When mirrors get old the glass gets discolored, but don't throw these mirrors away when you can learn how to decorate them with these easy instructions.
Have you ever owned a mirror that began to lose the silver from the backside? If you have you know that one spot of missing silver and the entire mirror can look like junk. The loss of the silver usually appears around the edges of an unframed mirror but can appear in the middle of the glass as well. Covering the loss of silver around the edges isn't that hard. Simply make or purchase a frame for the mirror and the silver loss is no longer noticeable. Of course there are other ways to cover silver loss on the edges such as using metallic markers to outline the perimeter of the mirror. The marker ink, upon drying, cannot be removed with glass cleaner. The pens come in various types like glitter or diamond finish to give an elegant touch to the scarred mirror. Frame work doesn't have to be wooden either. Glue white gravel rock around the mirror, use texture paint around the perimeter or braid rope and affix it to the glass.
If the damaged areas are showing only at certain spots on the sides of the mirror use suction cups to hang small family pictures up and down the edges of the glass. Or print out images in strips, on clear adhesive paper, then cut and attach to the perimeter of the mirror or just down the sides. Or instead of printing your own look around your local craft store for clear-backed stickers which can be placed on the glass. The stickers nowadays aren't just small images. They're available in strips printed with vines, flowers with a puffy-look, glow-in-the-dark and many other choices. Another way to cover only side damage to the mirror is to attach tassels that hang down the sides. The top of the tassel can be glued to the top corner of the mirror or the tassels can be attached to the wall just above the glass corner.
When missing silver leaves black spots here and there across the surface of the mirror these can be a little harder to conceal. If it's a large mirror it's possible to make a jewel pattern across the face of the mirror using adhesive stones. You can do the same for smaller mirrors using smaller jewels. The jewels come in various shapes and sizes. Instead of relying on the adhesive to stick glue the jewels to the mirror surface to keep them secure.
Some people paint on a mirror either freehand or using stencils. Paints made especially for glass offer the ability to give the mirror an appearance of stained glass or a mirrored picture. Tape the stencil to the mirror and fill in the spaces with the glass paints or even paint makers which stick to most surfaces. You can even purchase liquid lead which separates the colors of the stained glass and make it look even more like a real stained glass piece.
New glass accents are on the market making it easy to decorate mirrors. Simply peel and stick the accents, which come in many different designs, to the surface of the mirror for a look of etched glass. Choose a linear pattern for the edges or a large one-piece design for the center of the mirror.
