't want to just throw it away. After all, what kind of friends would we be if we did that?"

Bear

On 2011-08-18 00:20, Chuck Tatum is Tiki wrote:
Its "Frylock"

That was my first thought! A tiki-fied Frylock.

http://aqua-teen-hunger-force.wikia.com/wiki/Frylock

I do like all the weathering and painting ideas. Just tell them that the colors weren't perfect, but you made it fit in.

On 2011-08-18 00:16, howlinowl wrote:
Is it me or does the "tiki" mask look like a large order of McDonalds fries?

howlinowl

It's not you...that's the first thing I thought of, too!

I have to agree that in the spectrum of "unfortunate tiki gifts" this one isn't as bad as some. Once a few years ago, I got a gift from an Aunt who rarely sends gifts. She included a note that seemed to have been written during a fit of excitement over the great tiki gift she'd found for me.

When I took it out of the box, it was a sink liner (I didn't know there was such a thing) with multi-colored butterflies all over it. Just butterflies. Nothing else.