UPDATED:

It has been a long time since I first made this mirror and I wanted to share some updated photos of where it has lived over the past few years!

Currently it is in our breakfast room off the kitchen in our new house.

And prior, it was in the hallway of our rental when we first moved to Texas.
For such a big mirror, it really can go almost anywhere!  Ok, onto the tutorial 🙂
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If you guys checked out my guest post over at All Things Bright and Beautiful you may have seen a little (ok, a BIG) something something leaning against the wall behind the couch.

Yep, I finally got around to making the mirror I mentioned here!

And, I did a tutorial ;D
What you’ll need:
  • mirror (I used an old builder’s grade vanity mirror – I recently saw some at my local ReStore for $10)
  • 3/4 inch thick plywood (you could even use an old door from the ReStore, which I wish I would have thought of before buying the plywood)
  • notched moulding to trim around the mirror
  • any trim of your choice for the top and bottom of mirror
  • Liquid Nails for Mirrors and caulking gun
  • brad nailer and brads (or finishing nails and hammer)
  • miter saw (or miter box and hand saw)
  • tape measure and pencil
  • wood filler
  • sand paper
  • paint and roller/brush
  • polyurethane (optional)
  • protective eye gear and gloves – not optional people 😀
STEP ONE:  Measure out and mark where you want the mirror to sit on the plywood.
STEP TWO:  Using caulk gun, squeeze Liquid Nails onto the plywood where the mirror will sit and put mirror into place.  You’ll want to wear gloves and get help when moving the mirror – those mirrors are really heavy and can easily break.

STEP THREE:  Miter cut the notched trim for edges of mirror.
STEP FOUR:  Paint the inside part of the the trim.  Once attached to the mirror the inside will be reflected, and you don’t want the raw wood color to show.

STEP FIVE:  Attach trim to edges of mirror using brad nailer or finishing nails.  You’ll want to keep in mind where the edge of the mirror is so that you don’t nail into the mirror and crack it.  Only nail the part of the trim that meets up with the plywood.  Use protective eye gear peps!
STEP SIX:  Cut and add trim to top and bottom of mirror using brad nailer or finishing nails.  I topped of my crown moulding with left over pieces of wood.  If you decide to use crown molding and are having issues getting the angles to cut correctly, Google tutorials for cutting crown molding.  There are tons of great tutorials out there on this, and they do a FAR better job explaining it than I can.
STEP SEVEN:  Fill any gaps and nail holes with wood filler and let dry completely before sanding.
STEP EIGHT:  Paint mirror desired color and let dry.  I did two coats.
STEP NINE:  Lightly sand any rough areas (or heavily sand edges for a distressed look), add a coat of poly (if desired) and let dry.
STEP TEN:  Wipe or scrape off any paint/poly that got onto the mirror.  You could tape it off before hand and avoid this 🙂
STEP ELEVEN:  If you have small children (or are just plain accident prone like myself) you will want to anchor the top of the mirror to the wall so that it can’t be pulled over.  I used a heavy duty hanging system from Lowes and made sure it went into studs.  That way it has the look of leaning against the wall, but can’t be pulled away from it.

DONE!!!
Now get someone to help move that beast into place and enjoy!

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On a side note – can I just say how hard it is to get a good picture of a mirror without seeing your reflection.  Sheesh!  Maybe it wouldn’t have mattered that much I had been cleaned up 😀

I’ll be linking up to these fab parties!

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71 Comments

  1. That is gorgeous! You make it look so simple, but I don't think I am brave enough 🙂

  2. wow its gorgeous i would of never thought it was home made it looks really expensive i love it xxx

  3. first of all- I ADORE YOUR DECORATING STYLE AND TASTE… SO ME! Second of all… come over and lets make me a leaning wall floor mirror. TOTALLY LOVE THE MIRROR AND YOUR SPACE. well done. Winks-jen

    sharing this on my COM-FB page.

  4. ooooh I LOVE IT!!! seriously really cool and wow you are talented girl!
    I have a large mirror on my wall.. but I bought it lol ikea ;0)
    Tana

  5. This is seriously awesome! I've been wanting one of these for our bedroom!

  7. Shelley! Another amazing diy project! That mirror rocks! Way to go. I'm in awe. Can't believe you made that.

  9. You made that?! AHMAZZZING! It is so pretty and you make it look so easy.

  14. That is so darn amazing! It has never occurred to me to just build a floor mirror myself. Blogging is simply amazing!

  16. Thanks for the tutorial…you've made it look easy…so showing this to my husband. I want one!

  18. Dang girl! You are quite the handyman. I am once again impressed.

  19. Oh my! You are crazy talented! I love that you MADE it yourself. Amazing, really! I would love to make one for my bedroom, I've always wanted a big mirror like that! Thanks for adding Show & Share to your link list! I appreciate it!

  20. Girl, is there anything you *can't* do??? Seriously, you would never have convinced me that you didn't buy that mirror that way without the tutorial pics…amazing! *insert whiny voice* I *want* one!!!

    P.S. I was *dying* over your comments about your story and your husband…they are so cute when they think we aren't going to post stuff about them, aren't they? (c:

  21. Wow, cool! I love it! Way to go!

  22. That is one FABULOUS mirror! Wow, I'm amazed! You guys make it look so easy; however, you lost me at the word miter saw. LOL. This is the perfect addition to your space … still loving your gallery walls, too! And, thanks again for your sweet note about my Fall sitting room! xoxo

  23. Holy cow I can't believe you made this! It's fantastic! Can I ask what the total cost was? I'm dying to try and make one. 🙂

  24. I'm so impressed. There's no way I could pull that off. I tried to make toy boxes once and it took me all day.

  25. LOVE!! now to find a big mirror……………….
    love this tutorial.
    cheryl xox.

  28. That looks amazing. I have an old builder's vanity mirror in the closet. Maybe I can convince the hubs to help me with this one. Thanks for sharing at my Sizzle into Summer party.

