Fridgescaping

[TechWife]

This has just come to my attention. I’m equal parts fascinated and amused. It’s beautiful, yet extremely odd. The jokes write themselves, but the flowers! 
https://www.instagram.com/p/C-t5NQ4MAc3/?igsh=MWF4OHdvdnE1Zjc3Mg==

And 

from Food & Wine:

Why Are People Decorating the Inside of their Refrigerators?

Edited August 27 by TechWife

[TechWife]

Here’s another one - 

The fridgescaping trend is ridiculous and here’s why you should try it

I regret I have meetings for much of the day. I can’t wait to see what you all say, find & dare I even say it, do, with this information today. 

 

 

[Indigo Blue]

What? How do you even…. you can’t get to anything. Who has time for this? Who thinks of these things? All the little trinkets taking up space. Clutter. My “it’s just too much of nothing making a clutter mess of a space that I like to keep reasonably organized and clean” radar is going off. 
 

Why do we need fridgescaping? Geez, they scape everything now. Manscaping and now fridgescaping…🤔

 

Wonder what’s next. 

[marbel]

I've seen this. I mean, not in person.

I would be spending even more of my day finding stuff in the fridge for my husband if I decided to get cute with it. 

 

[Katy]

This is the sort of thing creative but bored people do to make money online. It’s no more real than elaborate restocking videos where there’s 30 kinds of processed snacks and drinks but zero food. No one lives that way, not even the creator. Think of it like extremely temporary art, done for advertising revenue. 

[TechWife]

You’ve now entered the twilight zone…

If we’re still seeing this next month, start looking for the blue phone box. 

[TechWife]

11 minutes ago, Indigo Blue said:

…
 

Why do we need fridgescaping? Geez, they scape everything now. Manscaping and now fridgescaping…🤔

 

Wonder what’s next. 

We’ve already had landscaping, gardenscaping and tablescaping…

[Indigo Blue]

2 minutes ago, Katy said:

This is the sort of thing creative but bored people do to make money online. It’s no more real than elaborate restocking videos where there’s 30 kinds of processed snacks and drinks but zero food. No one lives that way, not even the creator. Think of it like extremely temporary art, done for advertising revenue. 

This is true, but (and I know you know this) there are people who will actually do this. 

With little glass bird nests, string lights, and plants everywhere, you can’t pull out that huge stockpot of pinto beans, lol. 
 

Oh no! JD Vance has nowhere to put his bacon grease! (Inside joke). 

Oh, wait….you just keep that on the counter top. I think. 

[TechWife]

I mean, I can’t deny that it is aesthetically pleasing. 

[TechWife]

2 minutes ago, Indigo Blue said:

…With little glass bird nests, string lights, and plants everywhere, you can’t pull out that huge stockpot of pinto beans, lol. 

 

…

That’s what  le creuset is for! Pick your color here: 

https://www.lecreuset.com/explore-colors.html#popular-colors-anchor

[Indigo Blue]

Just now, TechWife said:

I mean, I can’t deny that it is aesthetically pleasing. 

You do? I take one look at that and I start twitching. Like, I want to reach in and fling all the things out as fast as my arms can go. 😂😂😂😂😂

[Indigo Blue]

Just now, TechWife said:

That’s what  le creuset is for! Pick your color here: 

https://www.lecreuset.com/explore-colors.html#popular-colors-anchor

lol!! Yes, that would work. Would look lovely. I wouldn’t be mad at a lavender Le Creuset pot!

[TechWife]

2 minutes ago, Indigo Blue said:

You do? I take one look at that and I start twitching. Like, I want to reach in and fling all the things out as fast as my arms can go. 😂😂😂😂😂

If someone did this for me, It would either last a hot second  or we would eat out for days on end. Pretty, yes. Practical? Absolutely not.

Who thought this up, though? Did it start as a joke? “Honey, please find a place for that horse picture.” Ok, then!

