Cracked Mirror To Painting Makeover

Broken Mirror to Painting Save

What do you do with a FOUR FOOT wide cracked mirror?

I saved this totally cool cracked mirror in its AWESOME frame
 with spray paint,tissue paper, Mod Podge, craft paint and clear sealer.

Read on to learn the details.
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I started out with a beautifully framed mirror but ended up
 with this painting. How in the world did that happen?

It started out as a $9 Goodwill find with a gorgeous frame and a cracked  mirror.
 Four foot long and two and a half feet wide, it was perfect for our art wall, I thought.

What to do? The frame was still good. Why not turn it into a painting instead?
 Can't fix the mirror so I figured why not cover it up?

I turned to my tried and true method for covering up and adding texture.....crumpled tissue paper and mod podge! I taped the crack on front and back with clear packing tape.

 See how the tissue has dried to a nice pearly opaque textured finish?

 I spray painted the frame with Walnut Brown, Leather Brown

 and a bit of black dry brushing.


Time to paint!

 I knew I wanted something as a vivid blue focal point, so I began layering shades
 of blue, lavender, teal, purple and black around a white circle. There is also a
bit of pink and dark green in there. The crumpled tissue really
grabbed the paint and gave this a nice interesting texture.
 I knew I wanted a branch with a nest and some eggs and
here is how it ended up.

I like it!

 I even used my favorite new paint tool, a Deco Color paint pen, to add some of the finer details.
 The Welding Man likes it too. And you know what?
 If I get tired of this I can always repaint it as something else.
 I'm adaptable that way.

Here's a close up of the nest with four eggs since we have four kids. Sure, they're all grown and flown now but since we've moved we all live in the same town, how cool is that? We see them all so often that our empty nest isn't really empty after all!

Now I have to rearrange our living room art wall to make it fit.

Lovin' how this cracked mirror with the beautiful frame will look up there!

Gotta Love Thrift Stores...And This Gorgeous Blue Plate!

I am a dedicated thrift store shopper and it has paid off in savings 

and truly unique finds over the years.

We got this sturdy and well built but oh-so-retro coffee table for $7.50 way back when. 

It has held up well for decades and it's latest look includes 

turquoise chalk paint and a painted top.

After a house fire we bought the Flexsteel sofa for $25 that shows in the bottom pic.

It has down filled cushions and an easy to slipcover design.

 It is now on it's fourth life, reupholstery wise, 

in chocolate brown ribbed twill.

And here's what I found today for $2.50....

a beautiful fused glass plate in shades of blue by Galvin Glass Works of New York.

As a serious cobalt blue glass fan girl, this glass plate is right up my alley.

I put together with my other thrift store finds and gifts of colored glass, 

you can see why it caught my eye.

And then I turned it over and saw this....it's engraved with a signature by the glass artist, 

Andrew Galvin. It is #1794 of 2640. I think "Oracle" is the name of this particular design

 in  his fused glass catalog.

You can bet I'll be hitting the thrift stores again and soon. 

I may not find something this stunning, but I'll keep my eyes open.

And, anyone that knows me can guess, 

I HAVE A LIST.

What is your best thrift store find? What are you looking for?

Thrift store booty, yar!

I got to go thrifting and lunching with two of my girls this week, and we all got lots of loot. There is a trio of thrift/book stores in my little town and we found lots of pirate worthy booty. My other daughter had to work so we had to have enough fun to make it worth it. I think we made it! Sorry, Kelly, we didn't even try to be miserable. We'll make it up to you!




Blue glass! Gotta have it! Vintage looking silver tinsel garland, you bet I grabbed it. I am always looking for embellishments for my Santa dolls. A glass hanging candle jar, score! I'm going to dink around with some Walmart solar lights and make this a hanging solar lantern.


I keep a list of authors and books I'm looking for, and I found books by two of my favorites, John Connolly (a fine Irish lad who writes compellingly creepy thrillers) and Ed McBain (he's one of Stephen King's favorite authors. If you've read his 87th Precinct novels, you can see the seed for the Law & Order TV series and countless movies.) PLUS, a wonderfully written Irish memoir by Malachy McCourt, Frank McCourt's baby brother. Frank won the Pulitzer prize for his beautifully wrenching book, Angela's Ashes. Malachy is a gifted, sharp witted Irish charmer. And several in our family have read Joe Hill's first book, Heart Shaped Box. So I'm willing to check it out because they say it's creepy and edgy, NOT because he's Stephen King's son. Really.

And on top, for $3, is a heavy metal plant hanger welded of heavy rings and loops all ready to hang on my deck. My husband, The Welding Man, says he can't make it for that much. Score 2 for me! I picture a nice thick layer of moss and some impatiens and ivy. Yum, I mean, yar!


In back you see a lidded glass jar chock full of glass candle holders, including four glass stars. Really! It cost $2.99 total. Really! The two candlestick lamps were $5 for the pair and I already have lampshades. And in front you see the cutest most wonderful little wire tea pot planter. $1.99 at Goodwill. My girls and I, we LUV the Goodwill store.


I found this sad, forlorn, severely mistreated table for $3. It is very sturdy but very ugly. I have big plans for this sad table. She will be a beauty, just you wait. The three of us had lunch on a deck overlooking the river, and after shopping they each had bags o' booty to take home, including, no surprise, lots of books!

What a great day and a nice break from working on my endless to do list. And it's finally warm enough for a sweet, soft sunset here on the mountain as the sun makes all the new plant growth glow beautifully. Between shopping with my girls and the balmy, pretty weather, life is good here on the mountain. A pirate's life couldn't be better than this!