We’re back to share how we painted our $39 Marshall’s mirror so it’s a bit less upscale-formal (in black) and a smidge more playful and nursery-ready (thanks to a few coats of deep asparagus green paint).
It was a super straightforward process, although I’m not gonna lie- all those curvy openings definitely took me a bit longer to work around than a basic mirror frame would have. But it was totally worth it in the end. As in, I’d do it again ten times without a second thought. We just love it!
We were inspired by the deeper green tones in the leaves from our curtain fabric so the color that we decided on for the mirror was a nice deep-ish green tone called Behr’s Scotland Isle (we got it color matched to an inexpensive quart of Olympic’s No-VOC Premium Paint in a semi-gloss finish). We passed on using any primer since our mirror was already painted (not stained) so we didn’t worry about anything bleeding through (and we wanted to avoid the primer fumes if at all possible). But we did rough it up with a bit of high-grit (350) sandpaper before picking up a paint brush. Note: if you’re not prego and not making over a mirror for a nursery, you could easily use a spray primer like Kilz followed by a few thin and even coats of spray paint in your color of choice for a perfectly polished finished product- just be sure to spray in a well ventilated area because those fumes aren’t great for anyone- pregnant or not.
So as I mentioned, I passed on the spray paint approach and resolved to do the work with a small craft brush instead. I left my usual 2″ angled paint brush in our tool drawer and reached for a tiny less-than-one-inch brush from Michael’s from my craft drawer instead- just to get into all those nooks and crannies. Two coats, and about two hours later, I was looking at a gorgeously green mirror that appeared as if it had always been that color. Not an ounce of black paint bled through the paint or peered around the cut outs thanks to my tiny brush. Oh and I painted the mirror on a flat piece of cardboard to catch any drips and make it easy to spin around so I could access it from all sides (which was crucial to ensure that I didn’t miss any of the many edges that needed green paint to cover the black).
Then I sat back and let everything fully dry (I didn’t even attempt to hang it for 24 hours, just to be sure it was fully cured) and used a simple straight edged razor to scrape the small amount of paint that had dripped from the frame onto the round face of the mirror in the middle. Then we used two heavy duty anchors to securely fasten it to the wall in the nursery. We intentionally hung it across from the only window in the modestly-sized room to reflect lots of light and make the space feel more open and airy.
We love how the color works with the tones in our curtains. And of course we adore all the fun little shapes that it makes on the wall (that we’re sure the beanette will love to stare at). We especially enjoy the four little hearts around the mirror’s perimeter that we never even noticed back before we painted it green.
See how smooth our paint job came out just from applying two thin and even coats of latex paint with a small craft brush? Painting a frame or a mirror is really one of the most simple and rewarding projects that you can take on (how about painting a bunch of them in a bold punchy color and hanging them in a grid above your sofa?). Easy peasy. Especially if they’re less ornate than this guy.
So there you have our latest little nursery project that we completed with just one cheap-o brush and a quart of colorful semi-gloss paint. Oh and we should mention that we do realize that when the beanette gets bigger and eventually can stand up in her crib (even though we’ll be lowering the mattress at that point) hanging the mirror even more securely on the wall will be in her best interest. At that time we plan to screw right through the frame and into the wall (we can countersink, putty and paint the heads of the screws to hide ’em) so the mirror can’t even be yanked off the wall by a hulking adult. Stay tuned for all those little childproofing adventures that we’ll take on as Baby P grows and becomes more mobile towards the end of 2010…
And before we forget, did you notice that we snagged an awesome aqua colored 100% organic crib sheet? We actually ordered two of them (we’ve heard that it’s easier to always have a spare on hand) and also grabbed two 100% organic changing pad covers in the same color. We love the pop of happy hue that it adds without being too busy (we considered some patterned options but realized that with the scrolly mirror and the printed curtains it might be a bit too much).
