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How to make your builder grade bathroom mirror look like a custom upgrade!
One of my favorite upgrades I have done in all the homes we have lived in is change the bathroom mirrors. It’s such a easy project and the difference it makes is huge!
In the past I have ripped down the builder grade mirror and just bought a nice mirror and hung that in it’s place. That works fine but it has be a pain getting the large mirror off the wall without shattering it into a million pieces……. So I have come up with a different solution and have been doing this for years!
I frame it!! So easy, right?? I decided to do the ones in our new house with reclaimed wood and some white trim. I then added a metal bracket on the corners just to give it a little more interest. This project is so quick, maybe an hour start to finish, and what a difference it makes in your bathroom!
Here is a little before and after
To do this project you will need the following:
-Wood of your choosing
–Corner Brackets (optional)
–Impact Driver or Screwdriver (if using the corner brackets)
I get asked about the lights over our mirror all the time so if you are interested in those as well I will link then here!
The light bar I found at Lowe’s (I could’t find the same one online to link it, but its just the light bar. It doesn’t come with light covers or light bulbs)
Step 1:
Mesure the the length and height of your mirror so you know how long to cut the boards. Once you have those measurements then cut your wood at a 45 degree angle on your miter saw so that the corners each meet up at a 45 degree angle. This takes a little bit of time and patience. If you don’t have much experience cutting wood I recommend cutting the boards longer than needed and slowly cutting them down until they fit.
Step 2:
Now that you have cut all your wood its time to put it up on your mirror. Start on the top and put a good amount of the clear adhesive on the back of the wood and stick it directly to the mirror. Then place a few clamps to hold it in place. Work your way around your mirror repeating this step until your mirror is completely framed. I use the Gorilla brand adhesive because it has a fast grab time. I have used others before and the wood has fallen off even after 24 hours with clamps holding it. This one grabs fast and holds strong!
Step 3:
If your not doing the metal braces on the corners your done!! If you are nows the time to put them on. Make sure the screws you use are shorter than the thickness of the wood. You don’t want to drive the screw through the back of the wood because you could crack the mirror. Once you have the right size screws just center them in the corners and use a drill or screwdriver to attach them to the wood, and thats it, simple right!
Hope you enjoyed this quick little tutorial, now go have fun and frame out those ugly builder grade mirrors and make them look amazing!!
-Grey Birch Designs-
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Throw pillows are one of the easiest ways to change up your decor and give it a fresh new look, and I love these DIY placemat pillows because they are very affordable! So here is what you need to make these cute pillows:
-Any placemat of your choosing (mine are from the Hearth and Hand Collection at Target)
Step 1:
Find the seam along the bottom and use your seam ripper to cut the thread and make an opening about the width of your hand.
Step 2:
Take your bag of Poly-fil and stuff your placemat to the fullness you like. I ended up using the whole 12 oz size bag for one pillow, but I like mine to be full and over-stuffed.
Step 3:
It’s time to close up your pillow! Take your fabric glue and run a little bit along the seam you opened with your seam ripper. Then pinch it together with your fingers for a few seconds until you can feel that it is holding. Continue this until you have completely closed your seam.
That’s it, pretty easy, right? And now you have a pillow!! I have also made these with down pillow inserts from Ikea instead of Poly-fil, and they work very well.
Hope you give this easy DIY a try!!
-Grey Birch Designs-
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Welcome to my little 2017 Christmas Home Tour!! I had so much fun decorating our home this year I thought I would share it with you all, hope you enjoy it as much as I did decorating it!
Our fireplace mantel is one of my favorite and first things I decorate when changing from season to season. This year I used this faux hanging greenery, concrete trees, small flocked Christmas trees, and a couple faux pine trees in tin cans to dress it up. I added small white lights in my rosemary trees and along the top of the hanging greenery. I set them on timers (best idea EVER) so each night they turn on and I don’t have to do anything!
I’m absolutely in love with our stockings. I had been wanting something neutral but with great texture and was so excited when I found these at Target last year. The metal letters are the first letter of each kid’s name (except the M and D for mom and dad) I laced them up with some jute and hung them on each stocking, brown for the boys and white for the girls!
I kept our kitchen fairly simple since it flows into all the other room and there is a lot more going on in the other rooms. The tall 3 tiered tray is another piece that is so fun and easy to change out with the seasons. I found mine on Amazon but have seen them on other online farmhouse decor shops.
I dressed my tray up with some wire reindeer I have had for years and years, and cinnamon pinions (that smell like heaven, seriously!). I filled my little olive buckets with some gold and silver ornaments from the dollar store and made a little wreath around the bottom from the left over fresh garland I used on our banister. Cute and very budget friendly!
The sunroom off our kitchen is one of the most used spaced in our home. We eat all our meals here and lots of family games nights. I tried to keep it functional but still have some Christmas cheer. I added some stems of faux frosted white berries to the cotton stems I already had in my centerpiece. I also set up the 6′ faux flocked trees I found at Walmart for only $30 each!! I took the bases off and stuck them in some cute metal buckets and placed them in each corner to balance out the room.
