DIY Mirror Edging
To customize a mirror to add to the décor in your bathroom, hallway or over living space, edge the mirror in one of several ways. Make a frame using wooden boards or frame molding, for example. Paint the frame of a mirror that is already framed to give it a facelift. Edging the mirror with a mosaic design or gluing small items around the mirror to carry out a theme can also give your mirror a custom look and enhance the room in which it hangs. Does this Spark an idea?
Things You'll Need
- Wood or frame molding
- Router
- Miter saw
- Staple gun and staples
- Paint or stain
- Plastic clips
- Eyelets
- Picture wire
- Paint stripper
- Painter’s tape
- Newspaper
- Sandpaper
- Tack cloth
- Small decorations
- Hot glue gun
- Mosaic tiles, broken dishes or broken mirror
- Cloth
- Hammer
- Utility knife
- Mosaic adhesive
- Mosaic grout
Instructions
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Start with an unframed mirror and add your own frame using frame molding. You can often find an inexpensive mirror with a flimsy plastic frame that will be easily removed. Replace this frame with frame molding purchased from your local frame shop. If you use regular wooden boards from the home improvement center or lumberyard, you can use a router to cut the recess, or rabbet, on the back where the mirror will fit. The rabbet must match the thickness of the mirror. Carefully measure the sides of the mirror and cut the wood or molding at 45-degree angles with a miter saw. Staple the corners of the frame together on the back. Paint or stain the frame before installing the mirror. Paint or stain the front inside edge of the molding to match the frame so that the piece reflected in the mirror will show the same color. Screw plastic clips to the frame on the back to hold the mirror in place. Screw in an eyelet ¼ of the way from the top on each side on the back and twist picture wire through and around them for hanging.
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Paint the existing frame of a mirror that would be hard to reframe, such as an oval one. Remove the mirror from the frame if possible so no paint gets on the mirror and you can paint the inside front edge to match the new color. Use painter’s tape and newspaper to mask off the mirror if you cannot remove it. If the frame is wooden, you can remove old paint with paint stripper to reveal a grain for staining. Sand the finish lightly and remove dust with tack cloth. Refinish with the paint or stain of your choice, following label directions. Reinstall the mirror when everything is dry.
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Glue small items such as buttons, toys, shells or other objects onto the mirror’s existing frame to match a room’s theme. For example, shells could match a bathroom décor, while small plastic toys might match a child’s room. Let the kids help pick out the decorations for their own rooms and position them on the mirror. You can then hot glue them in place.
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Edge your mirror in a mosaic pattern using tiles from the art store or pieces of broken dishes or another mirror that you can break yourself. Wrap the dish or mirror in a cloth and strike it with a hammer on a hard surface to break it. Score the surface of the mirror’s frame with a utility knife so the adhesive is more effective. Draw your mosaic pattern in pencil and glue on the tiles or other pieces with mosaic adhesive. Let the adhesive dry and grout the mosaic according to the package directions. When everything is dry, hang the mirror in its place of honor.
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Lay the edging face down and slide the mirror into the rabbet. Screw a plastic clip on the edging on each side of one corner to hold the mirror in place. If the mirror is very large, use more clips.
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Tips & Warnings
Always wear gloves, safety glasses and other protective gear when using sandpaper, paint, stain, paint stripper, adhesive and other toxic chemicals.
References
- Photo Credit Thinkstock Images/Comstock/Getty Images
