apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time


Look! Transforming Apple Trivet and Basket

050508coolapple01.jpgJust got back from a fun whirlwind weekend visiting my sister up in San Francisco, seeing the friends and family who call the Bay area their home. It was the first time I got to see her new apartment since she moved in with her boyfriend, a spacious one bedroom that had me daydreaming of moving back up and living in Alamo Square again. One of the coolest items she had in her home was this apple shaped wood trivet that transforms into a basket. How amazingly useful...

 
 

050508coolapple02.jpg
050508coolapple03.jpgWe did a quick search and found that this dual use and decorative item is pretty darn affordable and available online for about $13. I think I prefer the unpainted version my sister owns though.

Tags

Look!, apple, trivet, fruit basket

Related Links

Share

Comments (20)

eBay. You can Buy It Now -- the unpainted version -- for just $4.99. Gotta love the eBay.

posted by 5iveVincent on May 5th 2008 at 9:52am
view 5iveVincent's profile

I was going to add that excellent Buy It Now link above, except their shipping and handling is almost $13 to my zip code.

posted by gregory on May 5th 2008 at 9:59am
view gregory's profile

These things are quite a joke down here in the south. They are readily available at roadside stands and country fairs. Wouldn't be caught dead with one in my house.

posted by TpaPower on May 5th 2008 at 10:00am
view TpaPower's profile

I remember my grandma having one of these and my mother considering buying one at a craft fair back in the earlier nineties. I don't think this will ever find it's way into my home.

posted by Signe on May 5th 2008 at 10:07am
view Signe's profile

Is it cute in person? Because it looks a little Lillian Vernon-ish in the eBay auction photo.

posted by Birdy on May 5th 2008 at 10:08am
view Birdy's profile

This is a scrollsaw project. I work for a company that made designs for baskets like this. The apple design is super popular. They are all made out of one piece of wood too which is kinda interesting...

posted by Sara_Hew on May 5th 2008 at 10:12am
view Sara_Hew's profile

Having not grown up with one, I love it! It's so happy. Reminds me of NY apple logo.

posted by azure on May 5th 2008 at 10:12am
view azure's profile

I agree with a few of you......craft show/fair special. In my eyes....'crap' show/fair.

posted by swanygirl74 on May 5th 2008 at 10:14am
view swanygirl74's profile

I found quite a few on Etsy.com... kinda pricey too...
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5627845&section_id=5324142

posted by Masik on May 5th 2008 at 10:16am
view Masik's profile

are you kidding? it's one of the most ridiculously chic or chicly ridiculous things i've ever seen

posted by orangered on May 5th 2008 at 10:19am
view orangered's profile

Yuck! And, yes, it has two purposes, but surely one already has a thousand trivets and bowls in one's house, so adding another "doubly useful" one is just adding more clutter.

posted by sarahlily on May 5th 2008 at 10:23am
view sarahlily's profile

we had one of these when i was a kid, very hideous in my opinion and make me think garage sale right off the bat. i was happy to see it go.

also the thoughts of craft fairs and people with 6 teeth and a cig hanging out of their mouth selling them comes to mind.

posted by jmorey on May 5th 2008 at 10:38am
view jmorey's profile

ick. i've NEVER liked these. tacky and ugly.. never been fan.. growing up in the midwest i've seen them everywhere and every version. would never have one in my house.. nope. never.

posted by animalhouze on May 5th 2008 at 10:55am
view animalhouze's profile

I have one. Shaped like a two-headed goose. A hand-me-down (was told it was made by Grandpa - never doubted this, but until today I'd never seen others, either.) Didn't realize it was a trivet... this is potentially more useful? Right now it never sees the light of day. (Too tipsy as a basket.)

posted by raisinette on May 5th 2008 at 11:55am
view raisinette's profile

Like some of the other people here, I too encountered scores of these at craft fairs in the US in the 1990s. Perhaps AT ought to visit craft fairs once in a while?

posted by readertset on May 5th 2008 at 12:24pm
view readertset's profile

I thought they were horrible and tacky as well, but then my friend's mom got me 2 of them for my birthday. I spray painted one metallic gold and made it a fruit bowl, the other I painted 8 different colors and it holds my silk scarves in my closet. Once you throw color on it, its entirely transformed.

posted by mangabanga on May 5th 2008 at 12:44pm
view mangabanga's profile

Found at Coombs here on Vancouver Island!!

posted by ilovebc on May 5th 2008 at 1:56pm
view ilovebc's profile

Oh, this takes me back to a good Southern craft fair -- next tater/onion boxes! All in all -- practical and kind of ingenious I suppose though.

posted by hillgirl on May 5th 2008 at 3:46pm
view hillgirl's profile

Pearl River.

posted by greer on May 5th 2008 at 3:58pm
view greer's profile

I suppose it's possible to dislike these without vomiting, right? I think that reaction must be regional. I just thought they were a little farty/country/folksy* for my taste (you know, like a braided rug, etc.), having seen them before but apparently not to the degree of exposure that causes people to cackle with real disgust. That said, I have one, but it's part of a visual joke collection I'm building (the joke isn't the item and vice versa, but it's a "prop" I guess).

*Some items I'd put with it in this category are wildly popular, however. They might call it kitsch or quaint or whatever, but people eat it up, and I can't really tell the difference.

posted by K T G on May 6th 2008 at 7:59am
view K T G's profile

Feeds

RSS icon Los Angeles

+ City Feeds