My husband and I have been hard at work transforming our master bathroom into the vision we had when we first built the house. I recently shared how we painted the room and put up a gorgeous custom roman shade from Blinds.com-it made a huge difference in the feel of the room but the next thing on our list was to frame out the mirror. Here is the mirror before:
I debated getting a ready made frame kit but I’m too cheap frugal so we decided to DIY it. (of course)
We bought three 8′ sections of basic molding at the hardware store for less than $40. My husband measured our mirror and cut the molding into four pieces using the miter saw set at a 45 degree angle. (We used a simple miter box which was less than $15 to make the cuts)
We wanted the molding to match the cabinets so we decided to try Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint. Be sure to paint botht the back and front as you’ll see a little of the reflection of the back once you have your frame up.
Once we had prepared the molding we were ready to put it up. We had mirror mastic as I had seen recommended on other blogs but it was not holding the frame at all. I tried to tape the frame in place as well but-nope-still wasn’t working. So I poured myself a glass of wine and got to googling! I found this tutorial from Rhoda over at Southern Hospitality (she’s fabulous by the way!) and grabbed my glue gun to help us out!
The glue gun worked fabulously to hold the molding in place so the mastic could dry. My husband would apply the mastic to the back fo the molding then I would quickly put hot glue at the corners and at intervals along the length (being careful to get neither too close to the edge) and he would put the molding up quickly before the hot glue dried while I grabbed the level to check it…we were like a well-oiled machine and once we figured it out we had the entire thing up in 15 minutes!
We didn’t have to caulk the gaps but if your edges don’t match up perfectly you can apply paintable caulk and then paint it to match your molding.
Here is the before and after, what a difference it made!
Have you framed out any mirrors in your home? I was so nervous to do this and kept putting it off but it was really so easy and inexpensive and made a huge impact!
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Looks great! Love this! Thanks for sharing the tutorial!
No problem Betsy-it was so much easier than I thought it would be! Thanks for stopping by!
Super cute. Framed a mirror a few years ago but now we live in another home. We have this huge mirror in our main bathroom that I want to frame. It’s on “the list”. I came over from Fun in the Functional. You have a lovely blog.
Oh I know that “list” Angi!! Mine is about a mile long! thanks so much for the compliment and thank you for stopping by, hope to see you again soon! ~Melissa
What a huge difference that makes! It looks a hundred times more finished!
Kelly @ View Along the Way recently posted..What’s Your Take: Faux Flowers
I LOVE this idea! We did the exact same thing in our old home before we sold it. The builder had glued the mirror to the wall (Gah), the molding really classed up the mirror!
Jacque recently posted..Custom Coffee Mug, Valentine Gift
This makes a big difference in the bathroom, for sure. And what teamwork, too.
Atta Girl Amy recently posted..French Grain Sack End Tables
Love it!! We framed the mirror in our bathroom and we love it. I’m not for sure why they even sell mirrors without frames. The frames just add that touch of class. Great job!!
Huge difference! I love it, Melissa!
Tracie@MiddleClassModern recently posted..If I Lived There, I Would Buy This
Wow! That is such a major improvement. I have 2 bathrooms that I need to do that in but ill have to wait until I can redo the whole bathroom because they are terrible! I will definitely be using this to help me out.
Leah recently posted..February
That makes a HUGE difference and love the pointers you shared (you know, if we get brave at our house) … great job!
keri @ shaken together recently posted..{try this} organize iPhone chargers with washi tape
Thanks Keri-it was super easy, you should move it to the top of your list!
It’s amazing what a little wood can do! Looks great..
Nancy
Nancy @ Artsy Chicks Rule recently posted..Super Easy Way to Update Wood Stained Furniture
Thanks so much Nancy!
Looks so much better. We did this too, but paid way more with Mirror Mate. I need to do my girls bathroom like you did!!
I almost did the MirrorMate Julie but it wasn’t in the budget right now and I wanted to get this room finished-I’m so glad I made myself try it though, it was so easy! I’d love to see yours if you do your girl’s bathroom!
Hey, Melissa! Great job, the frame really turned out fantastic. It totally takes it up a notch, doesn’t it?? Glad you found my tutorial helpful, I did 2 of them in my old house and loved the results. Yours turned out so good.
