Mirror mirror on the wall.

After completing the building of the box and before finishing it I couldn't decide on a mantle mirror and hesitated between a small gilt one or a large painted one to match the fireplace. I remembered a style I admired in interior design books and thought that it would be in keeping with the theme. 

 I cut to fit a piece of flexible transparent plexi and after scoring the front into 16 pieces I coated the back with Krlon spray mirror after first spraying on some vinegar to 'spot age' the finished effect.

 Here I painted the back over the spray mirror with F&B mat black acrylic paint. 

 I then cut through the scored lines and decided to 'reassemble' the pieces to break up the antique effect. This turned out to be problematic as despite being more or less the same size there were small discrepancies making the re-assembly awkward! I glued the pieces onto some black stiff paper before glueing it to the wall above the fireplace. 

 Here I drilled through each intersection in order to insert brass headed nails as a decorative finish. I have often seen these mirrors in big old houses and think that they are a great way of using mirror without it looking to uniform. I would definately use this in full scale although I would need a lot more spray paint and given its cost it would be a luxury! Although you cannot see it, I had to glue a thick piece of Balsa behind the wall to give enough depth for the nails to hold.  

 The finished mirror looking a bit dull in the photo but its best to not be too shiny as it always looks out of place in an 'old' house. 

 Here I arranged my two favorite antique vases and a 'lava stone' cameo on a painted cardboard stand. I am looking forward to decorating the wall and finishing the floor and then dressing it with all my Swedish themed créations. Lots to do in 2019, luckilly there are 12 months, 52 weeks or 365 days and not forgetting the nights !

Just an extra detail. I wanted to make a gold 'filet' around the mirror and here I used some linen string that I stretched taught between two points then painted firstly with ochre acrylic paint to give it a base and make it slightly stiffer. If I was to redo it I would first coat the string with wood glue before the ochre and gold and the glue would 'bind' the fibres of the string more closely. 

 I then painted it with antique gold paint ready to insert it around the mirror but only after I decide on how to paint the frame! Patience is indeed a virtue! This technique could be used to make gold trim for anywhere in a built or on a piece of furniture. As its still basically string it can be formed as you need, curved to fit any shape.