a home decor blog, making it pretty one space at a time
Now that it is officially summer, I thought it’d be fun to make a summer bucket list! If you’ve been following along, our family bought a house, but we can’t move in for 3 weeks while we wait to be able to close. I figure that instead of watching the clock tick, I should make the most of our “free” time and have some summer fun! [Read more…]
If you have a piano that you don’t like the color- you can paint it! It only takes a few hours to transform a piano into a masterpiece with some paint. I’ll show you how to skip sanding and update the piano without moving it to create a piece you love. Keep reading for step by step instructions for how to paint a piano.
Growing up, my mom had a beautiful upright piano in our home. She had traded an afghan she knitted for the piano (what a trade!). It was in our living room and she’d play it while we sang.
As we grew up, my sisters and I all took music lessons- my oldest sister Kate learned the piano and the rest of us played the violin. I remember that piano being such a beautiful addition to our home.
Since my sister Kate was the only one who knew how to play the piano, my mom passed the piano on to her when she got a new player grand piano.
My sister has always wanted to paint it a fun color. So I volunteered to help her. I am excited to share the transformation here.
I know that when I shared on my Instagram stories the process of painting the piano, a few people were concerned. If you have a piano that you’re uncomfortable painting, I totally respect that. Here’s what I found out (and the reason I felt totally fine painting this one):
The short answer is no, painting a piano won’t cause a big enough of a change to the sound to notice. That is, as long as you don’t paint the sound board (the back piece in the piano’s case).
From what I’ve read from pianists and tuners, painting a piano won’t hurt the sound at all.
So the next concern I had (and heard) is that painting a piano will ruin its value. However, unlike other antique pieces of furniture, a piano does not increase in value over time. The reason for this is that pianos have lots of pieces and the wear from the constant use means that older pianos aren’t worth much.
So you won’t ruin the value or the sound, but is it wrong to paint over the original wood? Don’t you ruin the history of the piece? I’ll admit, with the first few strokes of paint, I felt a little bad covering up the old wood. To be honest though, some of the wood was beautiful, but this piano was super beat up!
The bottom line is your house is yours and yours alone. If you want a fun piano, paint it! My sister never felt like this piano was “hers” even though she has had it for years. It sat at the entry of her house and has felt heavy. You do you in your home and don’t worry about what others think!
Make sure the piano is nice and clean so that the paint will adhere to the surface. Since pianos are usually old and lots of hands touch, this is a key step.
To clean, mix 2 Tablespoons of White Lightning or TSP in 1 gallon of hot water. Use a rag dipped in the solution to clean the entire surface of the furniture you’ll be painting. Wipe the piece clean with a damp rag to remove any residue from the cleaner. Let dry prior to painting.
If you’re using chalk paint, there is no need to sand (though you can, if you’d like).
To keep paint where you don’t want it, use painter’s tape to cover up the pedals. We used tape and paper to protect the keys. My sister’s piano has beautiful brass hinges- there wasn’t a way to tape those so we painted them and scraped the paint off at the end. My niece and nephew helped with the painting, so paper was laid on the floor and between the piano and the wall.
Now that the piano is all prepped for paint, start painting your first coat! If you’re going from a super dark wood piano to a light paint, just know that the first coat will be streaky and not look great. Don’t worry! We did Fluff White Chalk Paint for the first coat.
One of the beauties of chalk paint is that it dries quickly (I share the benefits and disadvantages of chalk paint in this post)! Since a piano is so large, by the time a first coat is done, you can start on the second. We mixed Haint Blue Chalk Paint with Fluff White Chalk Paint for the final coats. Two 32 oz. containers will be plenty for a whole piano (but one 32 oz. container won’t be enough- I know because we actually used two 16 oz. containers of paint and it wasn’t enough for a few areas that’ll be finished later- the back of the music stand and by the keys).
I’m not much for distressing paint in my home, but it is totally my sister’s vibe. So we distressed the piano- and I’ll be honest, this was the most fun part of the whole project (besides chatting with my sister for hours)! We used a combination of sand paper and then Popsicle sticks to remove the paint on the edges. The distressing highlighted the beautiful details on the piano. I’m so glad we did it!
At this point, I cleaned off the hinges of paint.
The final step in painting the piano is to add wax. We did a combination of White Wax for the majority of the piano and Grey Grunge Wax to accentuate the carvings and distressing. I applied a light coat, waited 15 minutes for it to dry, and then wiped it off with a clean cloth.
It looked terrible before the the wax was wiped off (the finish looked super uneven and the grey was overwhelming), but when it was wiped clean, it looked amazing.
We prepped and painted the piano in 4 hours. The distressing and waxing took 3 hours. I’d plan for 8 hours. We did it in 2 days, but you could definitely spread it out more than that.
Guys, I am so, so happy with how it turned out! It feels like the perfect fit for my sister’s home. Most of all, I’ve thrilled that my sister loves it! She picked out the color and it was fun to make her vision a reality. My sister has a beautiful home (I was lucky enough to redo her guest room last year) and it was fun to help to paint the piano with her.
How cute is the piano with her wallpaper in the foyer?!
I cut some roses for these photos. They were practically dead, but I still think they were pretty!
If this is a project you are wanting to tackle, let me tell you, you can do it! Yes, it takes time and the waxing takes a bit of elbow grease, but it is worth it to have an item in your house that is both beautiful and functional.
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Drum roll please!!!! Today is the day I share the details on my new (super old) house that we’ll be moving into shortly! I want to share some back story and a lot of details, but before I do, here’s an exterior photo- isn’t she a cutie?!
