Transform Cheap Dollar Tree Mirrors Into Expensive Dupes With This Easy Aging Trick

Over the years, the reflective coating of a mirror ages and oxidizes, giving it a distressed patterning in some areas. While it may seem bad for a mirror to look like it has seen better days, it can be a chic addition to your interior décor. Foxed mirrors, as they are called, add some vintage charm to your home and have a way of giving your living spaces some character. Sure, you probably won't want to apply makeup with them, but they do catch the eye. Now, if you know how to shop for vintage mirrors, you can easily get authentic, foxed vintage versions in thrift stores. However, retailers like Pottery Barn also sell mirrors mimicking that look. Unfortunately, they usually cost an arm and a leg. Thankfully, this is where this DIY aging hack comes in, transforming cheap Dollar Tree mirrors into dupes that look expensive.

This foxed mirror project is a bit easier than the DIY for achieving a Regencycore aesthetic on a budget. For this project, you'll need six to eight of these beveled mirrors from Dollar Tree. They cost $1.25 each, so we're off to a cheaper start since the Pottery Barn version goes for about $249. Next, you'll need a spray bottle with water, some rags or paper towels, glass cleaner, and metallic spray paint. Gold and antique pewter spray paints will work for the foxed look, but you can use other colors for different effects. Dark brown will give an old, rusty vibe to the mirror, while green or turquoise will have a tarnished copper look.

First, you should clean the mirrors with the glass cleaner. Once they're sufficiently neat, spritz some water over them with your spray bottle, then give them a coating of spray paint. Try to be light with this to get the best look, but there's no problem if you go a bit thicker on some areas, as a naturally aged mirror won't be uniform. You can go thicker on the edges since that's where an old mirror would start aging from, and you'd usually see a heavy patina there. Next, blot out the water with your rag or paper towels, leave it to dry, and you'll have your DIY antique mirror.

With this DIY, you can also dupe this $899 Pottery Barn mirror using these Luminessence glass mirrors from Dollar Tree and Satori Hudson penny tiles from Lowe's. If you make this second DIY setup large enough, you should be able to pull off a mirror accent wall without ruining the vintage look you're going for.

There are endless possibilities to customize this look for your home. Adding an ornate frame to your mirror is a great way to add more vintage vibes. Glue on cheap wooden trim or molding to create a faux frame, then distress it with sandpaper and gold paint for an aged look. You could even add a mirror effect spray paint like this Rust-Oleum Specialty Mirror Spray as a final coat to restore some shine and reflectivity to the piece.