Scrolly Scalloped Mirror Tutorial

Now that I’m pregnant (omg I still can’t TRULY wrap my mind around that) there are a lot of things I can’t do DIY-wise. Fumes are no-bueno for this mama, so that means no painting, staining, polying, adhesive-ing, etc. ‘Sooooo what does that leave’… you ask? Well sewing, but… for the most part: NO THANKS. Although I did make these adorable wrap-around blouses for the girls that I’m pretty darn proud of.

So if I’m not sewing, that leaves WOOD. And power tools. And these new restrictions are actually redirecting my creativity and I find myself pondering ideas and projects that I may not have before. I’m in the process of building something pretty substantial (me-substantial, not Nick-substantial). I hope to finish up soon and post that early next week!

But today, I’m going to share a little project that involves me and my bestie (the scroll saw!)… This is the one I use and it’s A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. But if you’re looking for a more mid-range (read: less expensive) then this one is also great quality and handles well! Whatever you do, don’t buy a scroll saw in the $100-$200 range. You’ll regret it for sure.

 

While I pride myself on having mostly original ideas… sometimes I see something awesome and think I CAN MAKE THAT. And that’s what happened when I saw this mirror on Pinterest.

The photo was miss-pinned, but it had my girl Cassity’s watermark on it (Remodelaholic)… so I asked her permission to share (Post HERE)! She snapped this pic at her local Parade of Homes, and the source of the actual mirror is unknown. So I felt that it was fair game to recreate that FABULOUS MIRROR! Since I’m not selling this, my conscience is clear.

But before I could even get started, I had a problem. Since the angle of the photo places the mirror at a slight angle instead of head-on, there was NO WAY I could just eye it and hand draw it. I needed to trace it with my overhead projector…. so naturally, I contacted my friend Dana (my Vinyl Dealer) to ask if she could somehow recreate this image on her software and make it front-facing and symmetrical. Her skillz are mad.

I printed this image onto a transparency, projected it onto a slab of MDF.

(NOTE! Since MDF has an adhesive in it that holds the fibers together, I was still wary of working with it while pregnant and took all the precautions to be safe… including gloves, safety glasses, and a respirator mask)

I hauled this bad boy out to the garage and started cutting away on my trusty scroll saw! This is the one I use and it’s A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. But if you’re looking for a more mid-range (read: less expensive) then this one is also great quality and handles well! Whatever you do, don’t buy a scroll saw in the $100-$200 range. You’ll regret it for sure.

After I cut around the entire outside of the design, then drilled holes in each of the inside parts that need to be cut out. This way, I can fish the scroll saw blade through the hole and slice out the inside pieces!

The scroll saw cut the MDF pretty smoothly, but I still lightly sanded down the edges with 220 grit just to make everything crisp and perfect.

I used a little roller to roll on some white paint… leaving the edges exposed (because let’s be honest, it would NOT be fun to paint in all those crevices! I just used white acrylic craft paint, and even though it’s non-fumey and ‘supposedly safe’ for those cooking a human being, I still wore a respirator.

Nick spray-polyed the whole thing for me to seal the edges (since the adhesive in the MDF could leak toxic fumes), and we affixed our 10” x 10” mirror on with Scotch 3M Clear Mounting Tape. This stuff is so strong that we definitely don’t need to worry about the mirror ever crashing down.

Voila! We just popped it on the wall by simply hanging one of the loops over a nail! We’re classy that way. Can you imagine how much one of these beauties would cost in a store? We literally spent less than $10 for ALL the supplies.

Then, at the exact same moment, Nick and I both had the idea to use it as a part of a table centerpiece. We pressed on some of those little furniture pads… one in the center, and for on the outer corners of the loops.

This was WAY too much fun to stage, with these gorgeous flowers that my friend Dana brought me to congratulate me on being pregnant. Isn’t this just the best little arrangement? The colors! The scallop-y mirror! My newly stained glossy table top!

I love a quick project! And love even more that this little beaut can be used in several different ways! Score! Be sure to check out all our other scroll saw projects by clicking on each image below!

Have a great weekend everyone!