Best of all? After sleuthing out about twenty organic crib sheet and changing pad cover options, these were the cheapest and the color happened to be perfect- plus they even offered free shipping so we couldn’t have been happier. Not bad for $18 and $15 a pop respectively. Of course we did that thing where you cross your fingers that the color n the monitor is close to the real color, but as soon as they arrived we breathed a sigh of relief. Now we just have to pick up about a million other things (waterproof mattress cover, changing pad, dresser, side table, lamp, art, cloth diapers, toy baskets, etc). Not to worry, we’ll get ‘er done.
Psst- Wanna see our nursery progress from the very beginning? Here’s our painting post, our big shopping spree, our crib hunting rundown, our curtain-making tutorial, and our fun little chair search.
I love it! I never would have thought to repaint something that was new—what a great touch to the nursery!
I’m getting ready to paint a third mirror in my house! So much fun and so rewarding. Your mirror turned out so great, I love all the curves. Great post as always.
LOVE the mirror, and the whole direction the nursery has taken – it’s gorgeous!
And I also think it’s lovely how graciously you respond to everyone’s advice, even when it’s unsolicited or you’ve already tried to preempt it. You always keep it so classy. :)
Love the green! I was hoping you’d go with a darker green rather than pink for the mirror (as someone previously suggested on another post). Great job!
once again I’m inspired!! SO, going to try something similar to this in our guest bed room!! (no nursery for us yet!)
I think it’s totally cute that you’ve got such an extended family via the internet. Everyone has their tips to share about parenting, just like friends and family you see in person.
I myself am not a parent but I admit patients to the ER at a children’s hospital so all I know are the top ways children hurt themselves.
You guys are going to be great parents, it is adorable!
I should add that I work at the children’s hospital as a volunteer, so I’m not a health professional or anything.
Hey guys. I noticed at the end of your post you mention the need to pick up cloth diapers. I have used Gdiapers with all three of my kids and absolutely LOVE them. They are a great green choice — you might want to check them out. http://www.gdiapers.com
Thanks for the tip Rhonda! We’re looking into a lot of different options so it’ll be interesting to see where we end up.
xo,
s
GORGEOUS!!!!!
I love how the mirror came out! The room is really coming together and I’m really look forward to seeing it in it’s entirety.
The mirror looks wonderful. I want to gobble up that yummy green. Her room is coming together so beautifully; what a lucky girl she is.
Very nice!
You know, one of our cats just threw up on one of my newly acquired jute rugs, and I learned first hand how hard it is to clean up that type of material. I immediately thought of you two and am crossing my fingers that you don’t have any baby messes on any of your gorgeous natural textured rugs!
Hey Kristi,
Well, the good news is that we definitely plan to toss down a blanket for our little one to play on (especially if she’s on one of our home’s more textured and potentially scratchy jute rugs). The funny thing is that we actually potty trained Burger while we had the jute rug in the den and we were so impressed with how well it held up to all that gross staining (we just hosed it off outside and let it dry in the sun). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
I totally second this comment, by the way:
“And I also think it’s lovely how graciously you respond to everyone’s advice, even when it’s unsolicited or you’ve already tried to preempt it. You always keep it so classy. :)”
it looks great so far!
So pretty!! I love using craft brushes for my small projects and tight corners, and I just used some to repaint my lovely bnch for my bedroom
you guys…LOOKIN’ GOOD, LOOKIN’ GOOD!
I so don’t favor black accent pieces for a nursery either…
I LOVE the color you painted that sweet mirror and you’re right, it grabs colors out of the panels for SURE! oh my gosh, this bean is just gonna be in heaven in her sweet adorable room…yay for babies, babies are a blessing ;)
http://www.casacullen.com/
This mirror looks SOO much better in green than in black! Love it!