  29. That's amazing! Your living room is gorgeous!

  30. Oh, what a great job!! The mirror is gorgeous! This may be a project for us to tackle soon! I am a newbie to blogging and your newest follower. I hope you will follow back! Have a great day!

  31. I love it! I especially like the tips on where and exactly what to get. It turned out SOO nicely.:) I'm a new follower from Trophy Wife linky.:)

  34. Ok you are ridiculously talented!!!! I want one too but have no talent time or tools. How bout I buy one from ya! Lol

  36. What a gorgeous mirror! I need more of these in my dark home.

  37. Wow! I want one, I love the little birds on top too. Thanks for sharing it was very generous of you to share your time this way, tutorials take a lot of time to do, I'm sure your readers appreciate it I DO!!

  39. Stunning!! It turned out amazing. Definitely one I'm going to keep in the file to do one day. It makes such a big statement.

  42. I stumbled upon you at Remodelaholic and I just love what you've got going on here. Your blog design/layout is gorgeous. I love the mirror! Everything looks fantastic.

  43. I have to say that mirror is gorgeous…. Awesome job!!!!!!

  44. *shocked*… You made that!! wow!! really!! *Still amazed*… That is absolutely gorgeous.. stunning!! You've done a beyond awesome job.. and I cant image putting something like that together.. 🙂 Thank you for linking in to Colours Dekor.. Im following you now.. Totally love your blog. and am hoping to see you at mine again.. 🙂

  45. HELLO THERE- YOU HAVE BEEN FEATURED ON COM for Super Saturday Spotlight Talent Show. WA-HOO! well done. winks-jen

  48. AMAZING!!! That looks super gorgeous and I'm so impressed! Thanks so much for sharing it with us at Inspiration Friday this weekend!
    Vanessa

  49. WOW – so creative and beautiful.. Love it..Hi there, I found ya via blog hop and had to stop in and say hello, LOVE all your creativity and space here.. Excited to get to share in more blog fun reads and inspiration from ya.. I'm officially following ya with smiles…. Hope you can swing in and say hello sometime :)) I'm Marilyn via http://theartsygirlconnection.blogspot.com

  50. You're whole living area looks great! And this mirror adds a whole other level of dimension! Love it! Thanks for sharing on Fancy This Fridays!!!

  51. The entire room is stunning and the mirror is fab. I am going to feature you on Thursday afternoon at Bacon Time. Thanks for linking up.

  52. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. I've been wanting a floor length mirror for our living room just like this. Thanks for posting the tutorial!

  53. This is beautiful! Great tutorial…I've been wanting a floor mirror in my master bedroom. Thanks for the inspiration! I'm featuring you on my blog. Come grab a button!

    Marie
    mylilpinkpocket.blogspot.com

  54. That's a great mirror! Thanks for the tutorial. You have me wanting to shop at the Restore.

  55. I absolutely ADORE this mirror, and your decorating taste is impecable! Wish I had an eye for design like you do! All my stuff is so matchy-matchy!

    I wanted to let you know that I featured this project today on Sew Woodsy! Come on over and grab a sparkling new featured button!

  56. So great. I will be featuring it tonight at my Fall into Fall party (formerly Sizzle into Summer) that opens at 8pm EST. Please stop by and pick up an I've Been Featured button. Thanks so much.

  59. Wow, this is a great tutorial! I never would have thought to do that. Thanks for sharing.

    Brittany aka Pretty Handy Girl

  61. Wow–this is awesome! I SO want to do this and you've totally inspired me. I'm sure you saved a couple hundred dollars and it looks store-bought. Just Pinned this!

  62. WOW! That looks fantastic! I never would have guess that was a diy- and you make it look so easy! I just came across this on Apartment Therapy and I would love to link to your tutorial if you didn’t mind.

  63. It’s in point of fact a nice and useful piece of information. I’m happy that you simply shared this helpful information with us. Please keep us informed like this. Thank you for sharing.

  64. Love it!! But, really love your curtains! Can you tell me where you got them? I have been looking for modern black and white ones.

    1. Thank you Janice! The fabric is the black and white chipper print from Premierprintsfabric.com. They have some great black and white modern prints 🙂

  65. Gah! This is what I've wanted to do for YEARS with the builder-grade mirror in our master bath: rip that thing right off the wall and turn it on its end (trimmed out like you've done) to put in our dining room. But I'm afraid there might be all kinds of industrial adhesive keeping it in place and it will shatter if I remove it… This might be just the push I need to GO FOR IT! Thanks!

  66. Nice concept of your article . Great job , how I wish I can have that in my Hide TV
    . More power to your blog :))

  67. Very interesting read. What are your thoughts on fiberglass doors? I personally think they would be a really good way to go.

  68. Even it's in plain place, it's still looks clean and peaceful. I will enjoy watching movie there.

  69. Wow job Shelley!!! Actually it’s really hard job to make the diy with the mirror but I have seen your tutorial & ideas that’s really great. I am looking for discount coupons for the Christmas to my best framing mirrors for my house. I just get a coupon up to 50% discount on selling mirrors. Thanks for the best tutorial.

  70. This is a really good read for me, Must admit that you are one of the best bloggers I ever saw.Thanks for posting this informative article. I really like the fresh perceptive you did on the issue. I will be back soon to check up on new posts! Thank you!
    Wandspiegel

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