Friday, July 17, 2009

Mirror Mirror






Up in the girls bathroom, we've tried to create the illusion of water falling. We've done this with glass beads on the wall and the mirrors over the sink. I started this project about a year ago, and haven't finished the bathroom yet -- still have to put the final coat of paint on the vanity. Up until now I had also only finished one of the mirrors. But today I finished the other one!

This is such a cool idea. It's basically a "Dollar Store Craft" project. Very simple, and very fast.

Here's what you need:
  1. A mirror of your choice -- any size, preferably without a frame.
  2. Glass beads in various shapes, sizes, and colours.

  3. Good glue that can be used on glass or non-porous surfaces. I used -- E6000, a crafter's glue. But any kind of superglue or cement you find with hardware will do.

Here's how you do it:
  1. Begin by cleaning your mirror with a window cleaner.


  2. Arrange your glass beads in the pattern of your choice in a short segment so you'll know how to place them. Or you can just get an idea in your head and do it as you go, which is what I did.

  3. Run a line of glue in a zigzag pattern along the edge of the mirror, about 15-25 inches long.




  4. Lay your glass beads onto the glue in the pattern you chose -- or randomly, like I did.



  5. When you get to the end of your line of glue, repeat steps 3 and 4.

Some tips:

  1. I'm serious about the good glue. If you use a glue gun, the glass beads will come off. Same with your basic Elmer's or white glue.
  2. You should lay out your pattern ahead of time unless you know what you want. I knew I wanted mostly clear beads and a random pattern. If you want something symmetrical, then you should lay out your pattern in front of you for reference. Just put the repeating line of it on the table in front of you.
  3. A mirror with a beveled edge works nicely because you can see how wide you want your border.
And be sure to let me know if you try this!
xoxox

3 comments:

  1. That's a cool idea! I might try that. Keep you posted.

    ReplyDelete
  2. i am sooo glad i found this- have been looking for a glamorous sparkly mirror, but all of them break the bank- i can make this for the same effect!

    ReplyDelete

That'll be two cents for your opinion please. : )