sunburst mirror DIY

Remember the teaser of my new sunburst mirror...

Well here she is in all her glory!

She's nice and beefy, and has lots of texture.

It's hard to tell in these photos (because we haven't had sun outside our windows in DAYS), but she has a really nice shine too.

Here's how I did it!

I'm certainly not the first to make a wood shim mirror, I've seen several versions around blogland.  And, I didn't take many pictures of this project because I really wasn't sure it was going to work or even look good.  I was pleasantly surprised at the end result, and now wish I would have taken more photos.  So bear with me as I try to explain the process with few photos.

What you'll need:

• existing round mirror (mine was a 20" el cheapo bought at Target year ago)
• 8 packages of 18" long wood shims ($3.25/pkg at Home Depot)
• piece of wood for the back of the sunburst (mine was a scrap piece of plywood ~ 20x20)
• Wood glue
• Gorilla glue
• Primer spray paint (I used white)
• Glaze (I used Lowes Valspar metal & patina glaze in pewter)
• paint brush for glaze
• hanging hardware (I took the hardware off the round mirror and reused it)

STEP ONE:  Lay out your wood shims to figure out a pattern you like.  I did stacked groupings of 7 and 5.  To get the finished mirror to fit in the space above my mantel it could be no larger than 33" so I had to cut 2" off the thick end of the shims using our trusty compound miter saw.  You certainly don't have to trim them if you don't need to.   

STEP TWO:  Using wood glue, glue the individual shims in your 5 and 7 groupings together.  You won't glue every shim together, just your small groupings.

STEP THREE:  Once your groups of shims are dry, arrange them back into the exact pattern you want them to be in once finished. 

STEP FOUR:  Dampen the side of the wood back piece that will be glued to the shims with a wet rag and apply the Gorilla glue (glue instructions say to dampen one side of the object you plan to glue together).  Lay the piece of wood glue side down to your wood shims.  Place a heavy object on top of the back piece to weigh it down (Gorilla glue needs to be clamped or weighted down to adhere properly).  Let dry for 2-3 hours.

STEP FOUR:  Flip your sunburst over and prime using white primer spray paint and let dry.  This is what mine looked like prior to spraying. 

STEP FIVE:  Brush on the glaze and let dry.  To give it more dimension, apply glaze thicker in some areas and lighter in others.  You really can't mess this part up.

STEP SIX: Spray on a coat of clear poly and let dry.

STEP SEVEN:  Attach your mirror to the front of the sunburst with Gorilla glue.  Use the same method of dampening and weighing down as earlier.  Wait 2-3 hours or until dry. 

STEP EIGHT:  Attach hanging hardware to the back and hang up your new super chic and super cheap mirror!  And, try not to spend too much of the rest of your day staring at your new best friend :D

Cost:

My only purchases for this project were the 8 packages of long wood shims at $26.  Everything else I already had on hand from other projects.

I'll take it!!!  Seeing as how these bad boys can go for well over $300!

Now go forth and stick it to The Man!  Make your own sunburst :D

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