Decorating with Musical Instruments

I need reader contributions for this page. If you currently have musical instruments proudly displayed in your home, please email me with pictures and story.

After seeing a few cute things on TV, and in a book, and then at my friend's house. I realized that Musical instruments, although functional, are also absolutely beautiful. Why hide these things away in closets or in their cases when they could be displayed proudly in living rooms and foyers and even bathrooms. Now, I realize that sometimes instruments must be kept in their cases for preservation reasons, but many times, instruments are no longer played, or are in disrepair. Why throw them out or even sell them? Display them. I've seen brass horns turned into planters on a front door, and Flutes turned into lamps. I'll attempt to show some ideas on this page. If you have any ideas or are using musical instruments as decoration in your home, please email me with a picture.

I'm not just talking about the piano in the corner, Instruments can be turned into lamps, shelves, planters, tables,even garden art. Old sheet music can be framed and displayed, or decopaged onto a lamp shade or old trunk (as seen below). Many of these items could be easily made with basic crafting skills. Enjoy, and I hope to be adding more pictures soon.

Back to main Trash to Treasure Page

Added 11/10/07

This is a beautiful display I saw at an antique store recently. It could easily be adapted for the home.
Credit to: "Not Your Typical White Trash", Lorraine White Owner

Salvage Chick shares these musical instrument ideas
You can see more at her store here

"I can't get the Little Drummer Boy song out of my head since I created this centerpiece today out of an old snare drum and some ornaments! It is the perfect complement to the Bass Drum I use for a coffee table in my sunroom."

"One year for Christmas I bought the sheet music from our wedding song "Until There Was You" from the Music Man, and then found a bunch in complementary colors in the stash in my shop. My husband was chuckling that I managed to put together a medley of songs like "Three O'Clock in the Morning", "Gee But I Hate to Go Home Alone", etc. There's even "Don't Fence Me In"... It turned out really cute!"

des arc ya ya, from Garden Web did this display above her cabinets in her kitchen.

Added 5/14/07

Musical instruments on display in my Friend, Penny's house.

Reader Contributions

Added 5/14/07

mojojojogrlnj, from Garden Web made this table using old sheet music

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Added 5/14/07

And lilym made this box with old sheet music

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Rosemary uses this Cello, fireside

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There is a great story behind this piano, I urge you to read it

When I saw your section for music I thought you would like to see what my husband and I did. Here is a little background about this piano. My mother's mother Ina Hattie died at a young age of 49, so the piano got passed to the second daughter who is my Aunt DiAnne, she inherited my Grandmother's musical talent so it was only natural that it should go to her. It remained in her family many years, her children and her grandchildren played this piano. Then one day my Aunt was on vacation when they had a big water leak destroying many things including the piano. When it dried out it they keys fell apart and it warped a little when I heard about it I told her to recycle it. Well it ended up in my garage. So one day we tore it apart , it moaned and groaned horribly. We have torn down house's before and this thing kicked our butts so to speak. We took what we could and made this trunk and got two lamps out of it , still have some of the wood left hope to come up with some more ideas for it. The more I thought about this piano trunk the more I knew it had to have a story to go with it so with some help from my sister we came up with a poem then inside of the lid I put my Grandmother's picture and the poem side by side. Then I gave it to my Mother for Mother's Day. Thank you for letting me share, Clydene

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Nancy's Instrument Display/Curio Cabinet

Nancy Writes: "The violin is a quarter size, played by my son, hand-made by his great grandpa. The guitar is my husband's. Since it is out of the case, he now plays it more often."

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Fellow Decorator Laura, uses a Psaltery to accessorize this entry hall table.

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Chella, tells the story of this Dulcimer displayed in her home.

"I'm not really liking the pics I took. The piano looks cheap. We left our upright grand behind at our last move. We want to get some old dulcimer music framed and hung by the dulcimer. Some of our family lived in Eastern Tennessee and brought this West with them. When I moved from idaho to Tennessee, I decided I needed this little treasure as a keepsake."

These 3 books are my favorites and they are full of inspiration and ideas

Table of Contents:

Main Projects Page

T2T Furniture Ideas

New life for old luggage

Projects with old shutters

Projects for old windows and doors

How to make lamp from almost anything

Projects for Old Balusters, Spindles, and Porch Posts

Garden Benches from Old Beds and Cribs

Quick Projects

Past Projects/Artists of the week