One of the things that I learned while being a homeowner, is that it actually is better to piece things together in your home over time. I have rushed before and bought things just because I wanted to fully furnish the home, only to regret some choices later. This is probably why I enjoy making things myself because it’s custom and it’s exactly what I want for a fraction of the cost.
Y So today’s project recap was this beautiful paned door mirror. Here is a sketch of how I constructed this piece. I also linked all of the tools that I found helpful below.
The first thing I did was attach the 80 inch lattice onto both ends of the door (right on top) and then used my staple nail gun to attach it to the door. (see product below) Although I based my measurements off of what the tag at Home Depot said that this was a 2” lattice, they ended up being 1.5” instead. So I had to get an extra one to double up in the middle. Before attaching the two middle ones, I would highly recommend taking one of the 12 by 12 mirrors and carefully place it against the door. Let it be the guide so that you know where to attach the two middle lattice pieces. Because the mirrors are the last things to go in, you want to make sure that you’re framing it around the actual mirror. Let it be your guide. Once I attached all 4 lattice pieces, I sliced the outdoor 1” lattice into 12 inch increments.
TIP: Before cutting all the 12 inch increments, I actually placed it against the door, in the area where it would be glued to, to make sure that it‘s slightly under or over 12 inches. (One thing that I learned about woodworking in general is that wood is not perfect and sometimes things can be a bit wonky. This is why you measure twice and cut once.)
So because they didn’t have a flat 1“ wood lattice, I had to go with the outdoor one which is plastic. So because it’s plastic I didn’t want to use a nail gun so instead I went with an adhesive. I allowed one of the mirror squares to be the guide for the placement of the 12 inch increments. You can use a pen or a marker to mark the line, move the mirror down, and glue the piece to the door using that line as the guide. I also used that same mirror square to measure the frame of that area once the frame was done to make sure that the mirror square will easily pop in once I am ready to attach the squares. Repeat the process until the full front of the door is framed out. I patched the areas where I used the nail gun and then sanded the whole door down before painting.
If you paint after you attach the mirrors, you will risk breaking one of the squares just because the whole piece will become heavy. Also, it’s important that you‘re able to paint all of the creases as the mirror will reflect any imperfections and then you will have to do a lot oftouching up.
I personally like Behr paint. So because I am bringing a little bit more of the black tones into our house, I decided to paint this mirror black. I usually go for a satin finish as it still looks more matte or muted than glossy but it will be easier to dust and clean without leaving streaks behind. I painted three coats and then I used a water based polyurethane to give it a more even finish. (Also in satin.)
Once it cured, I popped the mirrors in one at a time. I used a caulking gun to dispense an adhesive on to the back of each square. Some of the framed out squares came out to be to tight and that‘s ok. This can happen after painting because it adds thickness. I simply used a flat tool to lift the 12 inch increments and then re-glued them. I had to fix just two.
There was some touch ups that I had to do but not nearly as much if I haven’t painted the creases of each frame before attaching each square.
TIPS FOR TOUCH UPS: You don’t have to go to the store to get a specialty brush. I usually just pick a small make-up brush that I don’t use and I go back and do the touch ups. They work really great. You can also try q-tips.
If this is going to be a hanging mirror make sure that you attach appropriate hardware to it. (There are a lot of options in majority of your hardware stores.) Because I leaned my mirror against the wall and I have young toddlers, I attached a heavy duty hook in the back and then attached it to the wall just in case if they decide to mess with it, it won’t fall over on them.
All of the tools and items I used for this project are linked below minus the lattice which you can find in your local Home Depot. (Where all of the trim is.)
If you’ve been searching for oversized mirrors, you know they can be up to $500 depending on the style but this is just a great way to create something that looks stylish but is also affordable and do-able.
If you re-create this project be sure to tag me on your social media. :)
Create Coleture, Be YOU
Viktoriya Cole