Kersten went to an open house yesterday then wrote me right away, all excited:
Hi Pam!
Just got back from a walk through of a time capsule home (OMG! OMG!) and saw these inside one of the kitchen cabinets. Any idea what they are used for? I’m stumped! (And so was the realtor.) As you can see, they swivel. Did you notice how the wood is cut for these specifically? Love that.
Thanks,
Kersten
In following emails, Kersten also wanted to point out: The cupboard shelf edges are actually routed to fit these thinga-ma-bobs.
I also asked her why she is at an open house, since we know she has a cutie mid century home of her own — which we just featured. Is she house-shopping?
She answers:
Not really, but whenever I see a time capsule listing, I always check it out. (Then when it is sold, I show up with a potted plant and tell the new owner that I’ll offer to pay for the things they tear out.) The realtors get a big kick out of how much I adore these houses.
Kersten, please don’t take this the wrong way, but I love you. Thank you for sending these photos, you have made my day. I’ve never seen one, ever! So: Aaaaahhhhhh, to see something altogether new — a strange, simple and beautiful, unidentified 1950s kitchen gadget species — still running free, undisturbed, in its natural habitat….Like you, I would have been all goosebumpy and excited and jumping up and down and making the realtors think I was a rare bird, indeed.
Note, I’ve seen Kitch’n Handy cup holders — long, ruler-like assemblies with cup-hooks that you screw into the bottom of a wood shelf and then pull in and out like a drawer. Actually, I think I bought a NOS one from ebay last year and have it stashed somewhere. There might have been one on the bay recently.
Okay, so, moreover: What the heck are these woddities (“wonderful oddities”) for, given their design?? Each of the three rings swivels out independently…. Why? What would really fit in there?
Surely some reader who grew up with one will know in a flash. Who’s the smartie today?
pam kueber says
I have been on the run all day long so didn’t get a chance to participate in everyone’s comments. My goodness, I never expected 50 comments on a shelf thingamajiggy! What fuN!
Loquaciouslaura says
Question: How do you time-capsule-hunters find the listings? I mean, I guess I can spend lots of time searching through all the listings in my area, but I don’t know how to easily find them. Thoughts?
TappanTrailerTami says
Hi Laura,
While I’m not expert – maybe others have different methods, I think the trick is to find a real estate website that allows for searching by age of home. The Windermere real estate site here on the west coast allows you to input minimum and maximum years, ie – 1895 to 1940, 50, 60 or whatever span of years you wish to search for.
From there, most listings have interior photos, so then you can just start looking at pictures. If you are familiar with basic design trends / eras then you can pretty well nail down which homes are still intact vs. having “updates” done.
Maybe someone else will chime in if they have some better way of finding time capsule homes……
Tami
pam kueber says
I think this is on the mark — I used to do the same thing. Also watch for words like “original owner”, “needs updates”, “kitchen needs updating” haha. Also, it has been my experience that when they DON’T show the bathroom or kitchen — it’s one we would want!
TappanTrailerTami says
LOL – yep, if there is no kitchen or bathroom pictures, that’s usually a dead give-away!
Sara Paul says
As a Realtor what I would suggest is if you know what neighborhoods were built in the decade you like, search by zip code. ColdwellBanker.com lets you search this way. As an agent we search by mls area codes but zip codes will work. And I agree – lack of kitchen photos dead giveaway.
Todd A. says
My home built in 1950 has two metal drawers that are made by Kitchen Handy.
The home I grew up in also had them, one for keeping bread fresh and the lower one for flour and sugar.
Melanie says
What an incredible little wonderful house! I’d move in tomorrow! Love that sliding door that must be between kitchen and livingrroom? The bathroom is to die for! This house reminds me of my great aunt and uncles house that they built themselves from the ground up in the 50’s. They have very similar cabinets that my uncle built himself.
Gabbie says
Those are pretty nifty! A lot easier on your dishes than when you have them stacked and have to slide things under and over each other.
Christi says
My first thought was that they were for cooling pies. But sixties is highly unlikely at once.
Michele says
Absolutely charming! I agree about the smaller dishes of yesteryear–maybe that’s why the experts keep saying we are obese as a nation–but I digress…I have a 1950’s set of The Illustrated Do-It-Yourself Encyclopedias and those nifty rings aren’t there. I wish they were! They would be so useful in my tiny 1893 kitchen! Thanks Kersten!
Lauren says
Adore the house. Swoon for the bathroom and kitchen. I would so use that swing-out rack. And finally.. the microwave looks extremly silly in there. It’s why I am the only weirdo who keeps hers in the garage.. it simple kills the vibe in the kitchen. lol…
Janice says
Anyone else notice how out of place the microwave seems in that kitchen? I mean we all have them, but it just doesn’t seem to fit.
Lou Meigs says
We fixed that problem in our kitchen. I got rid of it!!! I never used them anyways and pointed out to my husband that the micro…tiny as it was…didn’t work in our kitchen; it definitely “ruined the vibe”! 🙂
TappanTrailerTami says
Kersten, thanks for snapping the photos of this awesome time capsule! I just LOVE those big wide chrome handles on the cupboards – and everything else too!
Tami
Kersten Falvey says
Agreed. Those drawer pulls are ultra-cool!