Have you ever seen that Lowe’s commercial where the guy installs the ceiling fan, then it falls to the floor so he slings it out the window. That’s what almost happened with this mirror. Yeah…this was suppose to be one of those easy “one day” projects. Um, but it took a little longer since I DROPPED it while trying to hang it. I just stood there trying to figure out what I was looking at. Yeah, you’ve had those moments before. You know what I’m talking about. That’s when I almost threw it out the window. Wood shims went everywhere but luckily, none of the wood shims or the mirror actually broke. So yay for that! Silver lining people.

I’m actually really glad it worked out that way because it made me rethink it. I had spray painted the entire thing copper but after reattaching ALL of the wood shims one by one (on the reverse side) I decided to stain them instead.

I had been shopping around for a sunburst mirror to hang over the fireplace. I wanted a pretty statement piece to use as the inspiration for this year’s Christmas decorating. Then I came across the coolest DIY sunburst mirror over at Thrifty and Chic. I already had most of the things I needed to make it except for the wood shims, which are super cheap. I also picked up a can of Rustoleum spray paint in Copper. I love a good metallic but I wanted to go with something besides silver or gold.

How I made it:

• I attached the first layer of wood shims to the back of an old mirror with a hot glue gun.
• I attached a second layer on top of the first one, placing a shim in each open space of the first layer.
• I flipped it over and spray painted the entire thing with Rustoleum in Copper.
• Then I dropped it. I would recommend skipping this step.
• I flipped the wood shims over to the unfinished side and repeated the first two steps.
• Then I stained the wood shims with Minwax stain in Walnut.

It’s exactly what I wanted and it created the focal point I needed to start Christmas decorating.

I found the little cone trees at Bargain Hunt for $1.00 each. I knew they would be perfect for clustering along the mantel. They’re a great combination of organic and glittery textures.

I’m in love with this ribbon I found at Micheal’s! It’s a linen-like texture with a strip of gold glitter running through it.

Some of the flowers were also purchased at Micheal’s but I also found some at the Dollar Tree. A lot of my ornaments are a collection of things I’ve found at thrift stores.

The stockings were a DIY which has pretty much become a tradition for me. I love being able to create any type of stocking I want plus it’s so much cheaper than buying them. I made them the same way as last year’s, only using different fabrics of course. (The fabric was really thin so I fluffed them up by stuffing them with rolled up magazine pages). Oh, and the little trees on the table will probably get moved around as the tree fills up with gifts. The table will serve as a fun spot to store some of the smaller gifts.

So even though I ended up having to make it twice, (I’m really good at breaking things by the way) it was totally worth it. Sunburst mirrors are so classic and we’ll be able to enjoy it long after all the Christmas decorations are gone.

Have you ever worked on something that you wanted to throw out the window? Please tell me it’s not just me.

Linking this post to the following fun parties: Think and Make Thursday / Work It Wednesday