Can we talk pianos for one second? I grew up playing sports back when they were free minus the cost of the shoes I needed to wear, which by the way, we purchased using Lay-a-way. If you’re a Gen X or Z-er reading this and wonder what in the world Lay-a-way is…think responsible credit spending coupled with delayed gratification. Notice I did not mention the word credit card. It worked like this.
Step 1: You wanted shoes but didn’t have all the money in your hot little hands.
Step 2: You paid a minimum amount (maybe 10%) of the purchase price and left the shoes at the store. “Bye for now shoes.”
Step 3: Once a month you went to the store to visit your soon-to-be shoes, say ‘hi’ and make a payment.
Step 4: Once the final payment was made you were free to take the shoes home.
I digress…back to the piano…
Playing free sports meant I had time nor money to do the things that I had to pay for, i.e. piano lessons. Couple that with the memory of a very rudimentary education in basic music notes and I know absolutely NOTHING about the piano, which is why if you look closely in the photos you’ll notice there are stickers on the piano keys. Don’t be confused. Those are for me, not for my kiddos.
Not knowing how to play the piano has not meant that I have no interest in them. Wanting my kids to have access to learning, without pushing them to learn something they weren’t initiating meant I was on a personal mission to snag the first free, low-profile piano I could get my hot little hands on so they could play anytime on their own and not just when they were at Grandma’s. Bonus…the piano was delivered TO ME! Bonus, bonus…I have always wanted to paint a piano, which I did here. A light pink piano in a house full of boys…yes please!
The piano, now painted, makes a statement in the room. But the piano STYLED is absolutely gorgeous. So…how do you style a piano? Keep reading.
Anytime you're styling a flat surface like a mantel, bookshelf, or in this case, a piano, you want to think about these things: layers, depth, texture, height and repetition. I call this LDTHR (ladder). Why are each of these important? When all of these elements work together, they create a look that looks lovely and feels effortless. Here's what I mean:
Step by step:
When doing this yourself, start by removing all objects from the flat surface and wipe that bad boy clean.
Next, add the focal point. Generally this is the largest layer. In this case, it's the large picture. My husband and I collect art that has a connection to part of our story. This mountain lake is a real place and the backdrop to our first kiss. Ahhhh! Bonus points if you know where it is!
Now work from the outside in. In this case, left to right. Here I'm adding a vintage lamp made 'new' with a modern lampshade and in this one element I'm starting to add repetition to my room's design. What you don't see in the picture are my brass side tables. The subtle gold pattern on the lampshade repeats what is already happening in the room and the added mustard tassel adds repetition to the mustard in the mountain picture, as well as some mustard making a peek-a-boo appearance in other art across the room.
A mini stack of vintage books does three things: adds a layer of height, a pedestal for the candle, and repeats color from throughout the room (and in the mountain picture) all while serving a purpose. This isn't only beauty for beauty's sake. These are practical too - they're vintage birding books and conveniently located to the backyard door.
Not wanting to have too many things on top of my piano, I'm going to stop after I add one more thing...the plant! The plant's basket adds a lot of texture as well as character and the plant adds a repetition of color, but also...it's a plant and plants make everything look better. But you'll notice in the first photo - I tried one plant and it doesn't quite fit the bill. It's a bit too small. The second one though...the burst of plant tough is just right!
NOPE!
Much better!
But there's still one thing missing...that bench looks REALLY hard.
Much better! And just like that, the piano is styled.
Tag me with your styled pianos on Instagram @figandfarm