by Texas Homesteader ~
I needed a large barn wood mirror for our home, but large mirrors in that style are pretty pricy. So we purchased a large mirror at a thrift store and made our own using reclaimed wood from our beautiful 1880’s barn. I love the way it turned out!
Refurbishing Our 1880’s Barn
When RancherMan & I purchased this property in 2000 there was an old dilapidated barn here. The interior was solid but the exterior was pretty beat up. I wanted to save it!
So to save our old barn we hired a contractor come shore up the barn’s exterior and replace the ragged exterior boards with new similarly-styled wood planks.
We allowed the new wood to age for one year before we sealed it for protection from the elements. They did an awesome job and our old barn has maintained it’s beautiful old look.
(NOTE: you can take a virtual tour of the inside of this beautiful old barn here.)
Projects Using Old Reclaimed Barn Wood
Now what to do with all of this old barn wood I love? I wanted each and every plank to be used again somehow.
So RancherMan made several things for our home including:
Patio Side Tables
Bookends
Rustic Headboard for our guestroom
I love that part of this old barn’s heritage will stay with us in our own home. We even sold some of the excess weathered wood for other people’s interesting craft projects. None went to waste.
But my favorite use of this precious wood was my mirror. Here’s what we did:
Where To Find a Large Mirror For Cheap
I wanted to make a large mirror so it would be big enough to not only be beautiful, but also reflect light in our open-floorplan home. (dual purpose, eh??)
And I wanted that mirror to include some of the remaining reclaimed barn wood and the old 1880’s Elwood barbed wire still found in old fences on our Homestead. But I didn’t want to buy the mirror itself new. It needed to be pre-loved. (it’s an environmental thing for me)
So we scoured thrift stores and garage sales. We finally found an old large beat-up dresser mirror at a thrift store for about $10.
SCORE!
Now this was years before I had this little ole blog of mine so I don’t have a ‘before’ picture. But trust me when I say this was an old and very well-worn dresser mirror. The style was woefully outdated and the frame was pretty rough.
It didn’t matter, we’re about to make this old unloved crappy-looking dresser mirror look amazing!
Assembling The Mirror Frame
RancherMan went to work adding a barn-wood frame right on top of the old mirror’s existing wood frame.
We chose pieces of barn wood that had character and an old patina. Some of them still included the old square nails that I love from the barn’s construction.
He cut the boards and attached them to the existing battered dresser mirror frame.
Then we found some metal hooks at a local bazaar and set them outside for a few weeks to rust. After they had that old patina we loved we installed them as rustic embellishments for our mirror.
Across the top he strung a piece of our 1882 Elwood barbed wire held with rusted star nails.
I love that I still see this old barbed wire in some of our Homestead cross fences. It’s true what they say, they don’t make ’em like they used to!
(Note: We also made some Rustic Wall Crosses from this 1880’s barbed wire to decorate the wall)
I think the mirror turned out fantastic. And I love that it contains both the old barn wood that speaks to my heart as well as the 1882 Elwood barbed wire that Whispers of Past Lives Lived of our property.
~TxH~
Our Favorite Crafts & Projects
- Make Your Own Clothespin Apron
- A Denim Dish Carrier Using Worn Jeans
- Cute Cloth Gingham Napkins For $1
Outdoors & Garden
- How To Build A Birdhouse Using A Fence Plank
- Make A Dragonfly Rock Garden Accent
- Painting Rocks To Look Like Strawberries
- Fun, Customized Cornhole Game
- MYO Backyard Tossing-Game Bags
- How To Paint A Texas Flag Gate
Home Décor
- Arrowhead Cross Collage In Shadow Box Frame
- Rustic Reclaimed Barn Wood Headboard
- Old Barnwood Wall Photo Feature
- Homemade Barnwood Mirror
- Cute Flannel Pillows Using Flannel Shirts
- Make An All-Natural Air Freshener
Misc
…and many MORE!
See All Crafts
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38 Responses
What a wonderful mirror. It looks fantastic.
Have a great day.
Thanks Monique, I think he did a great job for me and it looks fantastic in our home. 🙂 ~TxH~
What a great idea for such beautiful wood. You have made amazing things with it!