Ok, I’m off to a meeting. Carry on! 

[Spryte]

How do you use the fridge?! Wow.

I knew an interior designer living in NC, and everything in his life was Just So. Eggs were in a wicker basket, veggies were artfully arranged in handmade baskets. It all looked straight out of a magazine. There was a bottle of milk from a delivery service, everything decanted into artful containers, all resting on mats of some sort. I was visiting with a friend once, and friend whispered to me, “you have to see this,” led the way to the kitchen and opened the fridge. Think bespoke farmer’s market meets mid century vibe way before any of that was on trend. Pretty sure he had never cooked anything in his life, no kids, and his partner had an upscale restaurant. 

 

[Indigo Blue]

2 minutes ago, Indigo Blue said:

lol!! Yes, that would work. Would look lovely. I wouldn’t be mad at a lavender Le Creuset pot!

But by the time I wrangle it off the fridge shelf, there will be broken pots, dirt, plants, and broken bits of glass birds and rabbits splattered over the kitchen floor. And my beautiful pot will be tangled in a strand of lights!

[marbel]

8 minutes ago, Indigo Blue said:

You do? I take one look at that and I start twitching. Like, I want to reach in and fling all the things out as fast as my arms can go. 😂😂😂😂😂

Yeah, I agree. I'd like to have my fridge interior better organized, but not with unnecessary decorative elements. 

[CTVKath]

Seriously? That has got to either be a joke or a florist's fridge!!!!

[GoVanGogh]

I have never heard this term or seen photographs of it prior to this post but… I shop at a local farmer’s market and collect vintage dishes (1970’s daisies are my fav) and eat plant based. I will admit that my fridge looks somewhat similar to those photos on Saturdays after I have been to the market. My spouse and I are empty nesters; my spouse likely doesn’t even know our home has a kitchen attached to it. It is just me using the fridge and eating at home. I absolutely love how clean and organized and visually appealing the produce is in my fridge. I don’t have actual flowers in my fridge, but most of my dishes have flowers on them. It is just a fun part of my Saturday morning routine. Get up and shop at the farmer’s market. Come home and clean fridge and sort and organize and meal plan. 

[wintermom]

29 minutes ago, GoVanGogh said:

I have never heard this term or seen photographs of it prior to this post but… I shop at a local farmer’s market and collect vintage dishes (1970’s daisies are my fav) and eat plant based. I will admit that my fridge looks somewhat similar to those photos on Saturdays after I have been to the market. My spouse and I are empty nesters; my spouse likely doesn’t even know our home has a kitchen attached to it. It is just me using the fridge and eating at home. I absolutely love how clean and organized and visually appealing the produce is in my fridge. I don’t have actual flowers in my fridge, but most of my dishes have flowers on them. It is just a fun part of my Saturday morning routine. Get up and shop at the farmer’s market. Come home and clean fridge and sort and organize and meal plan. 

That sounds lovely to see, but as you say, it is something you enjoy and have complete control over. 

My fridge needs to allow my 4 dc and dh to see their food and access a gallon of milk everyday. Any extra stuff would get shoved way back to mingle with the A1 sauce and forgotten leftovers.

[prairiewindmomma]

Florists dont keep flowers in the same fridge as fruit/veg because the ethylene food gives off causes the flowers to wilt faster. (Florist friend rants on this point.)

I arrange food in lovely glass containers, have a ceramic tray for hardboiled eggs, and plastic bins to stack yogurts into etc., but it’s all practical arrangements here—not decorating for decorating sake.

I agree this is about content creation or about people living in studio apartments who need a creative release…

[Clarita]

Wait I had thought fridgescaping was just that you organized food in your fridge artfully, not put pictures and stuff in there. 

I don't need more stuff to clutter my fridge beyond the food I need to store in there.

