Friday, April 30, 2010

Mirror Cutting--EASY SCHMEASY

So--I have been looking for something AWESOME to hang above my new headboard.


I found an awesome mirror at The Good Will for only $5.99.
(I will show it to you later--I'm not quite ready for the reveal yet)


Well after getting it home--I found that my awesome mirror was scratched

(I couldn't tell this in the store because it was so filthy!)

But--I decided I really liked the frame--and decided to see if I could just find a new piece of mirror.


Which I did at our local Re-Store.


I bought a new piece for $2.50. But it needed to be cut down to size.


So I watched some YouTube tutorials on mirror cutting.


Then went down to HOME DEPOT and bought this handy tool for $3.75.

Then I went to work.


Here is how you do it. And it really is EASY SCHMEASY!


To do this you will need:

a mirror at least 1 inch larger than your needed size

(DO NOT TRY AND TRIM OFF LESS THAN ONE INCH!!!)

Towel
gloves

Mirror cutting tool

oil (like for sewing machines or hair trimmers)

Sharpie Marker

doweling

Straight edge

Something grippy (this is to hold down your straight edge so you can make a clean cut)



Here is the start of my work surface. And sorry again--blogger will not let me turn my picture the right way!!! Frustration!! (Turn your head and you'll get the idea)

First put a towel under your mirror to catch any little shards and to protect the mirror and your awesome blue carpet (if you are lucky enough to have any!)

Then measure with your ruler where you want your new lines to be and mark them with a sharpie marker.

I placed my little grippies under my ruler on top of my mirror so there was no way it would move while I was scoring the mirror.


Next you want to place a drop of oil on the little scoring part of the tool.

Then you start at the top of the mirror and make sure you are scoring right on your line. THIS IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT!! The tool has about an eighth inch edge to it--so you will need to place your ruler out 1/8th inch so you will score right on your line.

Then you press firmly on the tool as you drag it all the way down your line--applying even pressure. Make only one pass.

Then you will place the doweling under the scored part. Then with gloved hands--press firmly down on the part you want to break off. And it breaks perfectly on the scored line! Like So:


And that is how it is done.

Super Easy!!


I am SO EXCITED to add this little skill to my arsenal! It is not hard at all and will work on glass too! With this skill the possibilities are endless!



You really have to give it a try sometime!

7 comments:

  1. you never cease to amaze me! why don't we live closer together again?? now i can't wait to see the finished masterpiece!!

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  2. whew! soo glad you protected that awesome blue carpet!!! ;) thanks for sharing this & giving me the confidence to give it a whirl...i have some glass pieces to cut for a few frames and i've been hesitant to try. altho...dang it...now i don't have any excuses to get my project going!

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  3. Thanks for sharing. I want to attempt a glass cutting project and I'm so afraid of messing it up. You make it seem easy!

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  4. These are actually wonderful some ideas in the blog. You have touched good quality points here. In whatever way continue writing.

    Showers Auckland - Superior Glass Ltd.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Can i use a box cutter to score mirror?

    ReplyDelete

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