sporky_rat: Grommit knitting from 'Wallace and Grommit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit' (knitting)
lady sporky rat of the ms holding and sporkington ([personal profile] sporky_rat) wrote in [community profile] knitting2010-09-26 11:12 am
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It's like the 1970's Home Ec around these parts!

Okay, I know this is going to sound like the dorkiest project ever, but anyone ever knitted a Stand Mixer Cozy? I need something to cover my pride and joy (a bright, candy apple red KitchenAid stand mixer) because it sits next to the stove and I'm going to admit, I'm lazy enough that I don't want to wipe it down every time I cook something. Lazy. Lazy. Or really smart? You decide.

Any suggestions are welcome!
katemonkey: Cougar gives a thumbs up (cougar thumbs up)

[personal profile] katemonkey 2010-09-26 04:40 pm (UTC)(link)
No, that makes total sense - my mother-in-law's mixer has a big plastic cover that keeps it clean while it sits on the shelf.

All you would really need to do is measure it, work out the right height and width needed, and then either do the two-pieces sewn together or the like-a-hat-but-not with a circular.

I'd say you could take a teapot cosy pattern and make it larger/longer as needed, and just making sure the spout bit is sewn up.
seryn: skein of green yarn (yarn)

[personal profile] seryn 2010-09-26 06:12 pm (UTC)(link)
I'd want something washable. They used to sell them made from the kind of fabric for family-use picnic tablecloths, where it's plasticky on the outside but almost felt on the inside. It could be wiped down with a cloth for minor cleanup or tossed in the washer. But also the fabric itself was stiff enough to stand on its own.

Having a mixer cover seems like a good idea to me. (I use one of those fancy painted dishtowels on mine, so I don't have to wash everything before and after using it.) But I think you need to be looking at practicality and functionality. Since this is right next to your stove, it's going to need cleaning, so you're going to want something washable. But it's right next to your stove, so you don't want something that can catch fire. (No acrylic yarn!) It's hard to get yarn that will never fuzz over time (fire hazard) and most knitted objects don't stand up well to being tossed in the washer.

So, I'd say if you want to knit a cover for your mixer, you should keep it somewhere other than next to the stove. And since you love seeing the mixer, probably if you moved it, you wouldn't need to knit a cover.

The other thing is asking yourself if the pre-made covers available for sale are going to suit you better in addition to being less expensive than a sweater's worth of yarn. (Those mixers are big around, and about torso height, it really will take as much work and yarn as the body of a sweater.)
evilawyer: young black-tailed prairie dog at SF Zoo (Default)

[personal profile] evilawyer 2010-09-26 07:03 pm (UTC)(link)
Makes sense to me! I knitted a cover for a wine decanter for the very same reason.
jumpuphigh: Pigeon with text "jumpuphigh" (Default)

[personal profile] jumpuphigh 2010-09-26 07:05 pm (UTC)(link)
This sounds like a fun project. You can get cotton yarn in big spools fairly cheap from places online.
pinesandmaples: A vintage seed packet showing a drawing of a coconut tree. (theme: seeds)

[personal profile] pinesandmaples 2010-09-26 07:20 pm (UTC)(link)
I would not knit one. I would sew it because grease on the knit fabric? No.

[personal profile] hivesofactivity 2010-09-26 10:27 pm (UTC)(link)
If it is right by the stove, and you think fire resistant, easily launderable material is a good idea, you could just buy a fire-resistant t-shirt and cut it up to make your own. (If you are in the UK, there's one here for about £20: http://www.ace-safetywear.co.uk/store/click-fire-retardant-protex-t-shirt-s-s-navy.html)

I presume fire-resistant knitting yarn must exist, somewhere, but I've never seen it.
vilakins: Vila in a space helmet (safe)

[personal profile] vilakins 2010-09-27 12:08 am (UTC)(link)
I think I'd go for sewing a thick clear plastic cover: so easy to wipe down, and you can still see the lovely apple-red. :-)
ironed_orchid: watercolour and pen style sketch of a brown tabby cat curl up with her head looking up at the viewer and her front paw stretched out on the left (Default)

[personal profile] ironed_orchid 2010-09-27 12:33 am (UTC)(link)
I would rather wipe down a shiny surface than handwash a knmitted item which has absorbed grease.