Off to the side of our sunroom on the bar top I put this cute little vignette with metal reindeer and some bottle brush trees that I’m in love with this year!! The white sparkly ones are my absolute favorite!
The center piece in our formal dinning room was one of the last things I put together. I had all these left over decorations that I love but didn’t have a spot for, so I decided to throw it all together and see what I could come up with. I was so happy with how it turned out that this just may be my go to center piece each year!
I just recently changed up our entry way. I turned this old entertainment cabinet into a cute entryway table by removing the doors in the middle, and changing up the shelves. On top I layered 2 different size mirrors with matching lamps flanking each side. The mason jars were an easy DIY project, (just white paint and sand paper) and then I filled them with my favorite cotton stems! For the Christmas season I added this faux pine garland and pinecones.
In the corner I have an antique, chippy stool with my wood cubbies on top. I filled the cubbies with more of those dollar store ornaments and some little trees. On top is my favorite sign, “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Clause”. This is the first year my two oldest kids understand the meaning of this sign. In the past they would tell me not to kiss Santa and only to kiss Daddy, haha!! Finally to finish up this space – underneath the stool is an antique crate I found that is perfect to hold my Merry Christmas pillow from a local craft show I went to this year.
This year I decided to use fresh garland from Costco and I LOVE it!! They are so long, I got 2 and it was enough to do my whole railing, the wreath around my tray on our kitchen island, and over our front door!! Such a great value and smells amazing! To make it feel a little fuller I added some faux frosted eucalyptus and small pinecones to the garland, then I tied bows with this adorable ribbon from the Hearth and Home collection at Target.
Finally our tree!! I played around with it for weeks until I was happy, and I have to say I’m so in love with it. It is filled with so many rusty, sparkley, chippy wood and galvanized metal yumminess that it makes my little farmhouse loving heart happy!
Thanks for looking at my Christmastmas home tour, I hope you enjoyed it and found some inspirations for your own home this holiday season!
-Grey Birch Designs-
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I am frequently asked about my living room mirrors and everyone is always surprised when I tell them they are actually a really easy DIY project I did. When we first moved into our new home I realized the living room needed a statement piece. I looked a lot of places to find tall designer inspired mirrors but just couldn’t bring myself to spend a lot of money, so I set out to try and make what I wanted for a fraction of the cost. I could’t be happier with how they turned out, here is a little overview of how I made these DIY wall mirrors.
Supply list:
You can find these at Target or Walmart for around $5!!
Cut to 57.5″ x 23″
(this can be customized a bit depending on the size mirror you get)
TIP: If you don’t have a large saw to cut the plywood Home Depot will cut it for FREE!
(I found mine off a local buy and sell page but Home Depot sells wood that looks similar, or you could buy any trim wood and stain it whatever color you like)
(they come in a few different sizes so you can pick the size you like best, I used the 2.5″ size)
– Wood trim (1.5″ wide and .25″ thick)
– Black paint
Tool List:
– Sander or sand paper
– Clamps
– Nail gun or hammer & nails
Once you get all your supplies together it’s an easy build from this point on!
STEP 1:
The first thing your going to want to do is paint your cut pieces of plywood and your trim pieces, and let them dry wile you make your other cuts.
STEP 2:
Now you are going to want to cut the barnwood to frame out your piece of plywood. Measure the top of your plywood, mark out the measurement on your barnwood, then take your miter saw set it at a 45 degree angle and cut. Repeat this step for the bottom and sides of the plywood.
STEP 3:
Next you are going to cut the trim pieces to make the X’s on the mirror. First you are going to divide the hight of the mirror into 3 equal sections. Then mesuere the with and cut 2 pieces to make the boxes.
STEP 4:
Now to make the X’s you will need to measure each box on a diangal (do each one seperately because the boxes can vary in size slightly) once you have the measurement you are going to make cuts to fit into the corners of the boxes. The best way to do this is to trace the angles on the wood and cut them on the saw. Repeat this step until you have all the wood trim cut to put your boxes and X’s together.
STEP 5:
Now it’s time to put everything together!! Lay out your wood trim pieces on the mirror. Once you get them how you want, take some clear silicone adhesive and glue each piece down to the mirror. Depending on how tight fitting your wood trim pieces meet up you may want to fill the small gaps with some wood filler.
STEP 6:
Now its time to attach your mirror to the plywood. Use the same adhesive on the back of the mirror and glue it down to the middle of the plywood.
STEP 7:
Time to attach your barnwood frame! Take each piece you have already cut and attach it with some wood glue. Then take your clamps and clamp the wood down wile you secure each piece with a few nails.
STEP 8:
After everything is done drying, if you used wood filler now is the time to sand it and touch up the paint. Then the final step is to add the hanging hardware. There are many ways you can do this. I like to drive 2 screws several inches apart into the back of the wood and connect them with picture hanging wire.
That’s it, your done, and now you have a beautiful custom mirror without the designer price tag!!
I hope you find this tutorial helpful and give it a try. I love seeing your projects so send me pics of your finished pieces!!
-Grey Birch Designs-
