Kitchen Aid Make-over with help from my Silhouette SD

I love, love, love my Kitchen Aid Mixer. I bought it several houses ago at an outlet center when I had an all white kitchen.  My latest kitchen has a lot of black and stainless steel, so it kind of sticks out like a sore thumb on the counter.  I'm also a huge fan of Alton Brown.  He's got an awesome Kitchen Aid personalized with flames painted on it.



Photo credit: Food Network
Good Eats



So when I saw Maria's Kitchen Aid makeover with paint at You Craft Me Up, I knew it was something that was doable.  Maria went all out and painted her white mixer black. 



Photo Credit: You Craft Me Up

That was a little bit more than I wanted to tackle.  I didn't want to commit to a color that I might not like in few years.  Plus, I wanted the option of being able to change the design as the mood strikes me.

Enter, my Silhouette SD.  I've raved in the past few weeks how much I love this thing. I knew I would be able to use it to cut my vinyl to create a great big sticker for my project.  I chose a flourish from the standard designs that come on with the machine. Hint: a design with lots of curves will transfer better on a curved surface such as the Kitchen Aid than one with lots of straight edges.

I then re sized the flourish to fit within the open area above the band.  In my case, that was 7.5 inches wide by 2.5 inches high.

Once you are pleased with your dimensions, replicate the design below the original.

Select the new flourish and mirror it horizontally.

Because I was going to use a scrap of left over vinyl from another project, I decided to attach the vinyl to the carrier sheet.  Pieces of painters tape in the corners help it lay flat and keep it stuck more securely to the carrier sheet.

When you are ready, choose the appropriate cutting settings and send your design to your Silhouette SD .

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After your vinyl has been cut, remove the excess.

Cut a piece of transfer tape big enough to give you a border around your edges. This will help you with positioning later on.

Once you have secured your transfer tape, go ahead and cut the two designs apart.

Now, on to your machine.  Clean it thoroughly before trying to adhere your vinyl.  After I did the usual cleaning, I followed up with rubbing alcohol and a rough wash cloth to make sure there was no oily residue on my transfer area.

Now you are ready to adhere your vinyl.  Play with the placement of your design until you are happy with it.  If you've left a good border around your paper, you will be able to pick it up and reposition it at will.  When you are satisfied, remove your paper backing. Use your flat edged tool to help adhere the vinyl pieces to your mixer.

Remove the transfer paper and Voila!  A whole new, personalized look for your Kitchen Aid.

This project is linked to:

Truly Lovely with the Lanely Sisters.