Venetian Mirrors Still Remain Highly Collectable

Venetian Mirrors are made with individual pieces of hand blown glass. The art of creating mirrors out of blowing glass was a tradition and trade passed down from father to son. The skill involved requires a lot of patience, plus very high quality materials.

How To Decorate Around Venetian Mirrored Furniture

Tip 1- Work Other Metals Into It– Above, in the Regency cabinet, Bassett company combines a bit of a brassy, rusty looking pull. Try pairing the mirrored look with something tarnished, or something rusty, that has a worn appearance. The clash looks excellent against the modern appearance of the mirror.

Tip 2 Pair Venetian Mirrors With Ornate Objects– Below, Painted Cottages pairs a venetian mirror with two likewise very ornate pieces. Work with sconces on either side of the mirror to create similarity. Working with silver, or tarnished silver can really give an aged appearance.

Found on belclairehouse.blogspot.com

Tip 3- Work Venetian Mirrors With Antique Painted Italian Furniture- The intricate hand painting of classic Italian furniture works nicely with the ornate features of these mirrors. Ornate will go with something equally complex in design. Often times, these painted pieces will bring color into your room in a subtle way, while at the same time not making your interior too fussy.

Tip 4- Pair Venetian Mirrors With Glass Accessories- The above picture also shows how well glass can look against these mirrors. Consider using a venetian mirrored tray, which can house perfume bottles, glass jewelry boxes, and other vases which can hold long stemmed small delicate flowers. Working the theme around shades of gray, silver and blue also will tie things together. A pop of yellow, or poppy red would really stand out as a single accessory in the room.

Houston home of Renea Abbott and Greg Manteris as seen in Veranda Magazine

Tip 5- Layer Venetian Mirrors Over Existing Mirrors- These mirrors blend in over top of existing large scale mirrors. Consider tiling an entire wall with square tiles, and anchoring a venetian mirror over top to add depth. Or, dress up a plain large scale bathroom mirror with a venetian mirror that sits over top. Layering with these mirrors can be quite dramatic.

Venetian Mirror – Rumi Antiques

How To Repair Venetian Mirrors

You might have bought an antique or used mirror online at an affordable price, yet the only problem is that the mirror is damaged. You love the frame and the glass; you just want the mirror not to have marks or scratches. Here are some tips that can help you to repair your mirror without a large investment:

1. Aluminum Foil

If you see small black holes in your mirror, it can be the result of your mirror backing being scratched. The backing on a mirror is very delicate, so if it does become scratched it can show up clearly.

To repair this cheaply simply tape a small piece of aluminum foil over the hole. Make sure the shiny side is towards the glass and that it is not wrinkled. Be aware that with the removal of the tape, you may damage the mirror further. This is a easy and inexpensive way to fix your mirror.

2. Hand Polishing

Polishing your mirror can repair surface scratches on the glass with a bit of careful hand polishing. If you can feel the scratch with your finger, chances are, the scratch may be too deep to hand polish. You can get it machine polished by a professional, but be very careful because sometimes this may warp the glass and alter a true reflection.

3. Silver Paint

Another option for quick repair to a damaged back can be silver paint. Just dab a little on to cover up bad spots. Silver paint will reduces the reflection in those spots, but you won’t have to see black dots. Krylon sells a silver mirror spray paint that is supposed to produce the same effect as a mirror. Silver paint can be a quick fix, although up close, they may still be visible.

4. Re-Silvering

Re-silvering your mirrors is very expensive and needs to be done by a professional. Old glass will show damage, even if the mirror is re-silvered. Another affordable option might be to swap out the mirror with a new one cut to size.

Damaged mirrors can be very charming and interesting to look at. If you have a damaged mirror, it might just add more character to the appearance. If you like antique and old world style, then leaving your mirror be with all the imperfections might add to the uniqueness of your piece.