Ah the fridge – custodian of beer, reminder of doctors’ appointments, precious real estate for kids’ paintings, where would we be without you? Here are some ideas for the unsung heroine in the corner of your kitchen.
This gadget is a magnetic flashing message board – you write on the screen with a ‘special’ pen and when switched on the writing flashes insistently when anyone approaches (it has a motion sensor). It’s ideal for reminders, and I enjoy leaving messages for the family when I’m leaving for work & they’re still napping. You can guarantee it’ll be read as everyone visits the fridge at some point during the day!
Make your own fridge games
A while back I found some magnetic inkjet paper in a local craft store. Though a tad pricey it has loads of potential for fun. We used it to send photo-magnets with our birth announcement & thank you cards, and with imagination it’s ideal for making your own magnetic games / jigsaws / reward charts / fridge poetry / cow print.
Here’s a tic-tac-toe (that’s noughts and crosses if you’re in the UK) game made from photos in about 10 minutes – Kylie wins!
Bottle-Cap Magnets
This is a simple but oddly addictive tip I picked up from the Make: blog. Get hold of some circular magnets (bulk bags are very cheap on ebay), some bottle caps from your favourite beer or soda, add a few drops of hot-glue or sticky fixer pads and you’re all set.
Lastly if you or the little inquisitors wonder how we kept stuff cool before fridges were invented, I’d highly recommend reading The Frozen Water Trade by Gavin Weightman – it gives an excellent and accessible history of refrigeration.
