17 March 2013

Frame a Mirror with Clips

I have been wanting to frame out our mirrors for a while now.  But couldn't think of a way around the mirror clips on top of our mirrors.

Finally it dawned on me to use crown moulding to hide the clips.  I am so happy I did this easy project.  It really adds a lot to the guest bath.



The boring before shot of the huge mirror:




I bought some 1x4 wood to frame out the mirror and another piece of 1 x 2 to create a small ledge.  I already had a spare piece of crown sitting around so I started cutting up my pieces.

Once the pieces were cut to size I started painting the back of the boards.  You have to paint at least an inch of the back portion of the wood due to the reflection in the mirror once installed.

I would also highly suggest painting all pieces before installing.  Because keep in mind that any small seeps of paint behind the boards will be reflected back. 

Now to get around the clip dilemma all I did was install my board right under the plastic clip.  I only lost about 1/2 inch of mirror space in doing this.  So no big deal for me.



I used this adhesive and blue tape to hold everything in place overnight.  (Ensure that the glue stays at least an inch away from the edge of the board so as not to seep out and be reflected back.)



Once everything was set up I then installed my crown moulding onto the top board, which hides the mirror clips.  I used my nail gun with 1 inch brads.  (Make sure you either use short enough nails so as not to shatter your mirror or install the crown to the top piece of wood before hanging.)



Here is a shot behind the crown moulding.  Easy way to hide those clips!




Here is a view of the small ledge I added on top of the 1 x 4 board.


I caulked and filled the nail holes on the crown moulding.   Then painted.  When I do the Master I will paint everything before hand.  Even being careful I had a few small seeps of paint behind the boards.  Not obvious to anyone but me, but I know they are there if you get super close to the mirror.





Such a huge difference.  Love it.  Now just have to replace that awful light fixture.

4 comments:

  1. This looks great, but aren't there clips on the bottom of the mirror as well?

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  2. I’m wondering this too because mine has clips on the top and bottom and I’m trying to decide how to get around it!

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  3. As to the bottom clips, remove them and just use some small dime size dabs of caulk adhesive along the rear side of the mirror four inches or so from the bottom edge and allow the mirror to set right on top of the backsplash. If the mirror has to be removed in the future, the weight of the mirror on a downward angle during removal will overcome the adhesive. Use silicone caulk and not a permanent bond construction adhesive.

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  4. what kind of wood did you use

    ReplyDelete