Beautiful! As always, so many comments & I’m supposed to be working so I can’t read them all…so forgive me if this repeats anything. But here is a GREAT tip I read in (I think) a Consumer Reports book: double up on sheets & pads on the mattress. In other words, mattress pad, fitted sheet, mattress pad over the sheet, another sheet. It is so much easier this way if you have to deal with a wet or messy sheet–esp. at night! And this tip was even more helpful once my kids moved to big beds–there’s nothing worse than a full bed-change at 3:00 am! If you don’t already have a 2nd mattress pad, I’d buy one just for this reason.
On the other hand, I found that changing pad covers were unnecessary. They require frequent washing, as you might imagine. It was just easier to change my kids directly on the pad & wipe it, if necessary. Did you open the package already? :-)
So so so cute!!! I love the peak of the artwork you gave us! Can’t wait to see the whole thing. Forget a baby, I’d totally move into this nursery! I have one question, are you planning on installing a mobile over the bed?
…and FYI- I just Googled the likelihood of you all having an earthquake in Richmond. Um, it’s like .04% I think there are so many other (REAL) concerns to worry about with a newborn than a mirror randomly popping into the crib by an act of God. I’m just sayin’…
Hey Nikki,
We actually think the room’s capiz chandelier is sort of mobile-like for our baby to gaze at (and it casts all sorts of fun shadows on the ceiling). But although we don’t plan to make or buy a mobile for over the bed, we do plan to whip up another DIY project for her to stare at when she’s being changed (we’ll be hanging it over the dresser). Stay tuned for that!
xo,
s
The nursery looks beautiful! I would suggest having at least 3 or 4 crib sheets though, you wouldn’t believe how many times a newborn can dirty the sheets up (plus you might not be doing laundry as often as you do now).
Super cute!! Love that mirror!
Totally love the green mirror! I hate to admit it, but I had never thought of painting something new like that. I actually made a large mirror for our dining room and am getting ready to re-paint it another color for use in the entry instead. I wish they made low or no VOC primer but I guess that is what the masks are for.
Wow, I absolutely love it! I have a fear of painting things, but apparently, I just need to get over it, haha.
The little bean room is coming together so nicely.
I absolutely love this shade of green :) You’ve inspired my husband and I to finally tackle the mirror we’ve been wanting to paint. We’ve always talked about it but have just never done it….after seeing how simple it is and how beautifully yours turned out, I now have a new project for the upcoming weekend!!
I love the mirror! It look so much better green. It makes me want to pick up a paint brush and began doing the same!
Thanks so much for another great project. :o) I wanted to share an article I found with you . . . it’s good food for thought, and as you’re so conscious about the Beanette’s safety, this is an easy and inexpensive thing to do to help safeguard your little girl.
http://www.johnleemd.com/store/more_crib_sids.html
Have a great day!
Looks great! Love the color! I know you talked about screwing it into the wall. That’s a really good idea even BEFORE she can reach it. Our son threw things out of his crib. I don’t want to be negative, I just would hate for any accidents. :-) Love the curtains too!
Thanks for all the suggestions and tips everyone! We can’t respond to them all individually but I promise we’re taking them all in and taking notes!
xo,
s
I love how the room is coming along. Did you choose what type of cloth diapers to use yet? I use the Bum Genius 3.0 organic ones with my son and I have never had a leak in them (he is 2), but I just attended a cloth diaper workshop and was impressed by the good old fashioned pre-fold diaper paired with a Bummies wrap or wool cover. Good luck, I love reading your blog it is very inspirational.
We’re looking into a few different cloth diapering options so we haven’t made a final choice yet. But of course we’ll spill the beans when the bean comes along in May…
xo,
s
Love the mirror! As a parent to parent tip I suggest making the crib with both mattress pads and crib sheets layered. That way if something happens all you have to do is strip a sheet and mattress pad and you have a bed already made. It makes a middle of the night sheet change so much easier.
We keep getting that layered bedding tip over and over again! We’ll definitely be putting it into practice!
xo,
s
I love how the mirror turned out. I would definitely have expected you to paint it white, but the green is a really nice twist and it’s very fun in that room!
