Updating Bathroom Mirrors

5 Materials
$10
2 Hours
Easy

We are remodeling our main bathroom and we've been on the hunt for the perfect set of mirrors. After looking at (it seems like) hundreds of mirrors online, we narrowed it down to a couple of brand new, tall, rectangular mirrors. And then we took a trip to our local Habitat Restore. We weren't looking for mirrors, but we found a pair of mirrors that were $5 each, but it was a big sale day so they were 50% off! We got two matching mirrors for a total of $5! I knew that I would have to update them a bit but for such a great price, I couldn't pass it up.

Here are the mirrors in their original state. The frame was a dark wood and there was a lighter brown color in a weaved pattern on one end of the mirror.

Here is a close up of what the weaved pattern looked like. I don't really like this look, so I knew I was going to do something to cover it up. But the first thing I needed to do was clean everything. I grabbed some cleaner and gave both mirrors a good scrubbing.

I taped off the mirror and started painting. Each mirror got three coats of paint. (Luckily, I had three different shades of white in my leftover-paint-supply so I didn't have to buy anymore paint.) It probably would've been good after two coats, but I wanted to give it a little extra coverage, to ensure a solid look.

I cut some scrap pieces of wood to fit over the weaved section of the mirrors. On the back of those pieces, I tested a handful of different colors(leftover paints and stains I had from previous projects) to see what we'd like best against the white of the mirror and the light gray of the walls.

Once I decided what color to use, I sanded and painted each piece of plywood. I used liquid nails to adhere the wood over the weaved part of the mirror frame. Liquid nails is fairly inexpensive and this is the forth project I've used it on, so it's been a great deal if you need a strong adhesive.

Before and After

Here are the mirrors in their new home.


While I was working on them, I kept imaging that the gray accent would be at the top of the frame. My husband likes it at the bottom. Let me know what you think - should the gray accent be at the top of the mirror or the bottom?

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  • Dallis Beth Shangraw Dallis Beth Shangraw on Dec 19, 2019

    i think it depends on what you are trying to accent or draw eye to..up or across

  • Eileen Judge Meneley Eileen Judge Meneley on Jan 07, 2020

    I like the grey at the bottom. The lights would block the ‘view’ if panels were at the top. Where did you get your light fixture? I really like it.

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  • Kristin Sater Takasawa Kristin Sater Takasawa on Jan 19, 2020

    I was thinking that I might like it better on the top. Possibly to tone down some of the reflection of the lights off the mirrors. But I do appreciate others comments. Beautiful makeover. And those mirrors were quite a steal. Good job!

  • Jake Hartmann Jake Hartmann on Dec 09, 2020

    Kudos! I agree that it shld be on the top cuz then you will be able to see your body more on the body, lol. However, yes the light would cover up it. You can always play/renovate with them in the future. Wait few years and then turn them upside down or cut off that piece. I do like that light fixture too.

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