Artful appliances

View a gallery of colorful, vintage-looking appliances at the bigchillfridge.com.

Here are a few cool stories that show how appliances can be made beautiful and even become works of art.

If you are in the New Orleans area on Sunday, March 29 then check out the ISL Refrigerator Art Auction and Gala, a fundraiser for The International School of Louisiana (ISL).  Auction items include art painted on actual refrigerators and freezer doors,   arty fridge magnets, along with art painted on more “traditional” canvases.  It’s not clear whether the refrigerators actually work or not. I hope they offer home delivery!  For more information visit www.isl-edu.org.

I don’t know how I missed this site, especially since some of their refrigerators and dishwashers have been featured in magazines layouts and have appeared on TV; BigChillFridge.com sells 50’s style, retro -looking appliances with “modern functionality, efficiency and dependability.”

Check out their site to see vintage-looking  appliances in bright colors like baby-blue, orange, ballet-pink, and mint green. They also sell dishwashers as well in a similar vintage-looking style. Even though the dishwashers and refrigerators look retro, the appliances are modern. BigChill’s dishwasher are actually 2008 KitchenAid dishwashers, so if you ever needed a KitchenAid dishwasher part, one would be available. So you do not have to sacrifice efficiency or convenience for style.

Appliance auctions allows the public to buy new appliances for half the cost

Looking to pick up new, brand-name appliances for half its normal retail value price? Then consider checking out an auction.

According to a story in the Washington Times, due to the housing bust, appliances and building materials once meant for new home constructions are now being sold at auction.  Southern Sales Services of Jessup, Maryland, holds auctions of such materials every four to six weeks in the Maryland/D.C. area. The public is allowed to bid on new appliances such as refrigerators, dishwashers, stoves, washer and dryers from name-brand appliance manufacturers at half the cost they would normally sell at retail.

To attend one of these auctions, you must register in person at the day of the auction to get a bidding number. Be sure to bring  a valid photo ID. To find out about future auctions, sign up online to get on Southern Sale’s mailing list.

The website also offers some very helpful guidelines if you plan to attend the auction. For instance, if you pay cash for your purchase, you will receive a 2% discount.

The auctions run all weekend with Friday being a “viewing” day where potential buyers can browse the inventory and stake out what items they plan to bid on during the auction day which is usually Saturday.

Bidding can be particularly fierce, so be sure to research the items you wish to bid on, before hand, so you are not overpaying.

For more information

• Homeowners, remodelers cull deals from housing collapse
• Southern Sales Service Auction Essentials