I do have a mirror painting question (which I don’t think has been covered in your past mirror painting posts?). Whenever I paint a mirror, I always end up getting paint on the underside of the wood that borders the mirror, which can then be seen when looking in the mirror. How do you avoid that when you paint? Just a steady hand and small brush? I think brush size was definitely part of my problem! Is there a certain type of small brush you use on a project like this?
Thanks in advance for any suggestions you have!
Yup, a small brush definitely helps (and not loading it up with globs of paint) but you can also use blue painters tape to avoid it completely. WE also find that using the straight razor to scrape any errant paint works well for us. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
hi there :) the mirror looks so beautiful. your daughter’s nursery is really coming together. i love that you were brave enough to make your own way instead of simply starting with an already existing baby bedding pattern :) not that there is anything wrong with that of course!
okay. so here’s the real reason i’m writing. that sounds dramatic, but it’s really not.
after seeing your indoor/outdoor lovely fabric for your nursery draperies, i became a woman mildly obsessed. you see, that is simply the perfect print for what i have been looking for for over a year. i was ecstatic to have “found it” at last. the only trouble was that i hadn’t actually “found it” myself, i had only seen it on your blog.
so i did what an normal person would do and went directly to the p. kaufmann website in hopes of finding my answers there – well, after my google searches had been fruitless, that is. i ended up contacting the p.k. rep for my area (san diego, ca) – i attached pictures from your blog – and asked her how i could please, purdy please get the name of this print as well as hopefully purchase some of it.
a few days later, i finally received a response from her (summarized here):
“After not recognizing it myself, which is weird and a bad sign to start off, I sent out a search to our NY offices for this fabric and the no one has been able to identify it. Everyone came back and said it is not ours. Maybe write back to the blog and see if there was a mistake made with the company name. Good luck on your quest.”
the letter was more kind than that summary seems, and they weren’t mad at you as bloggers for thinking it was their print, so not to worry there. i, of course, responded something along the lines of, “thank you for your reply. it wasn’t the bloggers who got it wrong. i believe it was the store that had it wrong :(” and so on. so, anyway. that is what this now back to square one girl found out this morning.
sheesh, this comment is now embarrassingly long… i want to say that i’m not telling you this to be a snot or anything. i’m not mad at you guys for being mislead into thinking it was a p.k. print. just letting you know that according to the p.k. headquarters, this isn’t their fabric :( and i am so sad that it isn’t!!!
okay. have a good day.
i swear that this is the last time i will post about this. i emailed the pk rep to let them know that i did find the fabric and it was by waverly.
she wrote back immediately and said, “oh! THAT’s why it’s listed under p. kaufmann! we own waverly!”
so… there you go. :)
Glad to hear that you figured it out! It definitely said P. Kaufmann on the fabric ticket so we’re glad to hear that they are the makers of that particular fabric- even if it’s an indirect connection. You’re quite the researcher! So glad you were able to pin it down.
xo,
s
Mirror is so delicious and gorgeous, but above the baby’s crib? Even with tons of screws, I would be super paranoid. Weird stuff happens with kids.
The mirror looks great! It’s amazing how you were able to see the potential in that heavy black frame, and turn it into something pretty and cheerful for a baby’s room. That’s one lucky little beanette.
the mirror looks great! the room is coming together so beautifully!!! i have a great carved wood mirror i ordered on clearance from pbteen a couple years ago, that i plan to paint for the nursery were putting together for baby girl on the way!
thanks for the heads up on the on the organic sheets, its hard to find them in brighter colors, and for a reasonable price!
i love the idea of your chandelier being used as opposed to the mobile, we put a mobile over our sons crib (one that moved and played music, etc) and we barely used the thing- he prefered to go to sleep to my lullabyes. so this time around i plan on making some tissue paper flowers in pretty sherbet colors to hang over the crib, which will be a fun project and cheap!
LOVE the color! Everything looks fabulous!
