Sunday, April 08, 2012

Update For The Past Few Weeks (Part 2)

Bathroom Mirror

I think I already mentioned this, but I decided that I will use the antique mirror that I posted about a while back. Before I could just hang it up and enjoy it, I had to make sure it was sturdy and stable. This mirror is INSANELY HEAVY. I would guess that it weighs close to 20lbs. Most of the weight is in the mirror, which is about 3/8" thick (it's 1/4" thick at the edge before the bevel starts). This is one of the thickest mirrors I've seen (I have a handful of heavy antique mirrors, but most are about 1/4" thick.

Anyways, the mirror only had a flimsy old cardboard on the back holding the mirror. The frame is maple, and seems strong and stable, but I was afraid that the mirror may slip out the back, so I decided the replace the backing with an 1/8" hardboard (only a few bucks at HD). So I cut a piece to size, stained it an old brown to match, and tacked it in place with many nails (some of the originals that were still good, and many extras). I also decided to beef-up the hanging wire with a 14/2 copper electrical wire (with the black cover left on). The eye-screws on the mirror were very strong so they stayed there. I also added two felt squares to the bottom corners to keep from scuffing the wall.

While taking the mirror out to clean it and change the back, I found a 2 sheet spread (8 pages) from the Montreal Gazette dated to Sept 2 1922! This was a cool find, but nothing too exciting in the articles. There is an ad for a cruise from "White Star Line" (same company as the Titanic).

First, if you don't already know this, I ***LOVE*** antique mirrors. I have dozens. So you will excuse the excessive amount of photos of this mirror.

Cleaned:



The mirror is near perfect as far as flatness/reflection with the exception of this one spot near the lower third:



Another odd thing about this mirror is that the entire edge around it is chipped and ground. My only guess as to why, is that they cut it too tight for the frame? The grey patches look like finger prints, but they are in the silvering. I love this kind of character in old mirrors.





Here is one page of the newspaper:



View from the hallway (note that the mirror has a small lean away from the wall):





Office Outlet

No photo for this one, but it was still a job that took over an hour to do. I installed a new outlet for the phone/cable on the wall where the desk will be once this is officially the office.

L Room Closet Door Jamb

I milled, cut, sanded, assembled, and installed the door jamb for the closet in the L Room. Notice the top of the door in the photo. This is because of the slope in the floor.



Hallway Light Fixture

Lastly, some better photos of the upstairs hallway light fixture.



4 comments:

  1. I have a love of mirrors, too. I'm so glad you decided to use this great old one in the bath. It adds a lot of character and works really well with the new hardware. Take a look at the old beveled mirror in my current posting ...

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    1. Hey Mark, I took a look at your blog (it's also in my reading list) but I didn't see a beveled mirror. I did see a nicely framed squareish mirror is a very elaborate frame. Is that the one? If so I couldn't spot the bevel from the photo.

      I have at least a dozen antique mirrors. I love yard sales and that's where I pick up most of them.

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  2. Hey there. I want to subscribe but I don't use google friend connect. Is there a way to subscribe by email? Thanks.

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    1. I'm actually not sure. But there seems to be a "Subscribe by email" link at the bottom of the page. I know that if you have Google Reader, you can subscribe to and web blogs through the favourites menu under "Subscribe to This Page".

      Hope this helps, and welcome to my blog! :D

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