Here’s yet another product that makes you wonder why no one has ever thought of it before. In this case it’s a South American appliance company called Consul that has made a simple improvement to a couple of refrigerator models they sell. The outside of the fridges are made to work like a dry-erase board allowing you to jot down notes, make a shopping list or just doodle with the included red and purple dry erase markers.
If you’re like most people your fridge’s compatibility with magnets has made it a depository of take-out restaurant flyers, emergency contact reminders and tacky souvenirs. Now you can take back your fridge and turn it into an original piece of art that reflects your own tastes and drawing skills.
Unfortunately it seems the Aqualera fridges are only available in Brazil at the moment and run about $760 for the model with freezer and about $630 for the model without.
Also if you check out the Aqualera website there’s a section where you can make your own fridge doodles online. Just click on the ‘COMECAR A DESENHAR’ link.
When it comes to cooking in a small space I don’t think you can get much more functionality crammed into a small appliance than with the Russell Hobbs Mini Oven. Well, I guess they probably could stick an MP3 player in there too if they really wanted.
On the bottom you’ll find a thermostatically controlled oven which has a respectable 26L capacity and is also self-cleaning. On top of the oven you’ll find a large (1kW) and medium (0.7kw) hotplate which can be used at the same time as the oven for grilling, roasting, boiling or frying. You’re not gonna be cooking up any Thanksgiving feasts with this thing but you can do far more than just noodles.
Of course if you live in an apartment small enough to need the Mini Oven its $200 price tag from John Lewis might not fit your budget. But if you’re equipping that new half-million dollar motorhome it could be the perfect addition.
I’m somewhat of a warbird enthusiast, so I find this P-40 Warhawk ceiling fan to be particularly cool. And cooling. Get it? Right. Like the actual P-40, the fan features 3 blades and a fairly powerful engine, as well as the familiar Flying Tigers sharkmouth design (stolen, incidentally, from the German Luftwaffe Zerstörer Bf 110 squadron). The prop spans 48″ and there’s even an integrated light in the nosecone, but no nose mounted .50 caliber machine guns, which is too bad. I guess it’s an E version or later. You’re looking at just under $250 shipped to your door for the whole kit.
While the P-40 is a classic American fighter plane, I might rather buy something a little sexier to hang on my ceiling, like a Supermarine Spitfire fan. No, they don’t have one, but mentioning it in this context gives me an excuse to post this video (which may contain understandably NSFW audio at the end, so mute it):
If the thought of installing a full sized fridge in your perfectly maintained garage seems tacky or out of place then you’ll like this alternative. The Toolbox Refrigerator from Craftworks is designed to look exactly like a rolling tool chest complete with rugged red exterior and faux drawer pulls.
But the whole front opens up to reveal a fairly decent sized interior (4.4 cubic feet) where you can store snacks and drinks. It even has interior lighting for those late nights and a locking mechanism to keep the kids away from your grown-up beverages. The top of the fridge also functions as an easy to clean counter for making sandwiches or other more ‘elaborate’ meals. Now all they need to do is release a Toolbox Toilet and you’ll never have to go back in the house again!
The Toolbox Refrigerator is available from After 5 for $349.99.
I guess there must be a lot of us living in less than spacious apartments since manufacturers seem to go out of their way to design products specifically tailored for our compact needs. This microwave from LG for example incorporates a toaster to help cut down on the number of appliances sitting on your counter.
The 2-slice toaster is actually mounted vertically on one side of the oven meaning you have to slide your toast into the slots rather than dropping them in. But I assume it works just as well as a conventionally designed toaster. The microwave is rated at 900 Watts with 10 different power levels while the toaster is rated at 800 Watts with only 9 different “browning” levels. All LG needs to do is slap a coffee maker on the other side and a griddle on top and you’d be pretty much all set.
The LG LTM9000 Microwave & Toaster is available online for about $149.
Related Tags: Appliances, Household
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