Box Vox

packaging as content

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March 31, 2010

Old Fruit Jar Apps

MasonJarEggBeater

MasonJarBeaterPatent Mason-jar egg-beaters.

Well-known as a DIY, food-preserving container, the mason jar was also the “universal machine” of its day. (In the same way that a computer or an “iPhone” is today’s universal machine.)

With its standardized closures, the mason jar served as the default platform for many 19th Century, third-party apps.

While we’ve already covered some of the more novel applications—(See: Mason Jar Mousetraps and Minnow Traps)—kitchen-related tools like egg-beaters are the more obvious application. (…and butter churns, mixers & coffee grinders, etc.) Inventors developed and patented lots of these
attachments—adding additional functions to the humble, “open source”
container.

If specialized, stand-alone kitchen-appliances hadn’t led us away from this concept, we might all have more kitchen counter space today.

Randy Ludacer
Beach Packaging Design

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