Thursday, December 3, 2009

You Say Fireplace, I Say Mirrorplace




I have to begin by saying this is almost the project that wasn't. After nearly 5 years sitting in our basement, this mirror almost got the heave ho. It was the partner to a very large dresser I had in my room growing up. Had that extra brownblack grainy wood look, curvy early 1980's lines, huge expanse of mirror....was TERRIFIC when I was attempting to hairspray my hair to new heights at age 13....but in my grownup house I just couldn't make it work anywhere...such a shame I thought.

THEN....an epiphany. I'm sure I was sleeping or showering....that's when most of my epiphanies happen...basically the two times of day no one is asking me for fruit snacks, a milk refill or to race hot wheels.

MY MIRROR COULD BE THE FIREPLACE I'VE ALWAYS WANTED.

Don't get me wrong, I think our house is WONDERFUL. It has everything we had on our wishlist, a front staircase AND back staircase, lots of bedrooms, a gorgeous wrap around porch...I died and went to house heaven. BUT...no fireplace. Which in reality is a good thing....it would just give me one more thing to worry about.

And don't you know i got so excited to start on my mirrorplace that I forgot to take a "before shot". Just imagine in your mind's eye a dark wood behemeth of a mirror with little shelves going up the sides, etc...you can sort of see it in this pic..First, after staring at the mirror for approximately 763 hours trying to decide how in the heck I would turn this thing into a fireplace IT.HIT.ME. Turn it upside down! Well duh....wish that would have hit me approximately 762 hours ago. The top, now bottom, had a big crown moulding...perfect to sit on the floor! Then I started scrounging the basement (and the REstore...okay, okay I admit it) for odds and ends. Added some wood here and there, chopped off that curvy part.....and VOILA!


I also picked up another cabinet door while perusing the REstore....spray painted it red (with paint from the REstore ..I know, I have a problem), painted on the Peace and there you go. The frame is a dumpster find from my dad....we're kindred spirits. :-) Everything else was free free cheap cheap!!! Free branchy garlands (boy that's a story in itself), big pinecones, shiny poinsettas, gold balls from Goodwill, more stuff from the yard (some recycled from Thanksgiving).
My dad will be so proud of me.

giveaways

10 comments:

  1. That turned out GREAT!! I need a faux mantle, never would have thought of a mirror. Thanks for the inspiration fellow small-town Iowa girl, I am in western Iowa, where are you?

    ReplyDelete
  2. WOW!!!So unique and beautiful!Thanks for linking!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Wow..you really have vision! GREAT Idea, I love it!

    ReplyDelete
  4. THIS is fabulous.... I don't have a fireplace in my house either, and I so miss having a mantle. I was actually doing to have sweet hubby build me one to use for Christmas decorations, but we never got around to it.... yours is amazing!

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a great idea! I'm glad that project did happen and the mirror didn't get pitched. It'll look so nice with candles in front of it! Thanks for linking up to FFF.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Love that you made something so beautiful from a product of the 80s. It kinda reminds me of me. ;)

    I love the way you styled it. Your painting skills kill me. Seriously. I love the red cabinet door. I kinda think I may have to do something similar this weekend. And, the empty frame? Loves.

    I totally covet a fireplace, too. Next house, I tell myself.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks for linking this in this week. I'm reminded why I loved it before. =)

    It's been so fun seeing all your projects through the weeks. Thanks for joinng in the Dare to DIY. =)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Wow, this is so creative! I don't have a fireplace either, so this has my mind spinning!

    ReplyDelete
  9. GORGEOUS!!! Thank you so much for sharing because I do have that exact mirror sitting hopelessly in my garage. What a creative and inspiring idea.

    ReplyDelete

I kinda love comments, who doesn't? Nice comments. Only. I'm picky that way. ;-)

Related Posts with Thumbnails