This is a great idea for adding a statement piece to any wall in your home. It's a budget-friendly DIY home decor idea because all you need is an inexpensive mirror like the one I purchased at Walmart for $10. The results are stunning and that ordinary mirror will look like you paid a lot of money for it when you're done. I'm going to show you the steps for how to make an inexpensive mirror look antique. This antiqued mirror would look stunning in an entry or above a fireplace, dining sideboard, or a bed.

How To Make An Ordinary Mirror Look Antique

This is a two-part mirror makeover, with part two being totally optional. Here in Part One, I'm showing you the steps to antique the mirror glass. In Part Two I share How To Add Wow Factor To A Cheap Mirror Frame with Modern Farmhouse style. If the frame on your mirror is narrow and a little skimpy like mine, you'll want to check out part two.

But for the tutorial here in step one, you'll be surprised how easy it is to get a mercury glass patina on an ordinary mirror. The options for what color and patterns you choose to peek from underneath are endless. I used a green vintage style damask scrapbook paper.


You can embellish the mirror even more with decorative cornices and typography with your favorite quote, words of inspiration, or graphic.


They can be added in one of two ways, transfer them onto the glass and hand paint them (I share the steps further down in the post) OR you can cut vinyl letters with a Cricut or Silhouette machine.


We hung our mirror in the dining room, hence the typography I used, above our Board and Batten Wall.


I found the hammered tin platters at our local HomeSense store (the Canadian equivalent of HomeGoods). We get a lot of compliments about the mirror and guests are always surprised when I say it's the same Walmart mirror used on the DIY Wall Mount Jewelry Cabinet in the bedroom.


The antique Radio Cabinet pictured above has been in my family for generations and it also got a refresh since these photos were taken.

I had so much fun aging this mirror that I tried it again on a much smaller mirror. You can see it here in my DIY Aged Mirror For Fall Decorating post.

How To Antique A Mirror Tutorial

So here's how we did it.


I must apologize for the poor quality image below, it was taken in the basement at night using an older iPhone but this is the inexpensive mirror we used for the dining room antique mirror. It had been painted with white latex paint and aged with gold Rub n Buff along the edges.


This post contains affiliate links so you can see what products I used or recommend for this project. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

Step 1 - Remove the backing paper from the mirror

Remove the backing paper from the mirror. If there is cardboard backing behind the mirror keep it because we're going to need it later.

IMPORTANT

Before we begin the following steps, its important that you do it outdoors or in a well-ventilated area and be sure to wear chemical safe rubber gloves, eye protection, and a chemical respirator mask.

Step 2 - Remove the grey painted protective backing

First, we need to remove the grey painted protective backing from the back of the mirror. Generously apply paint remover all over the back of the mirror with a chip brush and let it sit for a few minutes. Scrap the lifted paint with a plastic scraper, a metal scraper may scratch the mirror.

Clean the back of the mirror with a wet cloth. Some of the backing paint will remain but that's okay, it adds to the aged patina.

Step 3 - Remove some of the silver reflective mirror backings

On some mirrors, the silver reflective backing can be removed with household bleach in a spray bottle. I would suggest you try this method first. If that doesn't remove it, like it didn't mine, then you'll need to use Muriatic Acid.

IMPORTANT

If using muriatic acid, this step MUST be done outdoors because it has a VERY toxic chemical odor. You MUST wear chemical safe rubber gloves, eye protection, and a chemical respirator mask. Some home improvement stores carry muriatic acid but not all of them. If you are a fellow Canadian, I purchased mine at Home Hardware.


Whether using bleach or muriatic acid, carefully pour it into a spray bottle.

Lightly spray the acid onto the backside of the mirror, only in the spots you want to remove the silver reflective backing. Sprinkle a little along the edges, a few areas in the middle, and let some of it sprinkle in droplets.

This stuff works very fast so only keep it on for about a minute (unlike what I did). With a wet cloth or paper towel gently dab to remove the muriatic acid or bleach.

What to do if you removed too much of the silver reflective backing

If you were overzealous like me, you can bring back some of the reflective mirror backings by spraying the back of the glass with approximately four coats of Krylon Looking Glass Spray Paint.

Step 4 - Aging the mirror with a mercury glass patina

To give the mirror a mercury glass patina, spray gold metallic paint in some of the exposed glass areas. Lightly dab the wet paint with a lightly dampened seafoam sponge or scrunched lint-free rag.

To give the mirror those desilvering black spots that naturally happen to old mirrors over time, we're going to use graphite (charcoal gray) paint. Dip an old toothbrush into the paint and flick the bristles over the mirror. No worries if you get too many in some areas, use a damp rag to carefully lift them off.

Now that the mirror has been antiqued it's time to add some pretty!

Step 5 - Add pretty paper behind the antiqued mirror

Now it's time to add some pretty paper behind the antique mirror to peek through the areas where the silver reflective backing was removed.

Glue or tape pretty scrapbook paper onto the original cardboard backing that you removed earlier from behind the mirror. If your mirror didn't have cardboard backing then simply set the paper down over the backside of the mirror and tape it to the glass somewhere along the edges where it won't be seen.

My floor-length mirror took four sheets of scrapbook paper to cover the entire back of the mirror. You can use a solid color paper or something with a subtle vintage design like the faded damask pattern I used.

Step 6 - Paint the frame

Now that the mirror has been antiqued we're ready to refinish the wooden frame. I painted mine with layers of paint followed by distressing for a shabby chic finish. First I painted it with graphite (charcoal gray) chalk paint. After it was dry I brushed one coat of old white chalk paint.

There are two ways you can distress the painted mirror. You can wet distress it which means before the top coat of paint dries rub your finger along the edges with a damp rag and light pressure. Or you can wait until the paint is dry and use 220 grit sandpaper to distress along the edges to reveal the graphite paint underneath. Don't press too firmly or you risk sanding through to the original wood.

At this point, you can protect the paint finish with either clear wax or a non-yellowing clear topcoat. I chose not to apply a protective finish because it won't receive wear and tear hanging on a wall.

Once the paint is completely dry, set the antiqued mirror back into the frame. You can finish the back with brown paper or if your mirror came with hardboard backing, nail it back in place.

Carefully clean the front of the mirror with a damp cloth and we're ready to move onto adding the typography and decorative cornices.

Step 7 - Adding typography onto the antiqued mirror

As I mentioned earlier, you can add the typography onto the front of the mirror in two ways. If you have a Cricut or Silhouette machine, you can cut permanent vinyl. If not, you can hand paint it onto the front of the glass using this image transfer technique.

Create your graphic in your favorite graphic software, I used PicMonkey and resize it in Block Poster. I've included a free download that you are welcome to use. Just click on the graphic below for a free PDF download.


Voila, a gorgeous faux antique mirror made with an inexpensive Walmart or thrift store mirror and something you can be proud to have hanging in your home. I hope you found this tutorial helpful and that it has inspired you to transform an old mirror.

Remember to go check out Part Two where we reframed the mirror with plank Farmhouse style (link at the top of the post).

If you have any questions about this DIY antiqued mirror tutorial, please leave them in the comment section below or the Contact Me tab at the top. I love hearing from you!

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