Giving New Life to an Old Sunbeam Mixer

Final Product

My friend knows me so well and appreciates my addiction for anything vintage she saved this 1950's Sunbeam Mixer from going into a dumpster, to give to me. She was cleaning out her grandparents' basement and came across a lot of stuff that needed to be donated and recycled. This mixer was in pretty rough shape and no longer worked but it had my name written all over it! I decided it would be a great accent piece to display in my kitchen but needed to clean it up first.

I went to my nearest hardware store and purchased steel wool, 100 grade sand paper, a plastic painters tarp, and one can of white outdoor-metal spray paint. 

First, I cleaned the mixer with soap and water and removed the old power cord completely. Second, I needed to make the mixer as smooth as I could since the old Sunbeam paint was peeling and rusting. I sanded down the mixer with the steel wool and the 100 grade sand paper the best that I could. Unfortunately, I don't have a great photo of the mixer before I painted it but you can get an idea of how bad it was in the photo below.

Pre-Spray Paint

I broke down the mixer into three parts and began my first coat of spray paint. NOTE: I live in a small apartment and the only outdoor space is my back porch. You must spray paint in a well ventilated area and preferably a space that can get a little messy. The spray paint floats around and often does not stay constrained to the work space. If you can spray paint in your garage or yard that is ideal. Also, where a mask to protect yourself from the fumes. 

In total, I had to spray about three coats to completely cover the mixer. I let the mixer dry for a few hours and gently peeled it off of the plastic painters tarp since the edges were sticking to it.

I found a nice vintage Pyrex bowl and some fun red spoons to decorate the mixer and to match my kitchen. Overall, I spent $20 on this project and truly enjoy the unique piece to display in my kitchen.