Ocean Themed Mirror

I haven’t been able to find a mirror I liked for my bathroom, so I decided to make my own!

I started with a large picture frame (I actually used one with flat sides, but it looked very similar to this). I removed the glass and taped off the corners at 45′ angles.

I used a Redesign Decor Stamp from the Bohemian Floral set and a (discontinued) aqua paint to create a border with mitered corners by stamping over the tape, removing it once the paint was dry, and repeating for the remaining sides.

Several light coats of Rust-Oleum Specialty Mirror Spray over the aqua paint turned the glass into a mirror.

Several wooden appliques were glued to the corners, top, and bottom of the frame. I found these on eBay. Next I used my favorite discontinued airdry clay and the Iron Orchid Designs Seashell Mould as well as the ReDesign with Prima Seashore Treasures mould to add a variety of shells and sea stars over the appliques.

I mixed some black paint with the aqua to create a dark gray green and used it on the entire frame.

The shells became part of the appliques once they were the same color. I put a sloppy coat of Modern Masters Warm Silver Metallic paint over the appliques and mouldings. I covered the areas between the appliques with Country Chic Paint’s Crackle Medium.

I had a sample jar of dark teal paint from one of Country Chic’s mystery boxes without a color name, but it was just right for this project. A single thick coat over the crackle medium produced lovely cracks.

I used a thinner coat of the same paint over the appliques and wiped it back with a damp shop towel so the metallic paint showed through.

Next I layered on a coat of Country Chic’s Slate Furniture Glaze and wiped it back again with a damp cloth. Then I used a discontinued jade green glaze in the same way. The glazes settled in the cracks and low points. This created the layered effect I wanted. Two coats of Minwax Polycylic in Satin sealed everything and gave it a bit of a sheen.