I wanted to learn how to use power tools, so I DIY'd a $1318 mirror for $52

First of all, sorry, Gustaf Westman. This mirror was so pretty, but I just don’t have $1318 laying around to spend, let alone on a mirror. Out of respect to his design and apologies for making this dupe, here’s the link to his mirror.

This all started when I kept seeing this mirror over Pinterest. It’s funky, different from my normal minimalist style, and I wanted a pop of color in the middle of a sea of neutrals that overtook my room. Slowly, more DIY videos popped up and I was convinced, having never used a saw in my life (outside of a week in a woodshop where the manager was always annoyed with my questions) that I could recreate it. Here are the reference pics:

And here was the result…

Here’s how I did it. It took a few months to find a free mirror on Facebook, but I was in no rush. The mirror was a square, 36.5x36.5in so I purchased a mirror cutter. This saved me about $15 not having to purchase a new mirror.

Here are the materials I purchased:

• 2 @ $5.48 - 1’x2’x8’ SELECT DOUG FIR BOARD

• 1 @ $15.38 - 1/4-2-4 BIRCH HARDWOOD

• 1 @ $3.98 - VALSPAR SAMPLE PAINT (7oz)

• 1 @ $5.98 - WHIZZ 6-IN CABINET/DOOR 2-CT ROLLERS

• 1 @ $15.39 - MIRROR CUTTER (Don’t cheap out here! A good mirror cutter is worth it)

Materials I already had:

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• Mirror 36.5”x36.5”

  • Option to purchase: 1 @ $34.98 - 30x36” Mirror

• SAFETY WEAR:

  • Protection glasses/goggles

  • Mask (fabric)

  • Leather Gloves

• Nail gun + nails

• Drill

• Jigsaw

• Table Saw

• Sanding Drum Attachment

• Sanding Mouse

• Sandpaper (Fine/Rough Grit)

• Workhorses/Table

• Clamps

• Paint roller (mini size)

• Paintbrush

• Primer (for cabinets and doors)

• Wood Glue

• Wood Filler

For the template cutout:

• Photoshop/Adobe Acrobat Pro for printing the template to size

• Exacto knife

• Self-healing cutting mat

• Cardstock (regular paper makes it more difficult to trace on)

WHEW now that we’re done with that - let’s move on.

CREATE THE TEMPLATE

1. Create/Print the template - Gustaf has the design on his site, so I took that, resized it, and printed it to size in a tiled print through Adobe Acrobat Pro. Additionally, you could create your own curvy design. More details on that in another tutorial I found here. I also saw a tutorial where they printed it out at Office Depot.

2. Cut the template and piece it together, then remove the middle of it by using an Exacto knife and a self-healing mat

3. Cut the plywood to your desired size at the store you purchase it from and sand it down, my measurements included the extra width of the sides as seen in the photo in green

4. Trace on your template in pencil

CUT THE FRONT CURVY PIECE

1. Set up the jigsaw

2. Drill a large hole close to your first curve, wherever you want to start. The corners are the most difficult parts.

3. Use a jigsaw to cut out the curves, clamping down and moving the board whenever you need to. I practiced on the extra plywood that was cut from the store first. PLEASE LEARN HOW TO USE THESE POWERTOOLS BEFOREHAND!!

4. Sand down your curvy frame and give yourself a pat on the back bc wow that probably took an hour or two if you’re anything like me. Use the sanding drum attachment in the power drill to define the curves and the sanding mouse to take out splinters or rough edges of the wood.

MAKE THE FRAME AND BACK REINFORCEMENTS

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Cutting the back reinforcements

1. Set up the table saw to make a miter cut (a 45-degree angle cut)

2. At this point, your front piece will probably not be exactly even, so take your 1x2x8 pieces and measure them out compared to your front piece. Mark the point with a pencil and cut. It can be difficult to line them up so it may take several cuts to get them correct. I made my cuts with the board standing on the 1” side of the board so the miter cuts would go through 2” of wood.

3. As you cut, label the wood pieces and the back of the front board (top, right, left, bottom for example) since not each side will be perfectly even

4. With the extra wood, create a trapezoid shape by cutting with the 2” side facing down (mine was about 4”) and then use that shape to mark out and cut 3 more trapezoid shapes for a total of 4

5. Glue the wood frame to the front board, adhering it to the back of the front board, and each miter cut piece to each other

6. Use a nail gun (proper pressure is important here! I had my mom do this since she’s experienced and I did not want to mess up the front of the board) and 1” nails to secure the front board to the frame

7. Secure the frame pieces to each other

8. Fill with wood filler and use a spackle device to smooth it down

PAINT

1. Paint one layer of primer

2. Paint 2-3 layers of your color, using the roller as much as possible and the paint brush in corners. Be sure to even out the paint as it was collecting in the curves for me.

CUT THE MIRROR - The reason this is done last is that you never really know if your measurements are correct until the frame is done.

1. Cut according to planned or new measurements (my mirror was 21”x36.5”)

2. Watched some videos on this first and had my boyfriend do this since he had been practicing

3. Use a dry erase marker to make your line

4. Line up a yardstick or 3-4’ ruler to the line

5. Score the glass, put an edge (I used a foam poster board) underneath where you need to make the break, then break off

6. Tape up the cut side for safety and place it into the frame

NAIL REINFORCEMENTS

1. Use the nail gun to nail the reinforcements to the frame’s side, using two nails at each contact point

2. Fill with wood filler and let dry

3. Paint over with colored paint and let dry

Finally, spray some Windex on that mirror and let it shine! You’re done!