Thanks Stephanie – I’m mulling over a few other craft ideas because I’ve got a couple of boards left and NOTHING will be wasted of this precious wood! 🙂 ~TxH~
We have a wall pannelled with barn wood. Love the worn grey color.
Oh wow Jeannie – I bet it’s gorgeous! ~TxH~
Absolutely beautiful. I love all of the elements you combined to create the mirror. TALU
Thanks Michelle – so kind of you… ~TxH~
That certainly was a great use of the wood and a beautiful one at that. Great job recycling and reusing!
Thanks Tracey – it was a fun project. ~TxH~
Love the reflections in your photo, and that mirror is too wonderful!
Jori – it’s funny I was trying to figure out how to take the reflections out of the mirror, so it’s good to know the picture worked the way it was. Thanks for your kind comment. ~TxH~
Very creative and beautiful mirror and recycling ~ Enjoy ^_^ ~ Great shots!
Thanks – I think it turned out pretty cool and it looks perfect in my house. PLUS the large mirror reflects the light into the interior of the house! (I posted about passive solar energy in your home here —> http://bit.ly/ZK7DsE ) Thanks for your kind comment. ~TxH~
That barn is such a classic…you definitely have braggin’ rights with the fine job you did to retain its original look! And the mirror is simply a piece of beautiful art…well done!
I love the barn too gtyyup and I appreciate your kind comment. I love the mirror as well and it was a very fun project that ended up looking absolutely perfect in our home. 🙂 ~TxH~
I love repurposing old things instead of just tossing them out. Your mirror came out beautifully and will always remind you of your barn and property and all the memories that go with it. Well done!
~Lynne from a “new” Jersey Girl, just “hopping” by from Rurality Blog Hop
I agree Lynne. Not only is the vintage material so much more beautiful to me, but it makes no sense to throw THIS wood away and go buy THAT wood instead! Thanks for your compliment. ~TxH~
What an amazing way to keep the old barn alive!! It is a stunning barn…
Why thank you Laurie for your kind comment. I admit, I love both the barn and the mirror too! 🙂 Thanks for stopping by. ~TxH~
Looks like quite a special mirror. It’s awesome that it has alot of sentimental value for you. And your barn? Looks absolutely beautiful!
Thanks Janice! You’re right, it’s very sentimental to me. And thanks for your kind comment about our barn – it’s been near and dear to my heart from day ONE! ~TxH~
I love this project with your upcycled barn wood… thanks so much for sharing it with us…
Deb
Debbie – I’ve been trying to think of other fun projects to do with our upcycled barn wood, we still have a little left and it will NOT be wasted! 😉 ~TxH~
Hannah, I love that you enjoyed both the mirror and the barn pics. I can’t believe that barn is as old as it is and still so functional. Wow, they just don’t make ’em like they used to, huh? Love the blog hop – thanks for the invite. ~TxH~
Laurie – the materials used turned a blah mirror into something really special. I’ve loved it for years! Thanks for your kind comment. ~TxH~
That is beautiful! If you have more wood you should make some to sell on Etsy or at a local bazaar.
OOOhhh, Etsy – I hadn’t thought of that Jenny. Thanks for the idea! ~TxH~
I am so glad that you shared this. I really like what you did with the old barn wood and to have the 1882 bobbed wire included is an extra special thing. The Farm has it’s history and the mirror has it’s history too. What a wonderful thing to pass on down the generations.
Dolly
Thanks Dolly, I think my Honey did great job! This mirror will serve our purposes for many years to come! ~TxH~
great job and i love that it’s part of your home’s history!
Thanks Karen, I love that too. And the mirror is perfect – rustic & countrified. And it’s a gift from my RancherMan which is special as well. ~TxH~
Your mirror looks great! Your husband did a great job on it. Love the rusty hardware and barb wire.
Thanks Linda – I love those embellishments too. So rustic and fits right in with our ranch decor. ~TxH~
LOVE the mirror and especially the barbed wire detail. You did a fabulous job!
Thank you for sharing this week on the Art of Home-Making Mondays. I have pinned this 🙂
Thanks JES, I love it too. ~TxH~
I want your mirror for my half bathroom! Great idea!
🙂 Thanks Ashley! I do love this mirror. And it’s positioned in a place that reflects outside light into the house so it serves double purpose in our passive-solar design! ~TxH~