A self-heating butter knife is great, since it will melt the butter all on its own, making it easy to spread on your slice of bread every morning. If using power to lather your breakfast in butter sounds overkill, however, you might want to turn your attention to the ButterUp instead.
Designed by Sacha Pantschenko, Norman Oliveria, and Craig Andrews, it’s a clever redesign of the classic butter knife. While it looks like a regular butter knife at first glance, it comes with holes along the spreading edge, which you can use to “grate” the butter the same way you do with cheese. The grated ribbons of butter, then, is what you spread on your bread – a way easier proposition than the cold slab of butter you would normally use.
The ButterUp’s grater will both aerate and soften up the butter as it’s picked up, ensuring it spreads easily along any surface you want it on. Whether that’s a soft slice of bread, some equally cold pancakes, or leftover wafflesicles from last night, this thing should do the trick, even with the butter coming straight out of the fridge. The grater holes, by the way, have been specially-designed so people won’t come into contact with the sharp edges when washing them, so it’s safe whether for cleaning up by hand or throwing in the dishwasher. Other features include a broad spreading blade (for better collection of butter and easier spreading) and stainless steel construction.
A successfully-funded Kickstarter campaign is currently running for the ButterUp. Pledges to reserve a unit starts at $12 AUD.