Upcycling Salvaged Mirror - From Trash (literally!) to Treasure.

Hi everybody.

Today a new instructable on how to turn salvaged wardrobe mirror door into the hanging wall mirror.

I've found this wardrobe mirrored door pane on the way home, and as much as I'd like to save all of it, I was only able to take this beautiful piece.

Tools needed:

screwdrivers,
chisel,
wood clamps,
wood scraper,
wood glue,
orbital sander,
paintbrushes,
paint of your choice,
steel wire with aluminium crimps,
some pliers to tight the crimps.

Please also remember about PPE (Personal Protection Equipement) as respiratory mask and goggles.

Step 1: Disassembling

First step is to strip mirror from all parts in order to cleaning.

Back panel and glass holders were attached with nails, the rest was attached with screws and nails as well. This step is quite simple.

Step 2: Cleaning

To clean the surface I've used wood scraper. It is a very time consuming process, so you might want to listen to your favourite music or podcast while doing this :)

Orbital sander is good for smoothing the surface and removing remaining varnish. Please remember to use respiratory mask at this stage.

Step 3: Filling Up the Gaps

As I've decided to turn it into wall mirror, I had to fill up all the gaps in the wood.

The type of used wood is not important, as I knew the paint will cover it anyway.

I've chisel out all loosen wood fibres, cut the pieces to fit tightly and glued them in. The spot after the missing lock was made in 2 runs: first I've glued the bigger piece, then after planing and chiselling I've glued in wee edge piece.

At this point you can fill any imperfections with wood filler, and run the whole surface with a sander once again.

Step 4: Painting

I've chosen Rust-oleum chalky paint for finish, but I wanted this nice crackle effect on it. That's why I've also used Rust-oleum Crackle base coat for the effect and top coat to secure all layers. Instructions are as follows:

Paint the whole piece with the colour you'd like the crackles to be (Fire Brick in my case) with brush, and leave it to dry. You have to apply the paint in one direction (let say across the piece).
Apply Crackle base coat with brush in the same direction, as a colour base coat.
After 2 to 4 hours apply top colour coat in the opposite direction (along the piece), Duck Egg in my case. The thicker the layer be - the bigger the crackles should appear. Please make sure you use good brush, as at this stage crackles shows up quickly, and there is no much time for any adjustments.
After crackles set up, you can apply last one, top coat, which has to secure the final effect of your work.

Before last step it's good to process all distress effect if you'd like to have any. I've used some sandpaper.

Step 5: Applications

As top part of a mirror seemed quite empty to me, I wanted tu add something to it. I went for a brass sign saying "mind your head" as a form of reminder. I's a mirror after all :)

I've also added vintage enamel hooks for brushes and hair looms, and steel wire at the back as a hanger.