[Indigo Blue]

So…I decided to have a go

 

[Annie G]

I’m no fridgescaper, but I do store  our eggs in a beautiful acrylic slide out holder and the leftovers and such are stored in glass containers so they are very uniform looking. Contents are easily seen, which is key for us, and they can either be heated in the microwave or popped into the oven without transferring to another container. But when guests open my fridge they often comment how pretty it is. I just like that it looks uncluttered, as too much stuff makes me twitchy. 
Also, it’s easier to have a ‘pretty’ fridge  with just me and dh- far less food crammed into the fridge.

Edited August 27 by Annie G

[TechWife]

3 hours ago, GoVanGogh said:

I have never heard this term or seen photographs of it prior to this post but… I shop at a local farmer’s market and collect vintage dishes (1970’s daisies are my fav) and eat plant based. I will admit that my fridge looks somewhat similar to those photos on Saturdays after I have been to the market. My spouse and I are empty nesters; my spouse likely doesn’t even know our home has a kitchen attached to it. It is just me using the fridge and eating at home. I absolutely love how clean and organized and visually appealing the produce is in my fridge. I don’t have actual flowers in my fridge, but most of my dishes have flowers on them. It is just a fun part of my Saturday morning routine. Get up and shop at the farmer’s market. Come home and clean fridge and sort and organize and meal plan. 

That sounds great, but do you have art on the “walls” of the fridge? Knick knacks?  That’s what sends it over the edge to me. 

[TechWife]

1 hour ago, Indigo Blue said:

So…I decided to have a go

 

The candles are a great touch! 

[Frances]

4 hours ago, TechWife said:

I mean, I can’t deny that it is aesthetically pleasing. 

I don’t know. Personally, I don’t find clutter and knickknacks aesthetically pleasing.

[TechWife]

Just now, Frances said:

I don’t know. Personally, I don’t find clutter and knickknacks aesthetically pleasing.

My brain takes the “fridgescape” outside and it looks like a garden to me. I’m not a knock knack person, either. I have a firm rule about only having what I’m willing to dust in my home. This type of arrangement doesn’t enter my mind for inside. My dresser is so bare I use it to fold clothes. Outside I’m all about plants & flowers, though. 

[TechWife]

3 hours ago, wintermom said:

… Any extra stuff would get shoved way back to mingle with the A1 sauce and forgotten leftovers.

“Mom, where’s the ketchup?” 
 

“It’s behind the ceramic bird nest, where it always is. Remember, I take the label off so it doesn’t detract from the fridge style.” 
 

[KungFuPanda]

My husband can’t even find something that’s behind the milk. There’s no way he’s moving a vase of flowers and a ceramic cat  🤣

[Clarita]

If I put stuff like that in the fridge, my children are going to take it as open invitation to shove all their toys in there as well. Soon it'll be get the milk from behind the transformer holding the barn with the family of bears. No dear not the dark brown bear family the tan bear family, oh I guess now it's also behind the LEGO jet plane with one wing.

[gardenmom5]

8 hours ago, TechWife said:

This has just come to my attention. I’m equal parts fascinated and amused. It’s beautiful, yet extremely odd. The jokes write themselves, but the flowers! 
https://www.instagram.com/p/C-t5NQ4MAc3/?igsh=MWF4OHdvdnE1Zjc3Mg==

And 

from Food & Wine:

Why Are People Decorating the Inside of their Refrigerators?

they have too much empty space in their fridge. . . . 

[Emba]

8 hours ago, GoVanGogh said:

I have never heard this term or seen photographs of it prior to this post but… I shop at a local farmer’s market and collect vintage dishes (1970’s daisies are my fav) and eat plant based. I will admit that my fridge looks somewhat similar to those photos on Saturdays after I have been to the market. My spouse and I are empty nesters; my spouse likely doesn’t even know our home has a kitchen attached to it. It is just me using the fridge and eating at home. I absolutely love how clean and organized and visually appealing the produce is in my fridge. I don’t have actual flowers in my fridge, but most of my dishes have flowers on them. It is just a fun part of my Saturday morning routine. Get up and shop at the farmer’s market. Come home and clean fridge and sort and organize and meal plan. 

