Easily Installed Bathroom Mirror Frame Kits For A
Decorative Mirror Frame

A bathroom mirror frame offer a style option that can really make a bathroom's visual appearance "pop".

You can achieve the same look for your own bathroom but you don't have to buy a new mirror or even remove your existing one to do it. There are several bathroom mirror frame kits available that allow you to get framed bathroom mirrors at minimal expense and effort.

Framing An Existing Bathroom Mirror

Putting some flair and finish on an otherwise bland wall mirror is easily done with bathroom mirror frame kits. The kits offer a convenient way to dress up your existing mirror without the need to remove it from the wall, which is a plus since some mirrors can be large and awkward to handle. With a little bit of time measuring and cutting you can have a new and fresher look for your bathroom.

The framing kits "work" by using adhesives to bond the frame pieces to your existing mirror. Materials and quantity of styles vary among manufacturers but the framing concept is similar. In general, frames are available in wood, metal and acrylic and in styles ranging from contemporary to traditional.

If you're remodeling your bathroom and plan on installing a new furniture style vanity, you can save money by avoiding the purchase of a coordinating decorative mirror.

Rather than throw out your existing mirror because it's too bland, wrap a rich wood frame around it. With the styles of wood frames that are available with these kits, finding a bathroom mirror frame to complement the vanity is easy.

MirrorMate^® Frames

One innovative bathroom mirror frame product is MirrorMate®. It was developed by resourceful entrepreneur Lisa Huntting after recognizing that her large master bathroom wall mirrors were just too bare. But rather than invest the time and money to remove the mirror and get it professionally framed, she developed a way to easily install decorative frames on existing bathroom mirrors.

MirrorMate bathroom mirror frames attach to your mirror with a strong 3M-brand adhesive tape. The process starts by measuring your existing mirror and choosing the right frame from among multiple styles and colors and over 15 collections.

The frame pieces are easily assembled using glue and corner connectors. The completed frame is then trial-fit against the mirror using temporary "jigs" called placement corners. These temporary tools are tacked to the mirror under the frame's upper inside corners. When the frame is properly positioned, the placement corner tools are put in place to mark the right location. All that's left is to remove the frame, apply the adhesive strips, reinstall the frame on the mirror and remove the placement corner jigs.

MirrorMate bathroom mirror trim can be ordered directly from the MirrorMate website as well as through various stores and designers that carry the products. The MirrorMate website contains a list of retail locations (www.mirrormate.com).

Mirrorscapes™ Mirror Frames by Moen

Another bathroom mirror frame kit is the Mirrorscapes™ framing kit made by Creative Specialties, a division of Moen. These mirror frames are available in 5 series, each with their own style and colors.

Mirrorscapes differs from MirrorMate in that the frames have square corner pieces instead of mitered corners. To build and install a mirror frame with Mirroscapes you'll need to buy straight sections that will cover the length and height of your mirror plus four corner pieces.

Mirrorscapes bathroom mirror frames are mounted to your mirror with a strong adhesive. You place them on the mirror using mounting brackets and templates that help you correctly position the pieces. There are mounting brackets for the 4 corners and the straight sides. All you need to do is position the templates and then the mounting brackets, cut the straight pieces to size and mount them in place. After that it's just a matter of snapping the corner frame pieces in place to finish the frame.

Frames are made from wood with a variety of finishes and styles. Some of the frames can be painted to match your own decor. The frames are backed by a limited lifetime warranty.

You can see more of these frames at Moen's Creative Specialties website (www.csi.moen.com). They can be bought at various online merchants as well as some offline stores that cater to home improvement products. The Moen Creative Specialties website has a "where to buy" locator function to help find retail locations.

Mirr.Edge™ Mirror Frame System

Before Mirr.Edge

The Mirr.Edge™ framing system was developed by a couple in Florida to address mirror "black edge". Black edge occurs when the silver backing on a mirror oxidizes and develops black or dark spots, usually around the edges.

According to Mirr.Edge, this happens predominantly in moist and corrosive geographic regions, typical of coastal areas. The Mirr.Edge mirror frame conveniently masks the black edge but also provides a decorative style treatment at the same time.

	After Mirr.Edge Installation

Mirr.Edge frames take a different approach to the mirror frame configuration. Instead of mitered corners, Mirr.Edge frames incorporate a decorative corner piece which covers the joint where the horizontal and vertical frame pieces come together.

Frames are assembled by first measuring the length of framing material needed. The pieces are "cut" to size by scoring and snapping and then fastened to the mirror using adhesive.

The Mirr.Edge framing system is available at The Home Depot and Lowes and several other home improvement retail centers.

Editor's Thoughts

All of these bathroom mirror frame systems provide decorative wall mirrors in an economical and relatively painless way.

What I like about MirrorMate is the large selection of frames they offer. There are plenty of choices in various colors and styles, enough in my opinion to satisfy most tastes.

There are other ways of getting a framed bathroom mirror but they involve more expense and time. You can have your existing mirror professionally framed but that will require you to remove it from the wall and transport it to the framer, not a convenient task for some of those larger wall mirrors.

You could also buy a completely new pre-framed mirror but they can be costly. Finding framed mirrors equivalent to the size of an existing wall mirror also isn't easy.

As an example, my own bathroom wall mirror measures 44" x 32". Depending on the frame I choose I'd end up spending from about $125 to $192 for a frame kit. Doing some quick internet shopping, I found prices for wood-framed mirrors at $300 to over $1000. To cap it off, these products were smaller than my existing mirror.

Regardless of which method you choose, the impact of framing an otherwise bland wall mirror can be dramatic. It can turn an otherwise utilitarian bathroom into a warmer, more visually appealing place to start and end the day. And the best part about it is that you don't even have to take the mirror off the wall.

Robert Levesque
Publisher/Editor

Photos in this article courtesy of:
Home Improvement News and Information Center and Mirr.Edge™ Do It Yourself Framing Systems.

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