Some design tips to reflect on
Typically a final pit stop to check your look before you run out the door, mirrors serve an important function in most homes.
They can be simple and subdued, or artful, ornate statement pieces.
We asked some experts for advice on making the most out of them.
Bigger is better
To maximize a mirror's impact and create a focal point on a wall, consider a large mirror.
“I would go one size larger than you would originally expect,” said Utah-based interior designer Andrea West, owner of Andrea West Design. “When you go a little bit larger in your scale, it makes it look so much more dramatic, continues the line of vision and it really visually expands the space.”
To open up a small, cramped bathroom, West installed floor-to-ceiling mirrors, drawing the eye upward to create the illusion of sky-high ceilings.
But when positioning a mirror over a piece of furniture, West recommends expanding up but not out: A mirror should not be wider than the piece it's hanging over.
If a large mirror doesn't work, smaller mirrors can be beautiful and striking.
Tricia Huntley, founder of D. C.-based firm Huntley & Co. Interior Design, said a single small mirror on a wall can have a strong impact and create an intimate experience. If this is the effect you're after, she cautions against crowding the surrounding wall space with other objects. “Multiples don't make a small space feel bigger,” she said.
Positioning is key
Mirrors can help make spaces feel larger because light reflects off the glass and back into the space. Huntley likes to hang mirrors opposite windows to take advantage of natural lighting, but if you don't have a window in your room, positioning a mirror near a light fixture will achieve a similar effect.
West advises po sitioning mirrors opposite a room's entryway. This “greeting technique” is commonly deployed to make small and narrow entryways and hallways feel more expansive. Be sure to hang the mirror opposite something you would like to see reflected back. “Put it opposite the reflection of something that would normally make you really happy,” said Kim Vargo, co-founder of the Yellow Brick Home blog. “You probably wouldn't want to bounce it off your closet doors if you just have bifold doors.”
Not too high
Although you might want to draw the eye upward to make ceilings appear higher, you don't want people craning their necks to look into the mirror. “When it's too high, it makes the room feel more disconnected,” West said. “When you bring it slightly lower, you feel more intimate in the space.”
The size of the mirror, not its height, is what makes a room appear tall er, she said. Scott Var go, co-founder of
Yellow Brick Home, hangs mirrors at about eye level, with the center of the frame about 48 or 50 inches from the floor.
For a pulled-together look, Jackie Harris, who runs Puckhaber Antiques in London with her son Martyn Fowler, advises against cluttering and leaving large gaps between a furniture piece and the mirror.
Multiple simple mirrors in a room can look chic. Vary the sizes and shapes, but don't allow them to reflect each other, Vargo warned. This creates an unsettling fun-house effect.