I think this would be a way more sustainable thing if it’s just one or two people in the house. With a family of five, it would last all of half a day, if that. 😆 Plus decor is not my thing, and I just l literally could not be bothered to do it in the first place.

[athena1277]

When I saw the title, I thought people were decorating the outside of the fridge.  While that wouldn’t be my preference, I could see someone want something less boring looking.  But decorating the inside?  That’s just pointless.  

[HomeAgain]

Oh, man.  I read this story last week and it was the first time this has come to my attention: AITA for telling my wife I hate her fridgescaping?

This is a terrible trend.  What is worse, imo, is that future generations are going to be left with grainy photos of this nonsense and think that we actually did this sort of thing and everyone's fridge looked like this.  2024 people are going to be considered to be most ridiculous people since the French revolution. 

My fridge aesthetic is "teen boy lives here".  Anything remotely resembling fat, protein, or carbs are gone, leaving only 1-2 tablespoons in a container or an ounce in the milk carton.  The vegetable drawer is full. There are 9 different kinds of mustard in the door and three bottles of Chinese sauces for stir fry.  Any grocery shopping is fleeting and gone by 10 am the next morning. so it's kind of like a visiting display if you catch it in time.

[regentrude]

My fridge is full. With food, mostly veggies and fruit. Or the occasional pot of leftovers. There's no room for flowers and knick knacks. Aren't those people eating?

[wintermom]

1 minute ago, regentrude said:

My fridge is full. With food, mostly veggies and fruit. Or the occasional pot of leftovers. There's no room for flowers and knick knacks. Aren't those people eating?

I think the people who created the fridgescape in the photo the OP linked have a completely different interpretatin of "full" than I do. Their fridge is making use of every single bit of space and filling it... like a paint-by-number picture that demands that there shall be no white spaces left. 

My eyes hurt looking at that full fridge...  Maybe I have visual distraction syndrom, but I would be scared to open the fidge door for fear of being triggered and go take a nap. 

[Rosie_0801]

8 hours ago, Indigo Blue said:

lol!! Yes, that would work. Would look lovely. I wouldn’t be mad at a lavender Le Creuset pot!

I am. My brother has one and for some reason I find it really, really irritating. 


As for the fridgescaping, I bet the moneyed Victorians would have fridgescaped if they'd had fridges. There was nothing they couldn't frill.

 

[frogger]

I have been complaining about the size of fridges lately. Households decreased in size while fridges became bigger so I can see how this would save energy.

 

Except for pre Thanksgiving or prepping freezer food I tend to keep gallon jugs of water in the BACK of my fridge for thermal mass. If you open an empty fridge all the air rushes out and the fridge will have to recool. If I get a chance I will simply buy a smaller fridge! 

It is a waste of energy with many energy grids struggling to keep up. I don't comprehend people's thinking. 

Edited to add, I home cook meals and have 3 young men living with me (17-24) and I am sorry packs of 5 dozen eggs and 4 gallons of milk at times and not bothering to put leftovers in small containers but just putting in the whole stockpot feels ridiculous. I can't imagine how people with small families can possibly eat that much without food going bad. I know not everyone has an equally large fridge but it is still a very common size. 

Edited August 27 by frogger

[TechWife]

51 minutes ago, HomeAgain said:

…  Any grocery shopping is fleeting and gone by 10 am the next morning. so it's kind of like a visiting display if you catch it in time.

Just like a visiting museum exhibit! 

[wintermom]

28 minutes ago, frogger said:

I have been complaining about the size of fridges lately. Households decreased in size while fridges became bigger so I can see how this would save energy.

 

Except for pre Thanksgiving or prepping freezer food I tend to keep gallon jugs of water in the BACK of my fridge for thermal mass. If you open an empty fridge all the air rushes out and the fridge will have to recool. If I get a chance I will simply buy a smaller fridge! 

