Unique, unusual, unexpected housewares at big show

EDLENTY of new and improved l- housewares products are available for retailers to stock their shelves with in the coming months,to tempt increased consumer spending which everybody looks to for turning the economy around.

Here are a few of the extraordinary, why-didn't-I-think-of-that items displayed by the 1,827 exhibitors at the 78th National Housewares Manufacturers Association International Housewares Exposition in Chicago last month. Some are strictly for fun, while others meet a real need.

Just in case you think it will take more than a few clever gadgets to turn the economy around, you will be interested in Ronald A. Fippinger's saying that the housewares industry is facing a positive turnaround period with the start of 1983.

The managing director of the National Housewares Manufacturer's Association said, "Plenty of optimism abounds despite the fact that the economy's latest recession has run longer and deeper than any since the Great Depression, and has finally caught up with housewares.

"Better than expected Christmas and year-end sales figures have put retailers in an upbeat frame of mind," he continued, "and manufacturers, retailers and wholesalers alike, closed their books on 1982 in better shape over-all than many other segments of the nation's economy in these down times."

Now, for some of the innovative products seen at the show: o A Travel Carver that combines a slicing knife, cutting board andcase all-in-one, with the plastic, fold-up carrying case becoming the board on which to carve. o Magnagrip magnetic accessories that include a towel bar which mounts on the side of a refrigerator, stove or other steel kitchen appliance, and has hooks on both ends for pot holders; and a similar gadget rack that has sliding hooks for adjustable spacing of various size kitchen utensils. o A travel alarm displays the exact time in any time zone you visit, while keeping track of the time back home with the flick of a switch. o Audio Visual Time is a talking clock that features simulated Westminster chimes and "His" and "Her" dual alarms. a A pocket-size, batteryoperated electronic timer times from 100 minutes all the way down to a single second. o Four-in-One lantern is a combination spot light, signal flash, fluorescent lantern and bug killer which can operate off batteries or a

Story at a Glance

Magnetic kitchen accessories . . . 4-in-1 lantern talking clock... table in a bag ... battery operated scrub brush new, dif f erent, zany housewares displayed at International Housewares Exposition.

l2-foot cord that plugs into an automobile dashboard cigarette lighter.

o Compu-Station is a personal computer table designed for home use, with a storage module that has a lock and key for safekeeping of program tapes, manuals, disks and other computer media.

o The ltty Bitty booklight is a lamp that weighs only four ounces, clips onto the back of a hard or soft cover book to flood the page with bright light that does not disturb the reader's bed partner.

o The Table in a Bag is a 3O-inchsquare slat wood table with removable legs and cross braces. The table can be rolled up to fit into its own drawstring carrying bag.

o A battery-charged, cordless Scrub Brusher can be used wet or dry for up to 30 minutes of scrubbing without recharging.

o An Every Which Way window cleaner has a telescopic handle with a 360o universal joint, so it reaches everywhere on the outside from the safety of the inside.

o Do-it-yourself, porcelain-onsteel patterned cookware assembles with a regular screwdriver. The handles, knobs, flameguards and screws come in a separate plastic bag, along with easy-to-follow instructions.

o Compucal is a full-function diet computer and five-pound scale that weighs individual portions in either U.S. or metric measure, and tells the food composition, including calories, sodium, fat and cholesterol.

o And finally, one manufacturer with atouch of whimsyis introducing an Ice Cream Cone mug and a Pepsi Soda Can mug, both of which are made of plastic but look like the real thing!