Easy DIY Anthropologie Mirror Dupe-Make it for a lot Less

Can I just say that to buy a big fancy mirror today might require taking out a small loan? They are not cheap!! Trust me I searched high and low for a mirror that would make a statement. But wasn’t really wanting to budget nearly $1000 for it! Whoa! So, when all else fails, make it yourself, right?! And that’s what I did. Thankfully, at way under $200, mine didn’t break the bank. And added bonus: it was a bit therapeutic–throw in the earbuds, favorite playlist going, get in the zone. Let’s build a look-alike Anthropologie mirror.

EASY DIY ANTHROPOLOGIE MIRROR DUPE

Instructions are based on a 19 1/2″ x 68″ mirror. Adjust accordingly for a different size mirror.

Materials Needed:

4×8 sheet of 3/4″ plywood (If you’re having Home Depot or Lowe’s do your cuts, you’ll need: 1 cut at 24″ x 76″—This will be your backer board; 2 cuts at 4″ x 28″—These will be your top and bottom strips; 2 cuts at 5″ x 76″—These will be your side strips)

Amazon Affiliate Links Included

Mirror (Unfortunately, I couldn’t find a link on a mirror that I was comfortable with the price…all of the ones I found online are very expensive….However, I bought mine at Home Depot and spent about $40)

Decorative Trim

1 3/4″ Styrofoam Balls (Approximately 50)

Mod Podge

Primer

Baking Soda

Paintbrushes (Variety of sizes)

Gold Leaf Foils

Rub ‘n Buff

Step One: Build the frame

If you don’t already have your cuts made for your backer board, rip 3/4″ plywood sheet to 24″ x 76″. Center your mirror onto this sheet. Glue mirror onto plywood using Flex Shot (this stuff is the bomb!)….

If you don’t already have your cuts made for your side pieces, rip 3/4″ plywood to two 5″ strips and cut at 76″. Attach to sides of mirror using Flex Shot. You’ll want to cover about 3/4″ of your mirror. Side note: These side boards will stick out a few inches wider than your backer board. See picture below…

If you don’t already have your cuts made for your top and bottom pieces, rip 3/4″ plywood sheet to two 4″ strips and cut to fit in between side pieces. Attach to top and bottom of mirror using Flex Shot. Once again, you’ll want to cover about 3/4″ of your mirror and these boards will stick out a little bit wider than your backer board….

Tape off the mirror and paint 3/4″ strips with black paint. We could stop here and have a very modern (kinda boring) full length mirror, but let’s add that wow factor!!

Step Two: Add the trim pieces

I chose 3 1/2″ wide trim to add a little more detail. Cut trim pieces to fit and attach with 3/4″ screws (or Flex Shot)….

Make angle cuts to square the end pieces together. Use wood filler to fill in any gaps between your angles….

Your mirror should now look like this…

Step Three: Add the styrofoam balls

Cut your styrofoam balls in half, using a sharp knife (I used a steak knife), at their natural crease. You should now have 100 styrofoam balls. I did this step while watching one of my shows on Netflix. Time consuming, but a no-brainer….

Using a hot glue gun attach the half styrofoam balls to the mirror frame, as shown below….

Step Four: Prep the frame

Paint Mod Podge on all of the styrofoam balls. This gives it a protective coat for when you add primer, paint, etc…

Next mix primer and baking soda together to add texture and more protection. Paint this mixture onto the styrofoam balls….

Paint the styrofoam balls and trim pieces all black. I used Satin Finish Tricorn Black, but really any black paint will work (I prefer a satin or matte finish)….

Step Five: Add the gold leaf foil and Rub ‘n Buff

Working in sections (about 5 styrofoam balls at a time), paint a coat of Mod Podge in that 5 styrofoam ball section….

And then place a sheet of gold leaf over the Mod Podge prepared area…

Use a dry paint brush to push the foil into place….

Then add another coat of Mod Podge over it to seal the foil and keep it in place….

Keep repeating this process working in small sections. I focused on covering the styrofoam balls first and then went back and filled in missing spots along the edges and parts of the trim my foil sheets didn’t cover. Working with the foil definitely takes some getting used to. Not that it’s hard to do, it’s just very light and a bit challenging to manipulate where you want it to go. It falls apart very easily too. I found that using the dry brush to move it in place was very helpful. After about 2-3 sections, I was on a roll and really had it figured out. The key is: you can’t mess it up. If you feel like you need more gold in a spot add more foil. If you feel like you have too much gold in a spot, add more Mod Podge and manipulate the gold to another spot or take some of the gold off once you get it wet with Mod Podge.

To give it a bit of a softer look and fill in some spots that had too much black showing through, I used Gold Rub and Buff. I simply squirted a small amount in a styrofoam bowl and used a small brush to paint on where I felt it was needed….