apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I'm very wary of items that will sit out on the counter and need constant cleaning. The grease concern would probably prevent me from buying one of these. I have a wooden knife stand that has differently sized openings, meaning the same knife is always in the same slot. Doesn't take too long to automatically reach for the right one.

I'm curious why you don't like magnet strips? I'm guessing there are children around, perhaps... We use one and I love it. I grew up with one of those drawer inserts, a wooden one, and it was easy to see which knife was which but I don't have a drawer deep enough and I didn't want a knife block (which always seem like a grime-catcher to me).

No, no kids - just thinking about dust, random spatters, and whatever else happens to land on them. I'm not really that squeamish about germs, to be honest, but while the convenience appeals I just feel odd leaving cutlery completely exposed. Weird, huh?

I know exactly what you mean, Faith. I just don't like the idea of a rack full of sharp stuff hanging there. I've had too many things fall of walls, I guess.

I've been looking for a new knife holder. I've got a knife block. If you get anything down those slots, it's very difficult to clean. I spilled on mine once. The other problem is that we don't always wipe the bread knife, so that slot collects crumbs. (The slots are open at the bottom, so the crumbs fall through and collect underneath.) I really want something that takes up less space. We can't use a drawer one, however, since we only have one drawer in the kitchen!
I'd prefer a counter top one, just one that doesn't take up quite so much room as the regular ones. Anyone out there use one of those under-cabinet ones? Do you like it?

I think knives are much more likely to accumulate dust and dirt in a knife block or in a drawer than on a magnetic rack. Those places aren't cleaned that often, and grime tends to accumulate (I just finished spring cleaning -- and pulled everything out of my flatware drawer, which was rather unpleasant).

That said, people have come over and said that my magnetic knife rack is kind of intimidating. I think the clear blocks wouldn't necessarily deal with that issue, but at least it looks like these models can be cleaned on the inside.

I've got a Global chef's knife that I keep in a drawer with one of those cheap plastic covers on it. I think if I ever reorganize, I'll go that route with all my bigger knives, so I don't have to get creeped out looking at them on the magnetic strip any more.