Painting a guitar, need some tips.?

Question

It's a small, cheap little acoustic guitar, my neighbor wants me to make it for her. She won't be playing it, it's just for show. To hang on the wall and such. So I'm not worried about the sound.

It's going to be a black design on a white background.

I've got some white gesso, but I'm not entirely sure if that will work.

The guitar has a finish on it. I'm guessing I should just sand off the finish, paint the gesso on as a base, and then draw over that? And then probably put some sort of a varnish to protect it?

If anyone has any experience with this, some tips would be nice, that's all. c:

Answer 1

Don't bother sanding off the finish. Clean it thoroughly and lightly sand it if necessary. Apply a primer. When dry then paint as you want. You could seal it with varnish, but I don't think it will need it.

I refinished furniture for over 25 years.