Decorating Around an Upright Piano, Pictures of Pianos in Rooms

When I started researching upright pianos a couple of weeks ago, I learned what to look for in a used piano.  Before then, I would see a piano at the thrift store, and I would just blank out--no idea how to value the thing!  Now, I can share my knowledge with you.

There are 3 expensive things to replace in a piano: the sound board, the pins, and the strings.  There are some things that aren't that expensive to replace: keys and hammers.  Also, pianos only last about 50 years until needing a lot of replacement parts.  I learned all of this by watching a great You Tube video series by a used piano dealer, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fysDlZ6B8lc.  Definitely learn more about these things before you buy a used piano!!  But here, I'm not going to write more than that--this is a decorating blog.  What is relevant to both piano sound and value AND decorating is SIZE.

In general, the bigger the piano, the better the sound quality, the more it weighs, and the more it costs.  They are all similar depths and lengths, but the height is what changes.  There are 4 heights of vertical/upright pianos: spinet, console, studio, and upright . . .  Keep in mind that the older the piano, the more chances there are for expensive repairs.  Studios and consoles aren't that old right now in the used piano market.  Spinets are second oldest; uprights are the very oldest.

designmom.com, "Painted Piano"

delightingintoday.com, "Decorating My Piano for Fall"

thisdustyhouse.com, "Ivories and Sentimentality"; design by Olga Adler

littlebirdiesecrets.blogspot.com, "10 Interior Design Tips"

designsponge.com, "Sneak Peak: Diane Toepfer of Ferdinand Home"

thankevann.com, "Our 2010 St Joseph Altar"

houzz.com, by Elad Gonen and Zeev Beech

thisdustyhouse.com, "Ivories and Sentimentality"; designer Andrea Schumacher

addicted2decorating.com, "Cassandra's Painted Piano"

decoratewithalittlebit.com, "Interior Windows, Part 1"

There are great tutorials online about the sound board (the piece of wood that you can see on the back of the piano), strings, pins, keys & hammers, and the case (the outside furniture part of the piano).  Here are some websites that I found helpful, and used to make this blog post:

THIS WAS A GREAT VIDEO SERIES: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fysDlZ6B8lc

REFERENCE WEBSITES:
http://www.mathispiano.com

http://www.bluebookofpianos.com

http://blog.houstonpianocompany.com

http://www.usedpianobuyersguide.com

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piano#Upright_.28vertical.29