You can create a frame like this for a bathroom mirror.
Redecorating on a budget involves some do-it-yourself projects, and framing a bathroom mirror provides one of the least expensive, most satisfying projects you can do in a couple of hours. This approach does not require you to remove the mirror from the wall (an extremely difficult, if not impossible, task if you want to keep the mirror in one piece). Instead you build the frame around the mirror. A good saw, some decorative molding and careful measuring will create a whole new look for your bathroom.
Instructions
1. Cut the decorative molding into four pieces, each about 8 inches longer than sides of the mirror.
2. Fit a piece of molding along one edge of the mirror. The rabbeted edge will be on the inside of the frame, allowing space for the mirror so the molding will lie flat against the wall. The inside edge of the molding will cover the outside edge of the mirror. Make a mark to show how far the molding overlaps the mirror.
3. Measure the distance from the edge of the mirror to your mark. Measure in from the edges that amount on all four sides of the mirror. Use the yardstick to provide a straight edge to draw a rectangle on the mirror to show where the inside edge of the frame will fall.
4. Miter one corner of one piece of molding using a table saw or a miter saw. A miter cut is a 45-degree cut that creates a neater and stronger joint than you would get by putting the pieces of framing together at a 90-degree angle. Remember that the inside edge of the molding will be where the miter cut starts. On a table saw, cut a mitered corner by adjusting the miter gauge to a 45-degree angle and then using it to push the piece of molding through the saw. The inside edge of the molding will end up being shorter than the outside edges because of the mitered corners.
5. Place the mitered corner at one corner of the mirror, fitting it tightly to the mirror. Lay a second piece of molding on the side of the mirror that meets the corner you just mitered. Mark where the inside of the miter for the second piece of molding falls, using the outline you drew on the mirror as your guide. Cut the miter.
6. Place the pieces of molding with the miters against the mirror again, and mark where the miters on the opposite ends of those pieces begin. Cut the miters. Continue until the corners of all four pieces of the molding have been mitered. Dry fit the molding to the mirror to make sure it forms a perfect frame.
7. Finish the four pieces of molding. Lightly sand with 120-grit sandpaper, wipe them clean with a damp cloth, and apply a coat of primer or stain. Let the first coat dry, and then apply a coat of paint or a second coat of stain. For the third coat, use a second coat of paint or a coat of polyurethane for the stain. You need to paint or stain not only the front of the frame, but the inside of the rabbet on the back side of the frame so the mirror does not reflect bare wood.
8. Assemble the frame and attach it to the mirror using 5-minute clear epoxy. Use the epoxy at the mitered corners and along the outside edge of the mirror. Apply the epoxy sparingly so it does not ooze out along the frame.
Tags: piece molding, , inside edge, molding will, edge molding, edge molding will, four pieces