HIDING AN AWKWARD WINDOW WITH A DIY MIRROR

Yes I covered up a window.  Who needs natural light in a room anyways.  Really, I love natural light who doesn't, but that window has been bugging me for years.  I could never find the right treatment for it and after building the faux mantel below it I decided to try something new.  The adjacent wall has a huge bay window so there is enough light from there. 

I have been toying with the idea of either a mirror, an art piece or shutters.  Yesterday I decided lets try a mirror.  

I started with a cheap 48 inch full length mirror that you can get anywhere.  I've had it forever.
I removed the pretty plastic trim.  It is just glued onto the cardboard backer so it pulled right off. 

For the frame I first thought bead board like the picture frame I made a while back (found here), or maybe glue the mirror to plywood and add fancy trim like my Trumeau mirror (found here).  Then I saw some white rough outdoor trim that I got out of the cull bin at Home Depot and I thought rustic wood be a nice contrast to the clean white mantel.  I didn't quite have enough so I went for a walk up to the pile of salvaged wood we have to see if maybe there was a chunk up there I could use.   Nothing in the pile but on my way back I spotted the old fascia board we replaced on our garage.   (It was still leaning up against the side of the Garage) It was too warped and weathered to stay on the roof but for a rustic frame, perfect.  See this is why you should never get rid of anything.

Since I was going for rustic and simple I didn't even miter the corners I just butted them up and used my boyfriend the Kreg Jig Jr to make pocket holes.  Also I didn't have to cut the mirror because it wasn't sitting inside a frame it was just attached to the back.  

The mirror had cardboard backing that stuck out 1/2" past the mirror (shown in above picture) perfect for attaching the mirror to the wood using my staple gun.   The beauty of these cheap mirrors is that they are so light weight that's all it took.

Before I attached the back I had to clean the wood it was pretty grungy.  I used a scrub brush with bleach and soap and then hosed it off with hot water in the shower.  Once it was clean it wasn't quite as bleached out as I had hoped but it is naturally weathered and I think the wood is beautiful.

Above you can see the window above the mirror, I left the curtain up so you can't tell from the outside.

Enough talk here's some pictures.

nail holes and old paint

To see how I built the mantel go here.  I promise no more pictures of the mantel for awhile.

I am so glad I finally got inspired to create something.  I was starting to worry since the last few weekends I haven't felt like doing anything.  I guess that's just how it goes sometimes.  

Hope you all have a Happy New Year! 

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