Appliances, etc.

Caution - The information in this post may cause covetousness. You have been warned.

(most pictures are from the manufacturers websites)

The fridge - Electrolux Wave Touch Side by Side. I loved this fridge the minute I opened it's doors in the showroom. The "luxury" lighting that increases from dim to bright captivated me. Unfortunatly, the $3000 price tag wasn't in our budget. We were hoping to stay between $800-$1000 until we realized we were going to have to get a counterdepth fridge due to the congiguration of our kitchen. Counterdepth fridges are less deep, resulting in less cubic space and while smaller, are more expensive. Long story short, persistance and research led us to get exactly the fridge I wanted at nearly half off from the Sears Outlet. And unlike many other specimens at this store there was nary a scratch or dent. It was simply a returned unit. Yea for me.

Note- About a month after having this I started noticing the lights on the electronic panel showing when they should have disappeared. I called Electrolux and no questions asked was sent a replacement motherboard and the name and number of a repairman who would fix it at no cost to me. Now that's service!

Note - We also got a second, what I call "Costco" fridge for the mudroom from Craigslist. $170

Ovens - I already made a post about these a while back. We got a floor model knocking a measly $1000 off of the price. Actually we were supposed to get the floor model but the one we got was brand new in the original unopened packaging. But we only paid the floor model price. We got the GE Monogram convection oven and Monogram Advantium Microoven - it's a microwave or an oven depending on was plate you use in it. It also cooks with halogen lights.

Cooktop - 5 Burner Gas Bertazonni. This fancy sounding italian cooktop had great reviews and the best price by a long shot. $650 plus (or minus) a $50 rebate.

Note - There were a couple issues with installation - like the guy put something on backward and another valve seemed to be leaking. Again, customer service was excellent. Fast and no charge. Works like a champ.

Meet Pilar, our kitchen faucet. She is magic. She turns on with the tap of a finger, the back of the hand, an elbow etc. She also knows the difference between a touch and a tap so if you want to move it while it's on she doesn't go crazy and turn off on you. If you want to go old school and use the handle, you can do that too. Ben thinks this just might be his favorite feature of the house.

Originally we had picked out a pretty faucet from Hansgrohe. But it was expensive and I started having a real problem spending $600 on a faucet when there are people starving. Unfortunately while on my search for a more reasonably priced faucet that conserves water and performs well I stumbled across this video. Although $400 is still a lot to pay for a faucet, at least this one does tricks. And, it makes for good conversation.

Laundry - Whirlpool Cabrio I am very excited about these machines. They do the equivilant of three standard washer loads at one time. It really does. Sometimes I am bummed because I have a huge pile of laundry and I only get to do one load. And then I am bummed because I have to fold a giant load at one time. What I also like about them - they are not front loaders but they are energy efficient. (I have issues with the front loaders b/c of mold and the fact that they lock so quickly) This one actually locks too but it doesn't have to drain if you want to add something. I also like that the washer has a see-thru top because it is mesmerizing to watch the machine work. it has no agitator so it is quite interesting to see how it moves the clothes around. And the dryer is supposed to have a steam function for enhanced touch ups. It does spray a burst of water b/c it dampens the clothes a bit but I'm not sure how well it removes wrinkles compared to a regular dryer and a wet washcloth thrown in.

Dishwasher - We went straight Consumer Reports on this one. I really wanted the Electrolux, but Ben wouldn't give me the extra $150 bucks for it. So we got a Bosch. It works fine. We had the same one in Hawaii in White. I didn't realize this until I ran my first load. No bells and whistles, very few options, but quiet enough (I actually like the sound of a dishwasher) and gets the job done.