New Fridges Wrapped in Vintage Flair
Finding a refrigerator that’s new and efficient and that fits a kitchen with a look that emanates from past decades is tough.
Thom Vernon, owner of a Boulder, Colo., online sportswear company, and his wife were building a second home with a traditional look and wanted a vintage refrigerator to go with their mid century kitchen. The new black, stainless or white box was not for them, and old refrigerators were inefficient.
Luckily Vernon’s nephew Orion Creamer was an industrial designer and ready for the challenge.
The pair came up with a way to retrofit a new Whirlpool with a new skin, a stamped metal body that gives it a 1950’s curved and chrome look.
They started Big Chill and rolled out their line in July with 10 Colors that inspire both retro and pure design enthusiasts alike.
“We looked at what was happening the the ’50s and found there was a real color explosion in appliance design, from KitchenAid’s candy-colored table mixers to the debut of the first color AGA Ranges,” Creamer said.
If you’re looking to make a statement, there’s cherry red, pickup blue, apple green and orange- the No.1 most popular color for San Franciscans.
If you’re going for a 1950’s look, maybe you’d prefer buttercup yellow, jadite green or pink lemonade. Pink Lemonade?
“Pink was a color from the ’50s,” Creamer said. “They made pink bathtubs.”
The refrigerator has a 21-cubic-foot capacity and offers the basics inside with a self-defrosting freezer, and an ice maker and water dispenser as options.
The exterior styling comes at a price: $2,700. But, as Creamer points out, “you cannot find it at Sears.”
Big Chill is looking for retailers to carry the refrigerators in Northern California. In the meantime, the refrigerators can be viewed online and ordered by phone.
Go to www.bigchillfridge.com or call (877) 842-3269
-LAURA THOMAS
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