Friday, May 23, 2008

Refinish a Piano in 3 easy steps

If by chance someone gives you an old piano, that looks slightly more than the oh-so-fashionable distressed look, and you think, "Hey, I'll just refinish it. Presto! Viola! Beautiful!" Try thinking a little bit harder.
This is exactly what happened to us. I was so thrilled when Mike's old home teachee bought himself a baby grand and donated his old very distressed upright to us. Mike was not so thrilled when he had to move it up the stairs. We are now indebted forever to5 muscular men (including Mike). Mike has said that the piano is never, ever moving again. Not even when we move.
Well, I got it into my head that I would refinish the piano. Presto! Viola! Beautiful!
One year after starting, and after inhaling toxic paint stripper fumes, and thinking of many funny jokes about how we own lots of "stripper(s)" , I have reached the sanding phase, and I am thinking, "Presto! Viola! Stupid Piano. Stupid Stephanie."
Here is my progress after 2 hours of sanding during nap time the other day. This is going to take me forever. For-ev-er (Sandlot style).
In case you too, are thinking of refinishing your old upright here are some steps to make it easier:
1. Throw away all sanity.
2. Give your piano away to a carpenter that does things like refinishing for a living in his large shop out back.
3. Spend your tax rebate on a new piano, that someone else has finished and that your husband will agree to move with you when you move.

Presto! Viola! Beautiful!

3 comments:

Em Russ said...

ha ha! I too had an old given to me piano. I thought about refinishing it but had twins instead (and ended up giving it away because I needed those precious feet of floorspace more than I needed to play the piano in my spare time which is... uhm, never!!) And I, for one, would LOVE to hear your stripper jokes! Just the idea of it makes me laugh. You could always just paint the piano a nice black color or something!!

ROBYN -N- KEVIN said...

Will you do mine next?? But I still have another move out of the storage and into a house. And I am forever indebted to the same 5 guys... gotta love those Chamber/Creager/Cox men!

kristi lou said...

STEPH! you are so funny! I miss you!