Hi guys! It's Cath.
Today I'm going to show you how to build
this gorgeous 1:12 scale miniature upright piano.
Thanks to everyone who requested this video because I had a lot of fun making it!
Let's get started.
The first thing I do is grab a sheet of craft plywood.
This is only 1/8 of an inch thick so I can cut it with just my X-acto knife.
Draw out 4.75 inch by 4 inch rectangle.
Then cut on the lines you drew on both sides and snap the wood off.
This will be the front of the piano.
Make 2 of these. These 2 pieces will be the front and back of the piano.
Then cut out two 4 inch by 1 inch pieces using that same method.
These two rectangles will form the sides of the piano.
For the bottom, we need a ¾ inch by 4.75 inch thin rectangle.
So in summary, we have the front and back pieces
the sides pieces
and the bottom.
Let's assemble them.
Simply add wood glue to the bottom edge of the back piece
and position it at a 90 degree angle to the base.
Do the same for the front piece.
Now just glue on the sides. As usual, I just use Elmer’s wood glue.
This looks good for now, we'll add on a top piece later.
Now, let's get to the fun part of making the piano keyboard.
Cut out a 5 inch by 1 inch thin rectangle and glue it
to the front piece 2 inches away from the bottom.
This is what the keyboard will actually sit on.
Let's make the sides of this keyboard area next.
I take a jumbo popsicle stick and because it's thin, I double it up.
Simply apply wood glue and add another popsicle stick.
You can also just use more plywood here if you don’t have these popsicle sticks.
Once that’s dry, I cut out a 1 inch piece.
I just use a miter handsaw here to get a nice straight cut.
This gives us a ¾ inch by 1 inch rectangle.
Then draw a line down the middle of the long side and split that piece in half.
Use a file to round out one corner.
Do this to both pieces.
Then glue each piece on either sides of the keyboard.
Next, I grab a ¼ inch square dowel.
Cut out a 4.75 inch length.
Make two of these.
Glue one to the back of the keyboard area.
Add the second one right on top of it.
Then take a craft matchstick. They’re like super tiny square dowels.
Cut out two 5/8 inch pieces.
Glue these to both sides of the inside keyboard area.
Looks good- let's put this whole thing aside for now and make the actual keys.
For the keys, I use some white polymer clay.
This stuff takes some work to get it soft so be patient.
Once it’s soft, roll out a tube.
Place 2 pieces of the plywood on either side and roll the clay out.
The wood will ensure that the whole piece is rolled out evenly.
You can use anything to roll this clay out. I just use this can.
Then cut off the ends with flat knife.
You want the length of this keyboard to be 4.5 inches long.
Then take your knife and make indentations in the clay every 1/10 of an inch.
They don’t need to be too deep but you want to make sure they’re clearly visible.
Then use a ruler to help make a clean straight cut along the long sides.
The keys should exactly half an inch.
Therefore, the complete size of this polymer clay rectangle is half an inch by 4.5 inches.
Remove the excess clay.
Then use a knife to add the key details to the thin side of the keyboard.
This will add really nice detail when you're viewing the piano from the front.
Bake it for 15 minutes at 275 degrees Fahrenheit.
While that's baking, let's make the black keys.
Roll out some black polymer clay.
Here, I use popsicle sticks on the sides of the clay so get a thinner piece.
Cut off the long sides to get a 3/8 of an inch in width.
Then cut out a ton of 1/10 of an inch pieces.
Pre-bake them for about 5 minutes.
Once they’ve cooled down, break off the individual keys.
To attach these black keys to the white ones, I’m using some liquid polymer clay.
I just add a drop to the back of each black key and place it on the keyboard lines we created.
Make groups of two and three alternating between group.
Once you’ve placed all the pieces on, bake the entire keyboard again
for 5-10 minutes to harden the liquid clay.
To add some gloss, I'll be using some Diamond Glaze.
I just use a paintbrush to apply it.
Look how much better these keys look with a coat of gloss.
Look- I made a tiny pendant using these same exact steps.
Okay, back to the piano.
Add some glue to the keyboard area of the piano and attach the keys.
Then grab a wooden coffee stirrer and cut out a 5 inch length.
Glue it to the front of the keyboard base.
Cut out another one that’s 4.75 inches long and glue to the front of the keys.
This just gives the area a cleaner look.
For the keyboard lid, cut out a rectangle that's 4.75inch by 5/8 inch.
This should fit snugly into place above the keys.
Then grab some miniature hinges.
The link to the ones I use is listed in the description box below.
I just add a drop of super glue to the back of the hinges and attach them to the piano.
Now your piano can open and close.
To finish off the lid, I cut a 4.75 inch of coffee stirrer and glue it to the front edge of the lid.
Now you have a really snug closure.
Next, let's build the legs of the piano.
I cut out two 1 inch lengths from more 1/4 inch square dowels.
Glue one to each side of the piano base.
Then grab a ¼ inch round dowel.
Use the miter saw to cut out two 1.75 inch lengths.
File one end until you get a nice taper.
Do this to both legs.
Add wood glue and position them in place.
We're almost there guys.
To close the top of the piano, cut out 5.25 inch by 1.25 inch rectangle.
Round out one of the longer sides.
Then glue it to the top of the piano.
This next part is optional but I'm going to add some trim detail.
Cut out two 5 inch lengths of coffee stirrer and glue them to the front of the piano.
This will frame out this area.
Add two more 1.25 inch pieces to finish the frame.
Do the same of for the bottom.
For the foot pedals, I grab a coffee stirrer with rounded ends.
Break it in half and cut off the round ends at the half inch mark.
Draw a straight line halfway down and curve it out to one side.
Cut of the excess.
Use a file to smooth out any rough edges.
Do this for both foot pedals and glue them onto the piano using some wood glue.
Make sure they’re positioned on the trim detail.
Okay, final detail here
I just cut out a 2 inch length from a coffee stirrer and glue it to the inside of the lid.
Now we're all finished with the build!
Let’s get to the fun part of painting it. I’ll be painting this a nice classic black.
Add black acrylic paint to all the bare wood areas.
Use masking tape around the keyboard for a clean paintjob.
About 2 coats should be enough to cover the wood completely.
You can leave the hinges as is but I find them a bit too big.
So I use some black nail polish to camouflage most of it.
I use nail polish because acrylic paint does not stick well to metal.
Paint the foot pedals with metallic gold acrylic paint.
This looks pretty good already
but as usual- I’m going to add on a few coats of polyacylic for a glossy look.
As you can see, this varnish picks up the grain texture from the wood so several coats are necessary.
To help ensure you get a smooth finish, use some high grit sandpaper between coats of poly.
I could sand and add a few more coats here but I’m pretty satisfied with this finish.
And that’s it guys! The miniature piano is all done.
This would look great in any dollhouse setting or as a gift to a music lover in your life.
I hope you liked this video- if you did, make sure to give it a thumbs up.
Subscribe if you haven’t already and I’ll see you next time. Bye!