A 'Light-Up' KitchenAid Mixer? I Wasn't Expecting to Find This New Feature So Useful, but Here's Why I Did

When I first heard about the KitchenAid Luminaire, I'll be honest, I was a touch dubious. I mean, has anyone ever really needed their stand mixer to glow in the dark? It all seemed a bit gimmicky to me. But as soon as I saw it in the flesh, glimmering in all of its glory, I knew I'd be eating my words.

You don't have to be a pro baker to know that KitchenAid is one of the best kitchen appliance brands out there. It's the Rolls-Royce of stand mixers, known for its quality, performance, and longevity; you'd be hard-pressed to find a chef who doesn't swear by one. Renowned for quality, yes, but it's not quality alone that's secured KitchenAid its cult-like following; for many, it's all about that iconic design.

First developed back in 1936, the original KitchenAid was designed by Egmont Arens, designer and editor of Vanity Fair, and little has changed in the 60-plus years since. Of course, there have been tweaks and adjustments along the way, but the core design has remained practically unaltered. So, when KitchenAid introduces something new, we take notice. And this glow-in-the-dark, shimmering mixer was pretty hard to ignore.

In many ways, I was probably the prime target for this product — one of the few things I love more than baking is looking at pretty things, and this piece combines my two loves with ease. But, as I've had to remind myself, all that glitters is not gold, and are good looks alone enough to make this product worth it? I put it to the test to find out.

First Impressions

When I think of my childhood modern kitchen, a bright, cherry-red KitchenAid is one of the first images that springs to mind. It was a fixture in my home, always on display, so I wasn't convinced that a new machine could improve on its iconic appeal. However, as soon as I pulled it out of its box and was met with that softly shimmering blue finish, I was won over.

The brand-new finish, Peppercorn Blue, was described as having a 'velvet-like crinkle finish', a textural contrast to the typical ultra-smooth finish we find on KitchenAids. As such, I expected some sort of dimensionality and tactility to it, and, truthfully, I wasn't expecting to like it much. So it was a shock to me that the finish ended up being one of the things I like the most about this product. What the description doesn't capture is the softly shimmering effect this velvet-like crinkle brings.

But this shimmering blue finish is just the warm-up act for the main event: the glowing LED lights integrated within the machine. This is the real selling point, and it's easy to see why. The classic stainless steel bowl is replaced with a fluted glass design, which, when combined with the integrated bowl light, casts a glorious pattern of shadows and light atop your worktops.

It's a lovely, soft, calming shade of blue, too, and when paired with the glowing bowl and the shimmering finish, it looked to me like what Cinderella's dress might look like as a kitchen appliance — the belle of the ball in stand mixers.

What It's Like To Use

Not one to miss an opportunity to make a mess of my kitchen, I immediately put this beauty of a mixer to good use. In order to get a thorough and accurate view of how it is to use, I made a variety of different bakes, testing all the attachments to see how it fared at each task.

Whether it was whipping up a fluffy cream cheese frosting or saving me the arm workout of kneading my sourdough, the KitchenAid Luminaire made every step an absolute breeze.

My last KitchenAid experience was with a machine that my parents had been gifted for their wedding, so it's safe to say there had been quite a few advancements in the 30 years since then, perhaps most notably with the speed selections. Although I never found myself struggling with the old model's speed setting, which ranged from 1-10 in increments of 2, the new and improved settings you'll find with their Artisan Plus mixers are undeniably impressive.

Not only are there an impressive 11 preset speeds available, but for even more control, a simple twist of the knob allows you to switch over to Precision Speed Control, so you can adjust the speed to suit your needs exactly. There's even a handy half-speed setting, perfect for working with the most delicate batters.

The mixer comes with a classic whisk attachment, flat beater, dough hook, and a clever silicone-wrapped beater that scrapes down the bowl as you go; pretty much everything you could ever need for your stand mixer. If you did want even more from your machine, though, this design is compatible with a wide range of KitchenAid add-ons, including a meat grinder and a pasta maker.

The LED light, one of this design's selling points, doesn't just serve an aesthetic purpose; it also comes in surprisingly handy while you're baking, especially if your kitchen lighting leaves something to be desired. It makes the interior of your bowl far easier to see, allowing you to keep track of the state of your batter with far more ease.

It's speedy, smooth, and powerful, all without feeling remotely intimidating or overwhelming to use.

Is The KitchenAid Luminaire Worth It?

Ok, so now let's get into the nitty-gritty: is the KitchenAid Luminaire worth it?

As you can likely tell, I was very much a fan of this machine, but that isn't to say I thought it was entirely without fault.

My one real gripe with this design actually came down to the beautiful fluted glass bowl. Positioned as the selling point, and the reason behind the beautiful illuminated effect it offers, it's the one feature I wasn't completely sold on. Compared to the stainless steel bowl you'd find with a classic KitchenAid, this bowl was considerably heavier, especially when filled with dough or batter, and it made it feel slightly more precarious than I would've liked.

The original bowls came fitted with a sturdy handle, which made transferring the contents into their respective baking vessel relatively easy, but without the grip offered by a handle, I found myself feeling slightly nervous as I attempted to empty the batter from the bowl into the baking tin. There are two lips on either side, which are easy enough to hold on to, but because this large bowl has such a considerable weight to it, it's not really a one-handed task.

There was also something quite nice about the seemingly indestructible nature of a metal bowl, and although I didn't run into any problems, I did find myself feeling slightly nervous about the relative fragility of this fluted glass design.

Despite this, I must admit that the glass design did have its benefits too. Of course, the magnificent patterns of light it cast along my kitchen worktops were the obvious one, but I also enjoyed the fact that I could see exactly what was going on with my batter at any point, and could keep a close eye on any patches that had not been properly incorporated yet.

Finally, to address the elephant in the room, yes, this machine is expensive. At £899, there's no pretending this is a budget purchase. It's a luxury item, and it carries a luxury price tag. But whether or not this machine is worth the cost really comes down to what you're looking for.

It's important to note that the classic Artisan Plus design, which offers all the same features except for the fluted glass bowl and sparkling blue finish, is considerably less expensive, at £699. So, if you're mainly concerned about performance, I would probably suggest sticking to that. However, if you're looking for a complete showstopper design that you'd feel proud to have on full display in your kitchen, it may be worth splashing the extra cash and opting for the gorgeous KitchenAid Luminaire.

After years of trying to keep all our appliances as hidden from view as possible, perhaps the next kitchen appliance trend is all about moving in the opposite direction and embracing hyper-aesthetic appliances that demand to be displayed.

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