This piano has been in my family since before I was born. Over the years I've developed an enormous amount of sentimental attachment to it. Just looking at it brings back childhood memories of my oldest brother banging out Silver Bells and Here Comes Santa Claus during Christmas holidays. Even though this piano apparently weighs more than an elephant, it has moved to 5 different homes with me. Before my last cross-country move from Georgia to Colorado, I begrudgingly tried to sell it. Then I tried to give it away. Believe me when I say that NO ONE wants a piano over a hundred years old. Secretly relieved, I moved it with me yet again.
As much as I love this old out of tune clunker, it looked dark and heavy where it was strugglingly plopped directly inside the entryway of my new home. I agonized with how I was going to make it work, especially since it's the very first thing visitors see when they walk through the door. Overnight, it seemed that painted pianos were popping up all over Pinterest and I actually lost sleep trying to decide to paint or not to paint.
Well, I am a project person. Eventually Chalk Paint won my inner battle and I've never been happier with the results! Before tackling such a huge piece, I decided to experiment with several other smaller pieces that I would have otherwise kept in storage or discarded. Little by little, by confidence grew and now I have the piano of my dreams. If you're contemplating painting your piano, I'm here to tell you to GO FOR IT!
Here's what my piano looked like before:
I used Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old White that I bought at a dreamy little store in Evergreen, Colorado called Sisters & Company.
The process was surprisingly easy, especially since there is no prep work with chalk paint. There's no need to sand or prime, so all I did to prepare was wipe the piano down with a damp cloth to remove any old dust and grime, and covered the keys and foot pedals with painters tape.
Then I simply started painting the entire surface using an Annie Sloan medium-sized pure bristle brush and let dry completely for about 20 minutes. Here's what it looked like after the first coat.
I ended up applying two coats of chalk paint. And I chose to let the original stained wood show through on some of the details and used sandpaper to lightly distress the edges to add dimension and preserve its aged appearance.
For me, the hardest part was practicing patience and letting the paint cure for 24 hours before applying Annie Sloan Clear Soft Wax in small strokes with an Annie Sloan wax brush and then wiping immediately with a clean, white cloth to seal and protect the chalk paint.
I'm totally in love with the finished product!
Supplies:
Annie Sloan Chalk Paint
Annie Sloan Soft Clear Wax
Annie Sloan Pure Bristle Brush
Annie Sloan Wax Brush
Painters Tape
Drop Cloth
Clean White Cloth
Video Tips & Techniques:
https://www.anniesloan.com/techniques
Here are the pieces that I practiced on before tackling my piano.
