So here's my finished mirror. I'm super excited on the result! Since I'm not an experienced woodworker I have to admit it was a little frustrating but definately worth it. I mostly used a tutorial from The Lettered Cottage with a few minor changes. I decided I wanted a finished edge on the sides and top/bottom and I used real wood moulding that I stained instead of primed wood moulding with spray paint like their tutorial. The Pottery Barn Eagan Mirror is made with a metal frame so the spray paint may look like a closer copy but I love the look of stained wood. The only problem with staining is that you can't use a bunch of caulking to cover your mistakes. So all the cuts have to be super perfect! So here are some pictures and tips from my project.
When I'm working with wood that needs a nice finished edge (especially skinny pieces of wood), I wrap the place where I'm going to make the cut with painter's tape.
One of the other differences of my project from the tutorial at the Lettered Cottage is that I used a half sheet of particle board so that I didn't have to piece the backing together and I adjusted the measurement down to accommodate for the width of pine moulding that I used for the finished side. That involved a lot of math and some precise cutting to get the back the right size. I cut my side pieces with nice mitered corners at 45 degree angles and glued and nailed into place and then sinking the nails with a nail set. The pine moulding I used had a nice rounded edge which was great for the front of the mirror but for the side it didn't look good when I tried to fit the top moulding over it. So for the side I actually placed it face down so that I had a nice straight/flat edge.
Then a sloppy coat of black paint so that any small mis-measurements or imperfections wouldn't be noticeable under the mirrors.
Then the tricky/frustrating part. I laid it all out before I cut my pieces for the outside of the frame so I could make sure everything all fit together perfectly! Once I got it all laid out I glued and nailed all the pieces into place.
Then filled the nail holes and sanded everything smooth before applying stain. I had to really sand the sides so that they were perfectly even and smooth. The stain I used was Kona by Rustoleum-- my very favorite stain ever. I apply my stain with a cheap foam brush and let it sit and soak into the wood before wiping it off with a rag. Then I gave it a coat of Wipe on Poly by Minwax in satin finish. I attached D rings to the back for hanging it and then glued my mirrors on with Mirror Mastic.
Then the finishing touch--- the mirror rosettes that I spray painted with Oil Rubbed Bronze. I got the rosettes from the same place listed on The Lettered Cottage's post. They were super cheap until I realized I had to pay like 15 dollars for shipping and handling!
I'm very happy with the result although I feel like I spent more than I should have for a home-made project. But, considering that the Pottery Barn mirror is like $700 it was a bargain. My one regret is that I didn't make it bigger. Like 25 mirrors instead of 15.
