1960s Gadgets and Small Kitchen Appliances

Update: 2025-03-14

Description

Bex Scott introduces us to an article from ClickAmericana.com all about gadgets and kitchen appliances from the 60s. She opens with a story about her finds from a recent Value Village thrifting trip that got her thinking about the sorts of small appliances she often finds there. What kind of futuristic ideas in kitchen gadgetry did the 1960s produce? And how did they advertise these new products? Join Bex to find out.

From wall and under counter mounted can openers to bun warmers and toaster ovens, it’s all here. The article features stunning images of the retro ads complete with color photos. Follow along with Bex as she learns which meat grinder can also grind hard almonds, the five good reasons for owning a General Electric rotisserie oven, and how 60s visionaries combined a portable mixer with a knife sharpener for the sake of convenience. Do you remember Presto coffee makers in white? Did you have a Redi-Oven? This episode will either make you scratch your head over the idea of owning an avocado colored blender or take you down memory lane with a Salton bun warmer.

Resources discussed in this episode:

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Transcript

Bex Scott: [00:00:02 ] Hey everybody, it's Bex Scott and welcome to the Pyrex with Bex podcast, where you guessed it, I talk about vintage Pyrex, but also all things vintage housewares. I'll take you on my latest thrifting adventures, talk about reselling, chat with other enthusiasts about their collections, and learn about a bunch of really awesome items from the past. Subscribe now on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you love listening to podcasts so you don't miss a beat. Everybody, this is Bex Scott and you are listening to the Pyrex with Bex podcast. I wanted to start off this episode with a little Value Village thrift store adventure. So I went into town with my husband and our daughter. Of course, she fell asleep on the way in. We were running some errands and we had some time to kill, so I asked Rob, my husband, if we could stop at Value Village and he said sure. So I let him stay in the car with our daughter, and I ran in to do a quick little ten minute run around the store, see if anything good was there. And lately Value Village hasn't been that great. There's been a lot of just broken things or missing pieces to things that I found. Today was a decent day, so there were some pretty beat up Pyrex. There was a Woodland Cinderella set, only three of the dishes, and it was priced at $35. It had some damage on the largest bowl, and I did consider it for a second, but I just couldn't justify paying $35 for that and the condition that it was in.

Bex Scott: [00:01:47 ] I also found a Homestead 403 mixing bowl that had been through years of dishwasher use, and they wanted $15 for it. And another primary set, blue 401. They wanted $6 for it and it was missing a lot of its color. So that was a bit of what I found today. That was a disappointment. I did, however, find six mugs from the Spring Blossom Tabletopware coordinates set. These are the nine ounce mugs that were sold in sets of four, and I found six in this pattern. So I picked them up and they were a great price. I was a bit sad though because I found them, I grabbed them and then I walked down to the other aisle and this little girl looked at me and I gave her a smile. I thought she was just being friendly, but then I heard her say, hey mom, I just saw somebody take those green flower mugs. And the mom said, don't worry, we left them there for a reason. And I felt so bad because this little girl obviously wanted to take these mugs home, but the mom was set on her not having them for some reason, probably because they didn't need six vintage mugs in their house for their kids to use. But I hope she knows that they're going to a good home.

Bex Scott: [00:03:13 ] I also found this amazing enamel fondue set in like a mustardy color with little flowers all over it, and it came with, I think it was six melamine divided plates and four forks with different colored plastic handles. That whole set is going to be in an upcoming mid-century modern show that I have a booth at in Calgary. It is my very first show that I'm ever doing. I have a ten by ten booth, three tables, so I'm excited to be thrifting to find some pieces that I can put in that show. If any of you are in Calgary and you hear this episode before I go to the show, it's April 12th, 2025, so you can catch me there and come and see some of the awesome pieces of Pyrex that I'm going to have there, and just other, other things that I have found over the last year or so. Going to Value Village today kind of brings me to my episode, where I always go down the appliance section, and I never expect to find anything in this section. It's usually a bunch of really beat up, lately it's been donut makers, those little instant donut makers or cake pop makers, so nothing really great in vintage, but it got me thinking about kind of the small kitchen appliances that people used in their home in the 1960s.

Bex Scott: [00:04:47 ] So I was doing some research and I came across this really great article in, the websites called Click Americana.Com. So go to my show notes and navigate to this article. It's called 1960s Gadgets and Small Kitchen Appliances Made Life a Little Easier, and this episode is going to be a bit of a read through the article and take you through it, but I want you to make sure that you see these photos, because a lot of them are clips taken from old catalogs and magazines, and it'll give you a really great idea of the pieces and the appliances that they had in their kitchens. And a lot of these I have seen at Value Village before, and other thrift stores, and some of them I even have in my basement right now waiting to be sold. So it's kind of a bit of an educational episode and a fun little show and tell as well.

Bex Scott: [00:05:40 ] So the first one we have is the retro wall-mounted manual can opener by Can-O-Mat. And this is from the 1960s, and the ad shows a little lady in the reflection of the can opener opening her can and it says most beautiful can opener made. Its clean, uncluttered beauty tells you Can-O-Mat is a masterpiece of mechanical simplicity. No levers, gadgets, wires or motors, just the easy turn of a single handle opens any can, any size, any shape. Leaves a smooth, safe drinking cup edge. That's why you'll find Can-O-Mat in most kitchens, where quiet, good taste and smooth efficiency are happily wedded. Any wonder its first choice of millions of style conscious homemakers? I struggle with can openers, all of the modern ones. I think they're terrible. I have trouble figuring out how to use them, and half the time they don't even cut properly. So it kind of has me thinking that I should be looking for one of these in the stores when I'm out and about.

Bex Scott: [00:06:42 ] Next up we have the Oster electric meat grinder. It's called the Electric Power Unit. It sits on your countertop and it says versatile and powerful, Oster electric meat grinder slices through foods without tearing, bruising, or mashing. That sounds kind of gross. Speedily and effortlessly grinds all foods from toughest meats to the most delicate vegetables. Even grinds hard almonds. New economies, better meals, and far more pleasure in food preparation are yours every day from the very first day you own the Oster electric meat grinder. I don't know about you guys, but I find a lot of meat grinder parts when I'm shopping or when I've bought a lot at an estate sale or in an auction. They are never complete. I would love to be able to test out one of these meat grinders, but so far I haven't come across one that's a full unit.

Bex Scott: [00:07:39 ] Next up we have the vintage General Electric rotisserie oven. This is really cute, it's a little countertop rotisserie oven and it says five good reasons for owning a General Electric rotisserie oven, in brackets, even if you have a good range oven. Number one is the rotisserie infrared broiler precision oven does so much more than an ordinary rotisserie. Does as many things, in fact, as an expensive range oven, and has range oven accuracy. Number two infrared broiling seals in the natural juices for best ever steaks and seafood. Brown and crusty outside. Delectable inside. Number three bake without heating up the kitchen. Separate baking element on bottom. Thermostatic heat control assure perfect cakes, breads, fancy desserts. Tilt top lid closes completely for baking. Glass window lets you peek in. This is like a fancy Easy-Bake oven. And then there's a picture. It kind of looks like a cat litter box with a lid on the top. Number four it has automatic push button controls. And number five, it's portable. You can cook anywhere with the General Electric rotisserie oven. That's pretty handy. You can take it to your friends houses. You could even cook in the parking lot if you have an outlet. Imagine taking this to a tailgate party. You just pull up your vintage rotisserie oven and put it on your tailgate. I would do that.

Bex Scott: [00:09:07 ] Next up we have a waffle maker and it says makes four big waffles at a time. General Electric Sandwich Grill and Waffle Iron has reversible grids that make deli