Thanks Rhoda-and thank you for sharing the hot glue tip on your post, it really saved the day for us!
I’d love to do this to my mirror. My mirror is wall-to-wall, backsplash-to-ceiling – I wonder if that would look funny… Anyway thanks for the tutorial and the mirror mastic tip! I’ll definitely have to look it up next time I’m at the hardware store.
Melissa H. recently posted..Win Valentine’s Day Cookies!
I don’t think it would look funny, it just finishes it off-give it a try! Thanks for stopping by!
Very cool! This is almost exactly what I have in mind for my own bathroom remodel! Gonna forward this to my husband…
Lena recently posted..Spring Playdate Ideas for 2- to 5-Year-Olds
It’s definitely worth putting at the top of your to-do list Lena, very easy and big impact!
It looks fabulous! I love the his and hers wine and Bud Light on the counter! haha.
Dawn recently posted..Review: Martha Stewart Home Office with Avery Tote Bag
It was that kind of night Dawn! Putting up molding at 9pm after finally getting the three kids to bed definitely called for some adult beverages!
Haven’t done one yet but I have two in my “crosshairs”. Thanks for the tip on the glue gun. And the glass of wine! Googling is always better with wine!
Jaye @ Just Tryin’ to Make Cents of it All recently posted..HOW TO PRESERVE YOUR FAVORITE T-SHIRT FOR ALL ETERNITY
Oh yes, pretty much everything is better with a glass of wine!
Wow! Adding the frame around the mirror made a huge difference! It looks awesome. Great job.
Aly Mashrah recently posted..Zach’s First Flush + Times Square First Flush Celebration!
Thanks so much Aly!
Love it and it definitely doesn’t look like a diy job, but more like you spent much $$$$ for it. I may have to try this myself, with the help of my neighbors jigsaw and his 6’1″ body height. I have to use a step ladder just to clean the mirror, let alone attempt this on my own – lol. Just thought of the song someone used to sing to me “Short people have…” Definitely in a mentally warped mood today.
Yes Terri-my hubby is 6’1″ and I couldn’t have gotten it up without him!
I’ve thought about doing this, but haven’t yet. Thanks for the tutorial; the project doesn’t seem too daunting.
Found your blog from live laugh (linky) thursday.
It was much easier than I thought it would be Kristi, go for it! Thanks so much for stopping by!
Hi Melissa…I don’t have much space from the edge of my mirrors to where the walls meet the corners, only about 2inches. Did you glue the molding right onto the mirrors? I’m wondering how this would look in my bathroom.
Thanks!
Your mirror looks great! I am wanting to try this as well but haven’t decided what finish to use on the trim. I loved the idea of using the oil rubbed bronze and wondered what color your vanity is? Is it black? I couldn’t tell for sure in the pictures. I used General Finishes Java stain on my vanity so it is dark but not really black and wondered how the oil rubbed bronze might look with it.
Thanks for posting this!
Tamara I think she did glue to the mirror. I can tell by the elec. outlet cover in the before and after pictures. You did a great job! Thanks
You’re right Tammy, I did glue it directly to the mirror with Mirror Mastic. I believe I answered Tamara directly before I figured out how to have my replies show up on my blog when I reply!!
Thank you all! Looks great and I can’t wait to try this!!
what is the molding made of? Pine or what. Went to Home Depot and the pine and other molding beside it seemed to heavy.
BTW, your project looks great
I believe it’s pine or white wood…I’m sorry I’m not sure exactly! It was at Lowes in the molding section and it was not very heavy when we were putting it up. Sorry not to be of more help!
What did you do about the clips that were holding the mirror to the wall? Are you still able to take the mirror off the wall now for when it comes time to repaint the walls?
My clips were flat enough that the frame was glued right over them. I have no idea how I would ever be able to take the mirror off the wall, I just tape around the edges when I painted my bathroom. Hope that helps! ~Melissa
I just did something similar with our mirrored medicine cabinet! Found you at IHeart Organizing. Of course I would love to have that big mirror in our bathroom. Maybe in the next place!
Consie @ Atop Serenity Hill recently posted..Frame update to medicine cabinet
I bet it looked great on your medicine cabinet! I have two other bathroom that need the upgrade too, ah the never ending to do list right?!