Bright new ideas from the home and housewares show Quad-City Times | May. 12, 2009 | IN PRINT
Maybe you don't need eco-friendly salad bowls, a flip-flop rack or a set of rolling penguin salt and pepper shakers that glide across the table, but some inventors think you do. Here are some of the products that debuted at this year's International Home and Housewares Show in Chicago: A better lasagna pan - This pan has interior walls to keep layers stacked and prevent them from collapsing when cut (Bakers Edge). Flexible grilling skewers - A stainless-steel flexible cable provides room for at least twice as much food as straight skewers. Drape the tip over the edge of the grill and the end stays cool, allowing you to turn or remove it without tools (Fire Wire - $14.95 for two). Indoor electric turkey fryer - Butterball and Masterbuilt got together for this fryer that can cook up to a 14-pound bird with no propane or oil in one-third of the time as in an oven (Masterbuilt, $119.99). Veggie-Peel - Catches and holds scraps in a chamber as you peel (Jaccard Corp.). Disposable plates from palm leaves - Using fallen leaves, steam, pressure and heat, these disposable plates can be used in the oven, microwave or freezer and can be washed and reused. But don't get too attached to them; they biodegrade in about six weeks (Verterra). Ceiling fan with speakers - Be cool while listening to your music through a wireless system hooked into your fan; provides high-definition audio up to 300 feet away (Hunter Concert Breeze, Hunter Fan Co.). Eureka Pet Lover Plus - Captures pet dander, filters odors and comes with a telescopic duster and edge cleaner to clean the areas along the wall, where pet hair lingers (Eureka $179.99). CaliBowl - An angled lip around the top of the bowl pushes food onto your utensil to avoid slopping that guacamole on the island (www.calibowl.com). Herb Keeper - You bought fresh basil, but it's limp before you remember to use it. This keeps herbs fresh up to two weeks (Cuisipro, $20). Collapsible salad spinner - Collapses to one-half the size for easy storage (Progressive International Corp.). Dishcloth with scrubber - This two-for-one cleaning cloth has a built-in scrubber (MUkitchen.com $5.99). Bottoms Up - Holds bottles upside down so you don't have to shake out the ketchup or shampoo (KitchenArt $4). The Egg Cracker - Eliminates broken yolks and flecks of eggshell (Kitchen Snobs.com $7.99). Intak Hydration Bottle - This bottle offers a meter that monitors your daily consumption (Thermos). A grander scale - Most bathroom scales top out at 330; Tanita makes one that goes up to 440 pounds. Oddly, the picture promoting it showed a reading of 123.6 pounds (HD-366 Tanita). BC-1000 Body Composition Monitor - Allows you to wirelessly transmit your data to your computer within seconds of stepping on the platform; Garmin also offers a watch that'll store the readings so you can check your hydration level before your run ($279.99; $399.99 with watch Tanita). Wireless bath pillow - Enjoy your favorite music while it's being transmitted through your pillow from as far as 30 feet away (SPI Inc. $39.99). Toilet Tattoos - Removable appliques in variety of patterns, from sunflowers to a moose at sunset (www. toilet-tattoos.com $9.95). Make your own wine - It takes less than two hours to make 12 bottles of wine. Of course, you have to wait 28 days for it to be ready to drink (Artful Winemaker, $149). Digital photo ornament - Hang it or use it on a tabletop, this 1.5-inch color LCD screen holds up to 60 photos. (Mark Feldstein & Associates Inc. $29.95). Jeweler in the Dishwasher - This egg-sized plastic holder allows you to wash jewelry in the dishwasher and has a clever name (Jeweler in the Dishwasher $4.99). - Kate Arthur, for the Herald & Review
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