It is a waste of energy with many energy grids struggling to keep up. I don't comprehend people's thinking. 

Edited to add, I home cook meals and have 3 young men living with me (17-24) and I am sorry packs of 5 dozen eggs and 4 gallons of milk at times and not bothering to put leftovers in small containers but just putting in the whole stockpot feels ridiculous. I can't imagine how people with small families can possibly eat that much without food going bad. I know not everyone has an equally large fridge but it is still a very common size. 

So true - both about bigger fridges and houses. but the reverse is true about yards - the new developments in my city have almost no outdoor space left, but perfect inddor cooling and heating. So people are stuck indoors, never breathing in fresh air, and rarely popping their heads outside to wave to their neighbour. 

[alisoncooks]

2 hours ago, regentrude said:

My fridge is full. With food, mostly veggies and fruit. Or the occasional pot of leftovers. There's no room for flowers and knick knacks. Aren't those people eating?

Same! I’m constantly balancing storage containers on top of condiments because I’ve run out of room. Dd came home from a meeting last night with a huge leftover tray of fruit, hollering down the hall about where she should put it. Um….idk?! Play some fridge Tetris and figure it out. Just make sure nothing falls out when the door opens!

(Disclaimer: our fridge is clean and I don’t keep leftovers more than a few day. We just eat lots of produce, DH eats a completely different diet than the kids and I, plus I meal prep oldest DD’s work lunches.) 

Edited August 28 by alisoncooks

[*****]

And I thought this younger generation were 'minimalists'.  For a group of people who do not want to keep their parents 'things', this seems totally the opposite of what I've been hearing. Why collect all these old pieces (yes some are cute and pretty), only to keep them closed away most of the time?! Display them on the shelf like your grandmother did and enjoy them!!

[frogger]

7 hours ago, ***** said:

And I thought this younger generation were 'minimalists'.  For a group of people who do not want to keep their parents 'things', this seems totally the opposite of what I've been hearing. Why collect all these old pieces (yes some are cute and pretty), only to keep them closed away most of the time?! Display them on the shelf like your grandmother did and enjoy them!!

I doubt many of the next generation is doing this. Probably a very tiny percentage out of the people who can afford a large fridge. Most of the next generation is trying to keep a roof over their head.

[Ann.without.an.e]

This doesn’t work if you actually eat at home a lot and need to store … leftovers, food, condiments, etc 😅

I look at this trend of taking milk and such and putting it into glass to make it look pretty and I feel like it is a slap in the face to families who can barely afford to put food in their fridge? 
That being said, my milk is in a glass container because I make my own lol. 

[Eos]

On 8/27/2024 at 12:18 PM, Indigo Blue said:

So…I decided to have a go

 

Dying...the lit candles!

My kids and I had this in our group chat the day it came out and had some good laughs about things that have been in our "fridgescape" over the years.

[Kanin]

This is so ridiculous and hilarious 😂 Who has this much free time?

I'm definitely going to spend an hour look at photos, though, soooo... maybe I have enough free time. 

[Kanin]

On 8/27/2024 at 12:18 PM, Indigo Blue said:

So…I decided to have a go

 

OMG 😅 What did your family think?

[Indigo Blue]

7 minutes ago, Kanin said:

OMG 😅 What did your family think?

Oh goodness…I did that during the day while Dh was at work! He would have thought I had lost my mind! 

[elegantlion]

Maybe its to hide the fact we can no longer afford to stock the fridge with food. I'm not sure what vibe my fridge is giving off, probably something dark & gothic like "The Fridge of Amontillado." Not sure what it is but there's something dying behind a wall of fresh food. 

[KungFuPanda]

Maybe it’s for those newer fridges that have a see through glass door. I never want one of those. My fridge  is a game of high stakes Tetris most days.