Vintage Swivel Mirror Makeover

Welcome back, beautiful friends! I’ve got a sweet vintage swivel mirror makeover to share with you today!

When I was shopping for this haul at the beginning of the year, I came across this table top swivel mirror:

I really liked it, but it was $29. I thought that was too much and passed it on it.

Imagine my surprise when a few stores later, I came across this one:

I loved the spindles on this one and it was only $9.98! That’s more my price range.

So, in the cart it went, along with these other goodies which have all had their big makeovers already…

I’ve included a few affiliate links so you can find the products I love.

Remove the Mirror

I almost always keep a mirror a mirror, and I did that in this case also, but I like to remove them to be able to do a better job of painting the frame. I also like to be able to set the mirror aside for safe keeping!

This one was held on by a piece of wood with tiny nails that I pried up with this handy tool…

There were these tiny triangles of wood wedging the mirror in place, which is common in these older pieces. I used needle-nose pliers to get a grip on them and pry them off…

Clean

A good cleaning was next. I cleaned everything with White Lightning, adding one TBSP of White Lightning to my tub with a half gallon of warm water.

I used a terrycloth applicator pad for this step. Then, I swapped out the water for clean water and wiped everything down once more.

Paint

Now this is a reddish wood that looks like it might need a base of Bonding BOSS for bleed through, but the stained front had more dark brown in it and those pieces are usually safe from bleed through, so I took my chances and went straight to painting.

(You can always add Bonding BOSS over the paint if it does bleed.)

I chose a 50/50 mix of Vintage Duck Egg Blue and Cotton:

After seeing this same mix on this spindle headboard bench I shared the other day, I knew I wanted to paint these gorgeous spindles the same color.

I made sure to paint the recessed area that holds the mirror also so this color would be reflected around the edge of the mirror rather than the dark brown.

Luckily, I had NO bleed through yay!

Sand

Sanding was next to smooth everything out and highlight those details with a bit of distressing…

Seal

To seal, I used my favorite sealer, Clear Coat in satin, using the blue sponge applicator:

Applying sealer to these spindles was made so much easier using the sponge than a brush would have been.

Reassemble mirror

It was time to reassemble the mirror. You could totally reuse the original pieces to resecure this mirror as I have done many times. For this one, because the backing had become brittle, I decided instead to cut a fresh piece of hard board to protect the mirror, and secured it in place using one of my favorite tools, the Logan Point Driver:

Then, I covered all the ugly using Matte Mod Podge and this pretty patterned Kraft paper:

It comes in a huge roll and has a nice weight to it.

Vintage Swivel Mirror Makeover Reveal

Here is how this vintage piece looks now!

It’s a bit small scale for this dresser, but it would be perfect on a taller, narrower piece like a lingerie chest…

And do you spy what I added?

I thought it could use a little decorative detail on the top there!

I made this using the Enlightened Etchings Decor Mould and Amazing Casting Resin:

It is so easy to create these decorative pieces!

HOW TO USE AMAZING CASTING RESIN

Mix the liquids 50/50 in the desired amount
Pour the liquid into the mould
Find something to do for 15 minutes while it cures

That’s it!

I painted and sealed this piece separately…

Then I used E6000 Glue and spring clamps to secure it in place:

It’s a small addition that adds so much!

I’m a sucker for anything spindly…

And here’s a peek at the finished back:

Sweet and simple!

There are only five things left in this haul:

I’ll be back with those on Tuesday in another edition of Painting the Smalls!

UPDATE: See how these mini makeovers all look now HERE!

Have a wonderful weekend, dear friends!

XOXO,

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