“Gold, pure gold.” THOSE were the thoughts in the mind of the creator of this old mirror of mine.
Okay, maybe not pure gold but still, I believe that in the beginning the creator of my thrift store mirror had every intention of making this mirror quite beautiful. A mirror to be displayed and admired.
(Keep reading to hear a little secret about this mirror 😉
Eventually she was purchased and probably did have a stint at living life as the mirror she was created to be. Then time passed and, as often happens, circumstances for this mirror didn’t turn out as expected. Life happened. Lots of life apparently as this mirror eventually became a lady most colorful. And not in the best of ways. 
I was so excited when I saw this mirror sitting on the Goodwill shelf with the $4.99 price tag that I added it to my cart in a heartbeat. The checker though! I could tell by the look on her face when I placed it on the checkstand that she was a bit surprised that anyone would dole out their hard earned money for such a hideous piece.
A painted lady, gaudy in iridescent purple, blue, and green, hiding the gilded beauty of what she was originally created to be. I get that. I believe that we are all created with unique gifts and talents and the potential to be what God designed us to be. Life circumstances can change us though, shut us down, make us fearful to pursue God’s intended path for our lives.
Some of us seem to push through to fulfill our dreams early on in life. Others may need a lot of healing to get back on the right track (that’s me, a late bloomer). Unfortunately some may never get there because they have no one in their lives to see through to the beauty beneath and walk with them toward their full potential.
I decided that I would not take this mirror back to her former glory because she wasn’t the same mirror. She had many layers now and, though they were indeed gaudy, I didn’t want to hide them completely.
I began this project by toning down my colorful mirror with a few coats of homemade cassein paint that I learned to make in the online painting course Farragoz, The Art of Patina. This simple-to-make paint creates great texture!
To add even more depth I decided to give my mirror a crackled look by randomly dabbing wood glue over the cassein paint.
After that was nearly dry I painted the mirror using my Homemade Chalk Paint Recipe with latex paint that Home Depot custom matched to Annie Sloan Chalk Paint’s French Linen (taken from my ASCP color card).
You can see here how nicely the paint is cracking as it dries.
A dry brushing of a lighter color Homemade Chalk Paint (a Home Depot match to Annie Sloan’s Old White) followed next.
Last of all I used a clear soft wax to seal the layers of paint, pressing Amy Howard’s Dust of Ages into the crevices while the wax was still somewhat tacky. Have I told you how much fun this stuff is to work with? It comes in a large 10 oz. jar which should pretty much last me forever. For ordering info you can click on the picture below.
Now for a little outdoor photo shoot . . .
. . . with Sasha stopping by to check on her appearance. She is none too happy with all the new grey in her muzzle.
More close ups to show the depth that the milk paint and crackle medium give a painted piece.
Here you’ll see a little bit of the old color coming through because sometimes a little peek of where we’ve been can remind us of how far we’ve come and make us grateful.
It’s hard to believe now that this was once an atrocious looking mirror, shunned and discarded at the Goodwill.
Maybe it takes one who has experienced the feeling of being shunned and discarded to see the beautiful potential in one like this.
Now for the little secret I told you I would reveal: This mirror, underneath all of it’s Old World charm, is plastic! Yes, PLASTIC. Who would ever guess?
For more furniture painting ideas and techniques please check out my Pinterest board, and follow along if you like. To enroll in an awesome online painting course where you’ll learn to make your own paints and be guided through the process of learning several different finishing techniques please check out the Farragoz link here (or on my sidebar).
“For You did form my inward parts; You did knit me together in my mother’s womb . . . My frame was not hidden from You when I was being formed in secret [and] intricately and curiously wrought [as if embroidered with various colors] in the depths of the earth [a region of darkness and mystery] . . . Your eyes saw my unformed substance, and in Your book all the days [of my life] were written before ever they took shape, when as yet there was none of them. How precious and weighty also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I could count them, they would be more in number than the sand. When I awoke, [could I count to the end] I would still be with You.” Psalm 139:13-18 The Message Bible
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 NIV
And just in case you were wondering . . . it is never too late for God to redeem the wasted years of our lives.
You are loved so much!
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