[Read more…]
Last week I posted my top tips on how to decorate when you’re renting. When I shared it on Instagram, I got the question about how to update a your rental kitchen and get your deposit back. With the kitchen we rented, we really lucked out on because it was recently redone and nice and neutral (the only thing I did was switch out the lighting). But I think usually, rental kitchens are one of the trickier parts of not owning!
I am of the school of thought that you should love where you live. Even if its temporary. I believe that making your home feel special is never a waste of money because it effects your quality of life. So if you’re renting somewhere 6 months or 6 years, here are some ideas to spruce up your kitchen.
First up, let’s tackle the fridge. This is actually a really fun project because there are so many options! If you want to keep things neutral, you can cover the fridge in Stainless Steel contact paper and instantly give your appliances (yes, this’ll work on your dishwasher too!) an instant upgrade. Plus one roll is less than $20 (and available on Amazon)!
You can add any style of contact paper or removable wallpaper and your fridge will be completely transformed. How great does this patterned fridge look?!
I really love the idea of making the fridge a focal point with pattern. Kitchens can be so serious, why not shake things up?! On Etsy, there are some super affordable options. This striped one is my favorite for $45 and you can customize the size to work with your fridge. This would also work great if you own and want to add personality to your kitchen.
If I had had time in my rental kitchen, this is the upgrade I would have done (the walls were just white with no back splash). For a renter friendly back splash, you have two options- you can go for a peel and stick removable tile or removable wallpaper. My favorite idea is to add removable subway tile wallpaper. Subway tile is so timeless and will look beautiful in any kitchen. Plus these are available from Target (aka an excuse for a Target run). This peel and stick subway tile from Amazon looks pretty good too.
Of course, if you want to add some color and personality, a back splash is another place to inject that in! Why not add a flower pattern? Or faux penny tile? I think this lemon wallpaper would be perfect too!
When I saw Brady Tolbert’s kitchen makeover, I was so inspired! Who would have thought to cover existing ugly floors with peel and stick tile?! The beauty of this stuff if that you just need scissors and a ruler to install and completely transform your room.
Peel and stick tiles usually come in 12″ squares and are $0.50- $1.00 a piece. That is so much bang for your buck! I’ve used it many times and am always pleasantly surprised at how quickly it can be installed. I found some affordable choices on Amazon options that I love- this triangle pattern that mimics the look of concrete tile is great. This wood hexagon tile looks super high end. Lastly, I think this diamond black and white pattern is super classic.
My bet is that most rental kitchens out there don’t have the ideal cabinet color or and super banged up. You might see a recurring pattern, but contact paper is a great way to cover up this problem! Did you know that you can also cover cabinets with contact paper?! This will work best if you have a flat cabinet door and drawers. There is even a company called Panyl who’ll cut over-sized contact paper in custom sizes so all you have to do is install.
If you are wanting a more open kitchen but can’t install floating shelves, I have a free and easy option for you! Take off the doors of the cabinets that you want that open feel. I’d personally suggest the dishes cabinet so you can show those off. Store the doors out of sight and you’ll get a breezy feeling immediately!
The last surface in a kitchen that I think could use some updating are the counter tops. If you have laminate counters that you don’t love, there’s a contact paper for that! I’m a light and bright kitchen lover, so this marble look with grey veining is calling my name. There’s also some warmer options with yellow veining and a wood contact paper option.
Never estimate the power of adding the right details! There are so many ways to add the perfect layers to a kitchen and, bonus points, you can bring most of these with you when you move!
You can switch out the cabinet hardware, install new lights, add a perfectly vintage runner, display your favorite (pretty) cookbooks, and add some life with greenary. I promise you that a cute tea towel and fun magnets seem like not a big deal, but they’ll make you smile when you see them, so they’re worth it!
If your rental kitchen is at all lacking visually, I am hoping these tips are helpful! I think it’d be so fun to completely redo a kitchen with $300 in a weekend. Isn’t it exciting that almost every surface can be updated on a budget AND in a way that you can get your budget back?! Let me know if you tackle your space with any of these ideas- I’d love to see it!
This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.
Here’s the short version of how we sold our house- we moved out of our condo on Monday morning. That night it went on the market. On Tuesday and Wednesday we had 35 showings. By Thursday we had 8 offers. Friday we had a bidding war going on. By the following Monday our condo was under contract for $10k over the asking price. [Read more…]
When I first redecorating my home a few years ago, I had the idea to add some pops of pink. The problem? I have a husband who doesn’t like pink. As you may know, over time I’ve added tons of pink to our decor, but I had to work up to that. [Read more…]
For the last 4 months we’ve been living in a rental. After owning and fixing up our condo for the past 9 years, it took some getting used to! BUT I was determined to figure out ways to make this cute house 100% mine. I thought I’d share my tips on how to decorate a rental. [Read more…]
Its the end of May which means our time in Florida is drawing to an end- sob! We are headed back to Utah in a few weeks to live closer to family. I’ve had so much fun decorating this home! I wanted to share it in its entirety so I took pictures of each room so I could share a full home tour. [Read more…]
2.5 years ago I started my blog and I have loved having it. I thought I would write a post with the things that helped me MOST as I’ve figured things out in this blogging world. Frequently, I get emails and direct messages asking these questions so I thought it was finally time to write it all out. [Read more…]
A few weeks ago I shared how boring our master bedroom is and how I’ve been trying to refresh it. The big thing I was missing in the bedroom was pattern. It was too tone on tone for me and I needed a big dose of happy color! I’m a girl who loves making a room interesting through pattern so I thought I’d give some tips on how to mix pattern when decorating.
