How You Should Display Your Musical Instruments

Our family is quite musical. We have banjos, guitars, flutes, drums, and a plethora of instruments collected from around the globe. During our last move, I carefully boxed them all up and, unfortunately, they’ve remained packed for some time now.

And boy, do I miss the sound of music in my home! When musical instruments are out of sight, they’re also out of mind. Plus, a guitar isn’t serving any purpose stored away in a carrying case. These instruments deserve to be displayed out in the open so you can go ahead and grab them for a spontaneous jam session when need be.

Thankfully, musical instruments are beautiful and can serve double-duty as both art/decor and a tool to produce your favorite tunes.

Are you looking for ways to incorporate musical instruments into your home’s decor? Consider these three options to make the most of your musical prop collection.

As Corner Pieces

There’s no easy way to store large instruments like pianos, keyboards, drums, some guitars, and an upright bass. These pieces aren’t just gigantic and take up plenty of space, they’re also often shaped awkwardly.

Instead of just shoving these instruments in the basement or a closet, use them! Try placing single drums like a West African djembe or small keyboard in the corner of the room. These are the ideal accents to fill empty, odd-shaped corners.

For guitars and other instruments that require a stand, consider investing in a 3-legged or A-frame stand made of sturdy material like aluminum.

Action Item: Fill unused corner space with freestanding instruments. Just be sure to keep all legs and stands out of the way of foot traffic. You don’t want people tripping over your expensive gear!

As Wall Art

I’m probably a bit biased since it’s my personal display preference, but musical instruments really do make the perfect wall art. Whether your musical instrument collection is made up of one guitar or a whole slew of them, there’s something wonderful about seeing the instruments on display on your wall.

If you have a blank wall, invest in instrument-specific hangers that nail directly into the wall stud. Some instruments are heavy, so don’t forget to use drywall anchors if you can’t screw into a solid material such as wood.

I prefer to see our stringed-beauties arranged in order of their size, but it doesn’t matter how you arrange the instruments, just as long as the setup works for you.

Action Item: Invest in high-quality, instrument-specific holders to mount to the wall. Then, arrange any way you’d like.

As Mantle Decor & General Accents

Wall space is at a premium in my current house, meaning some of the instruments I hung previously would need a new home.

Fortunately, most of my cabinets and mantels are still pretty bare from the move. It didn’t take much effort to begin arranging some of the smaller instruments like the Peruvian Pan Flute, the old-school beginner recorder our 4-year-old is attempting to master, and the vintage harmonica.

Action Item: Use your instruments to supplement your regular mantle and cabinet decor. If you have enough items, go ahead and create a music-only space. Otherwise, just intersperse each instrument amongst your other decor such as picture frames and candles.

Instruments are meant to be played, not stored. Spend some time to find a special spot for each of your instruments, regardless of their size. I guarantee you’ll be much more likely to grab that flute or tambourine and bust out a melody if it’s right in front of you.

Images used with permission, courtesy of Tina Jepson