I just love your beanette’s room! So cheerful and happy! Th colors y’all are using are pretty much exactly the colors I’ve done my craft room in! I thought I would throw out a bit of unsolicited advice since you were talking about the bedding. I always made my babies beds with two sheets and a waterproof pad in between. Nothing is worse in the middle of the night when the little one has wet through the sheet than trying to remake the bed! I loved being able to strip off the top sheet and mattress pad and having a made bed underneath! :) So much easier when you’re feeling half dead and overdone! Can’t wait to see the rest of the bedroom!
Now here I thought you guys would go metallic with that frame and you went green and it is awesome! I love that color.
Gorgeous! And it looks PERFECT there, too. You guys are doing such an awesome job in this nursery :)
I love the mirror and the color and would leave it there until your baby is able to stand up and reach it in case she would want to tear it down. Having glass above the bed makes me a bit nervous. The colors in the room are awesome and I have put a post about your nursery on my blog. I especially love the painted ceiling!!
love the mirror! See this is why you guys rock. I would look at that mirror and say “eh.. it’s not the right color.” See I’d never think to paint the thing. Great call!
The little bean is one lucky lady to have such loving and talented parents!
Love the green! The room looks so relaxing, which is exactly what beanette will need.
One piece of advice (speaking from experience)…. be careful with that mirror above the crib. When the bean starts to pull up, she will no doubt be interested in that mirror!
From one mommy to another (soon to be) mommy,
love your site!
Your fellow Richmonder,
Nicole
The bean’s green mirror is a winner! And I love the little touch of love-liness the 4 hearts adds … it’s funny how it’s almost impossible to make out the hearts when you look at the mirror in black in the first pic.
I spy a finished closet??
Slowly but surely we’re tackling the closet… stay tuned for those details soon!
xo,
s
I adore that mirror. A lovely touch to such a peaceful room.
I love the mirror and your room. I just wanted to weigh in on the whole crazy number of crib sheets. My daughter, now 21 months had only two crib sheets and two waterproof pads, and that worked out just fine. The first few months she ended up in our bed or the bassinet, so we just carted around the waterproof pads as needed.
So my two cents is buy as you go, otherwise you might end up with stuff you never needed (like my giant tub of butt paste for my diaper-rash free baby)
Love your blog :)
I’m another mom who has multiple layers of sheets with a waterproof pad between each layer. I have 4 sheets on my crib at any given point in time. Crib accidents always happen at the worst time and changing the sheet isn’t always easy for a short mom (I’m 5’0) who is juggling a fussy baby.
I also found that I kept a waterproof pad on top of the changing pad cover. The changing pad gets dirty fast and often. It wasn’t uncommon for a changing pad to get dirty twice in one diaper change. It is amazing how fast those little ones can let it go when they are exposed to the air! Waterproof pads are cheap and it was helpful to have a ton handy. I would rather be able to swap out the waterproof pad than to have to constantly throw my pretty changing pad cover into the wash. On a side note, I highly recommend waterproof pads that are made of fabric. The fabric absorbs the wetness while protecting the surface below. The waterproof pads that are plastic just allow the wetness to run off, creating a bigger mess.
The mirror is beautiful!!! I love it! It is fabulous that you have thought ahead about securing it better to the wall. You may want to consider securing it sooner than when beanette is pulling up. She is probably going to be dainty and calm unlike my boys, but by the time they were sitting up good, they were able to shake the bars to the crib causing it to jump. I’ve heard our crib bang into the wall several times and I would hate for something like that to cause the mirror to fall.
Love that you all still have your Maxima. My husband has his-used to drive 90 miles a day to and from work in it. It has around 120,000 and he swears he will use it until it won’t move anymore! Great cars and definitely “green” to keep what you have and save for the next with no debt!
We love all of your nursery posts! Such great DIY ideas for parents-to-be on a budget. Keep up the awesome work. Can’t wait to see more!