Mirror, decided.

This poor mirror has been through so much...since the last post about the mirror, I have tried navy and finally landed on gold leafing it.

I sprayed some other mirrors gold this weekend, and I was disappointed with how they turned out, so I was nervous about gold leafing.  However, the finish/color/texture is so much different and better than the spray paint.

To gold leaf this, I first sanded the mirror.  Then, I applied a metal leafing adhesive.  I let it 'dry' for 45 minutes, and then it will be tacky...ready for the super delicate gold leaf sheets.  I applied the gold leaf...I would love to see an expert do this because I am clearly not one.  I had SO many spots to retouch.  Wine and some streaming Netflix movies helped :)  There were some spots that I had missed with the adhesive.  I went back over the missed spots with adhesive, let is 'dry' or get tacky, and then I applied more gold leaf.  Once I had finished the retouching, I applied two coats of sealer.  You can buy all these supplies at Michael's for less than $15.

I am enjoying the results...it is fun to have a finish that is different from my standard painting option. I think it brings a nice pop of color and a bit of glam, which I felt like the room needed.  


 So, here are the stages of the mirror again...

When it arrived in the mail...

Painted white and in the downstairs teeny bath where it just didn't look right...

Then, the mirror stayed white for a few more days and had a test drive in the living room.  I really liked the location, but the white mirror faded into the gray owl walls.

I had a small sample paint of Rich Navy by Glidden.  I did a horrible job, but slapped one thin coat of paint on the mirror to see if I might like navy.  I think this could be nice looking - but I already have too much going on in the room, as it is, so I opted to gold leaf.

And...here is the final verdict.  (At least until I get tired of it :))

this pictures makes it look brighter than it is in person...