Barrett-Jackson is a HUGE event, but it is far from just about cars. In fact it’s about anything that sells for money. Anything. We’re talking mattresses, jewelry, planes, patio furniture, mini booze aging barrels, memorabilia, clothing, cars, trucks, motorhomes, trailers, boats, cabinets, and much, much, more.
And while some of the things for sale, which included vast amounts of food and drinks, were things we’d seen or heard about, there were plenty of things that I had never seen or heard about. It was a riot walking around for the short period that we had to check out the oddities, and here are 11 of them that we thought were worth mentioning.
Truthfully we can’t decide how to rank these, because it could go several different ways. And several are “weird” or ludicrous on different levels. Perhaps they are products you expect to see at a home show, or a craft fair, but Barrett-Jackson? It just kind of made us laugh, and then start trying to figure out how it got to this point. Make no mistake, all these items were cool and high end and we enjoyed looking at them. In no way do they bring the event down really, it’s just that we didn’t expect them. We’ll list the 11 based on when we saw them and our reaction, you decide which is the strangest thing to see at Barrett-Jackson.
Want to see the cars, trucks, and memorabilia that is actually being auctioned off? CLICK HERE TO VISIT BARRET-JACKSON.COM
11. JEWELRY
Yep, it’s not just millions and millions of dollars worth of cars that are on site at Barrett-Jackson, but millions in diamonds as well. There were a bunch of jewelry merchants, ranging from high end diamonds and famous name jewelry to custom one off pieces made just for you. We never imagined we’d find this at Barrett-Jackson and it was the first thing that struck us as odd. All we could figure was that they had jewelry there because men buying jillions of dollars worth of cars needed to also buy their wives something expensive and nice. It sounds sexist, and we know that, but it just might be true.
10. BOATS
I realize they are motorized, but for some reason it seemed odd to us that Mastercraft was on site for Barrett-Jackson. Clearly they know what they are doing, because we drooled all over their boats and dreamt of having one. They also had a guy doing silk screening on shop rags, right there on site. Their boats looked bad ass by the way. And they had way more than just ski boats. I’m warning you, that if you go to their site you will get sucked in and want one.
9. FURNITURE
If we were somewhere like the Grand National Roadster Show, and came upon furniture like the piston table below, we wouldn’t think anything of it. So it was no surprise here at Barrett-Jackson, but the wooden table wasn’t what we were expecting. Custom furniture, very high-end custom furniture, was our first taste into the home decor items we were going to see.
8. CAR RELATED ART
I’m not sure why, but this one I wasn’t really expecting either. Sure it is car related, and I suppose I figured there would be some of it at the event, but it’s location was probably more shocking to me. Actually that might be one of the things that made all these items weirder. They were all right in the middle of the tents of stuff. Cars and each end, car related parts and tools and vendors all around, and then art and all kinds of other items mixed right in the middle.
7. Garage Storage Solutions
This is fitting, we understand, we just weren’t expecting it. But we’re glad we saw it! This is the kind of organization I dream of having in my home garage and in the shop. ProSlat Garage Organization had a bunch of cool stuff on display, including ways to organize all the family stuff AND all your car stuff. And their garage cabinets look cool as hell, featured soft close DOORS and drawers, and seemed like really good quality. We were limited on time while walking the show, so I didn’t get to drool for as long as I would have liked, but Daphne and were both hooked and want this stuff in our warehome.
6. SLOT MACHINES
Yep, slot machines. I guess this one shouldn’t have come as a surprise, given the amount of automotive memorabilia on sale. After all, what would look cooler in the corner of your spiffed up game room or garage than a slot machine, but it still made us laugh. These ones are the high end real deal, not toys. They might be the perfect thing to put a couple bucks a week into, so that when you win the big one years later you have a nice payoff. LOL
5. High End Cupcakes
Food in general, actually. Good food. Both outside and inside the tents there are a lot of food and drink vendors. And while you will find a couple places selling hot dogs, corn dogs, and cheese fries, the majority is better than that. Lots of specialty and and gourmet items. But there is also Chick-Fil-A for those who have to have their chicken. Daphne’s favorite was the gourmet cupcakes. She got the cookies and cream.
4. Gazebos
Calling this a gazebo might actually be an insult. I believe they called them outdoor rooms, and I certainly would love to have one of them in my backyard! Or in my warehome for that matter. Not only did this thing look hight end, but had really cool features like curtains to block out the sun, great seating, great eating, great drinking and a giant TV. What else could you want?
3. Patio Furniture
In truth, calling these Sunset Swings “patio furniture” is an insult. Daphne and I sat in them and talked to the factory rep. These are a “zero gravity” style chair that swings with amazing ease. There are a couple of different styles, but what is really amazing is the fact that they are built in Northern California, feature all Grade 8 hardware, and the sales price includes delivery and assembly. At $1000 these didn’t seem like crazy money to us considering how much regular patio furniture costs, and how nicely they are fabricated. I would own one of these, but I sure didn’t expect to see them in the show.
2. Barbecue Islands
Barbecue Islands?!?! Really? WTF? This one had me laughing as I walked by. Sure they are nice, and I would love to have one, but is this the BBQ and SPA show at the Fairplex? Again, a high end product, and again on paper it makes sense, but it sure didn’t compute to my brain.
I want the giant one with the fridge, separate burners, and a kegorator. Oh and the fire pit in the middle of the table is pretty cool too!
1. Sleep Number Beds
My parents have a Sleep Number bed and I have dreamt of having one myself, but I NEVER expected to see these in the middle of the Barrett-Jackson auction for sale. NEVER. With that said, it was day two of the entire deal and we saw people laying on these suckers from the hit. This was a high end display, befitting the Sleep Number brand. I know how much these beds can go for, and while they do start off reasonably they can also be very expensive. I think it fitting that Daphne and I have one some day since we are all about the Air Ride on our hot rods. Why not on our bed?
My wife and I went to Scottsdale in ’06 and it was the same thing. I realized it’s all relative. When you can drop a hundred grand on a car that you probably will only drive a few times this stuff to them is like you and I buying a t-shirt at the races.