Limited-Edition iio Refrigerators
We first started working with iio™ (formerly Chambers) in spring of 2021 to help them expand their color options of their “Retro”, “Retro-Mod”, “Vintage”, and “Fun” refrigerator models. The idea was to offer colors that were frequently requested but not high-enough demand for full production runs, as well as specialty/limited edition colors.
Prototypes: Cast Car Wrap Vinyls
The first time wrapping the iio™ Retro-Mod refrigerator in 3M 2080 Sky Blue vinyl.
The first few test units were wrapped in 3M 1080/2080 car wrap vinyl. iio sent us one of each model of fridge to do mockup-installs on, and picked out some potential color options from the 3M 2080 catalog. The material applied beautifully, but the limitation of what colors were produced in matte or gloss, some but not all colors being metallic or solid color, and the general material shortages caused by the Covid-19 pandemic pushed us to look at other options.
Made-To-Order Custom Colors
If a pre-fabbed material isn’t available, the next best thing is making it yourself. Using our 7-color HP Latex 700w printer, we got to work picking and prototyping shades of color that we could print in-house on-demand.
We thought, “If someone wants a fun-colored appliance, what are they potentially matching it to? Probably their paint choice(s) on their walls.” Luckily Sherwin Williams, one of the largest paint manufacturers/sellers in the US, publishes their paint color codes in #Hex format. We chose a limited number of colors from their paint spectrum that fit inside the printable color space, or “gamut” of wide format printing. Of course there’s always going to be a difference in appearance from paint pigments to latex ink pigments, and differences caused by matte vs. egg shell finishes, but with their #Hex numbers we knew we’d be getting pretty close to their dry-paint finishes.
Limited Edition Units (Custom Designs)
We didn’t want to just call it a day when we had the solid colors nailed down. After all, we have access to professional design software and a wide format printer than can print just about anything. So, we decided to lean into the retro styling and shiny chrome accents and come up with brand new custom designs just for these units. Luckily we still had those original solid color mockup units sitting around that we could strip and start fresh, and now we’re making them available for sale as truly one-of-a-kind show pieces.
“Now Showing” Home Theater Fridge (iio Fun)
The first unit we had ready for a custom wrap was the smallest “Fun” fridge - in brainstorming, we realized a perfect spot for a fridge of this size would be someone’s theater room, and thus the “Now Showing” fridge wrap was born. For a little bit of extra flair, we added LED strip-lighting to the back of the fridge.
This design is customizable - put whatever theater name you want on the front, and pick from different side graphic options (more are on the way).
The marquee sign on the refrigerator-portion door is also dry erase! Write in your own family movie night show times or funny messages, or leave reminders to buy more popcorn!
British Phone Booth Refrigerator (iio Retro-Mod)
While showing off the iio Fun-turned-theater-fridge above, the President of iio James Brown mentioned how he had seen other manufacturers with their own refrigerators wrapped to look like one of the iconic red British phone booths. “Well that’ll be easy!” we thought, since we already have that design set up and regularly print it for our DIY customers.
After using a bit of elbow grease to remove the old 3M 2080 Sky Blue vinyl, we got to work re-smoothing the surface that had been damaged in transit the first time (all of the white you see on this maroon-red fridge is 3M glazing putty and sanded smooth), before wrapping it in this classic print. The boxy nature of this fridge really lent itself to a phone booth look, and we think the less-shiny brushed metal handles of the Retro-Mod tie into this design quite beautifully - if only we could turn them vertical!
This design is customizable - customers often request having their own personal travel photos placed postcard-style into the glass of the door. You can see how that looks here.
Want to wrap your own fridge in this design? Check it out here.
More Coming Soon!
Interested in owning one of the Limited Edition fridges? Contact us using the form below for a quote.
