Whatnot: Mirror, Mirror

A nursery is all about the details, the little things that make it feel warm and cozy and uniquely created for this special babe.  When I did the boy's nursery I had the whole thing done by the time I was 31 weeks pregnant, with baby girl it was another story all together.  I had my theme from the moment I found out it was a girl - modern & understated Little Red Ridding Hood.  And with the theme, my planning stopped.  At 36 weeks pregnant, I finally ordered a crib, clicked 'buy' on the wall decal I wanted for the room, and had amazing friends move the furniture out of the Guest Room so that it could now be baby girl's room.  Needless to say, it was a scramble the last couple weeks and not all the details were even remotely close to accomplished before her arrival.
I knew I wanted a mirror - babies love mirrors!  And every little girl needs a mirror of her own.  So I set out thrift store shopping and yard sailing to find the perfect piece.  I stumbled across this gem at a yard sale for $1 -yep ONE DOLLAR, how could I say no?  It might be dirty, it might be plastic, and it might not look like much yet, but I knew it had potential.
Paint would be my friend, paint can be yours too - and here is how you can create this!

here it is in all its unfinished glory

-You want to start by giving your mirror or other object a good cleaning!  Then flip that baby over and remove the screws holding the backing and glass in place. (it helps to place the screws in a ziplock baggie so that curious little hands don't discover them)

-Remove the glass and backing from the mirror so you are left with just the frame

-Get our your paint (I used Martha Stewart Satin finish) -I like to use paper or plastic cups for small projects like this.  Just cut them down to about 2 inches high.  Then you can throw away everything at the end, easy clean up!

I used a 1.5 inch bristle brush - if doing this project again, I would have used SPRAY PAINT, but i didn't have any on hand.

 -Now start painting, you want to start with the inner lip of the frame, don't forget all those nooks and crannies.

 -all 10 THOUSAND nooks and cranies...

 -Why oh WHY didn't I go but spray paint for this project?!?!?

Notice that the mirror is sitting on two small wooden skewers. You want to find something to give separation between the paper and your project so that it wont dry glued down by paint and you can get all the way to the bottom of the inside and outside edge.

Almost done!!!

WAHOOOO!!!

-  Now let your painted perfection dry.

  - I waned to glaze the frame to give age and depth.
- Take about a tablespoon of paint of the glaze color you want (in my case black).
-Put water in a second cup.
-Wet your brush and lightly dip it into the paint.
-Dip it back in the water and brush against the edge of the cup lightly
-Now slather that watery- ness over your frame (you really can't put on too much, because we will wipe the excess off, but you can always start light and add more!)

before wiping it down - I like to stipple (dab dab dab) with a paper towel to take off the excess. Pay attention to anywhere the glaze may have dripped.  If it is too thick anywhere, wet your brush and wash over that area with water and stipple again.

Look at those yummy details!!

fits the room perfectly!

- Let it dry OVERNIGHT before hanging!  You do not want to mark the lovely walls of your room by hanging a tacky mirror up!

And there you go: A gorgeous mirror to complement an adorable nursery for the fairest of the all - wrong fairy tale, oh well ;op


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