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.

Comments

Donna, what a great idea to dress up a mixer. Thanks for sharing this idea at the party. I would love for you to add a link to my blog in your post. thanks
Good to think about Mixer dress.Its looking cool and interesting too.I am gonna do it for my mixer as well as juicer.
Susie said…
Awesome idea. Thanks for sharing about the Silhouette SD. I got one for Christmas and I'm having a time learning to use it. :)
MORE MORE. LOL,
Thanks,
Susie
Oh what a great idea! I have some beautiful small appliances (that I love) but are put away and hidden for the exact same reason, they just don't work with my kitchen. I can't wait to get started, my kitchen is going to come alive.
Maranda said…
This is awesome! Love it
Unknown said…
Your mixer looks great!
Unknown said…
What a fab idea! I came across your post through One Pretty Thing. I got a Silhouette SD for Christmas as well and just ordered some vinyl. I will be bookmarking this so I can reference it when the time comes to do my own Kitchen Aid Mixer! Yay!
Megan said…
Super cute! Looks so fancy and custom! I love it.
Crystal said…
You are awesome! I have a light blue one just waiting for some white decals!
Donna's Daze said…
I would love to see everyone's pictures when they do their projects. Please send them so I can link them.
Maria said…
LOVE It!!!! And thanks for the publicity! :)
Maggie said…
bah, first of all, i am jealous of your mixer (i want one....but a little out of budget right now ;)). secondly, i am jealous of your personalized mixer! beautiful!
LiveChat85 said…
Nice mixer, very creative modification.

Bosch Mixer