DIY Mirror and Photo Frame from an Old Window

Good morning! Today’s a fun day as it’s “12 Months of DIY” project time! This month we took on spray paint, and I’m creating not only a DIY Mirror, but a DIY Custom Photo Frame too! If you’ve missed our previous “12 Months…” projects, you can find them here:

January – DIY Mason Jar Travel Mug
February – Sew a 10 Minute Infinity Scarf!
March – How to Paint Wood Furniture
April – Upcycled Wood Salad Bowls
May – Decoupage a Foot Stool

You can play along too on Instagram, using the hashtags #12MonthsofDIY and #JuneSprayPaint. Post about your new or oldie-but-a-goodie, spray paint project, and get featured across all 12 profiles on June 30th. We can’t wait to see what you come up with! I’m going to show you how I got from dusty farmhouse window, to rustic mirror, to finished family photo frame. Let’s check it out! (This post may contain affiliate links. This means, should you end up making a purchase, advertisers give me a small percentage of that sale, at absolutely NO EXTRA COST to you. Click here for full disclosures).

I had this great old farmhouse window stashed away in my garage waiting for its moment to shine. And, today’s the day! I decided to transform it with a little Krylon “Looking Glass” Spray Paint. It gives a mirrored finish in minutes, and I was excited to try it out!

STEPS FOR DIY MIRROR:

First, I gave my window a good cleaning.
Next, I taped off my window frame on the REVERSE side of my project. (You spray the backside of your glass, to reveal the mirror on the right-side of your project).
Spray about 5 coats of Krylon – Looking Glass Spray Paint.
Let it dry completely, and you’re done!

Pretty cool right?! An instant mirror without all the glass replacing, and mirror cutting (I’ve done that before too, and trust me — this Spray Paint is the way to go!) But — I didn’t stop there. I wanted this to be a rustic mirror / photo frame / and fun art piece, all-in-one! So let’s keep going!

SUPPLIES FOR A DIY PHOTO FRAME ON GLASS:

Crafter’s Tape
Chalkboard Pens
Scissors
Ruler
Cardboard
Pen
Photo Prints

I custom cropped a bunch of photo files, to get custom 3″ x 3″ photo prints off the good ol’ Kodak “prints in seconds” machine at Wal-Mart. I needed 3″ x 3″ to fit into the narrow columns of glass on the upper portion of my ~~window~~ mirror. Plus, I printed one large 8″ x 10″ image for the bottom.

Measure placement, and plan out your squares using a cardboard template. In my case I needed to place 15 – 3″ x 3″ squares on the top portion of my glass. I cut the cardboard slightly larger than my prints, and began framing out each photo position with a chalkboard pen.

Chalkboard pens are great because I can wash it off and change my design anytime!

Keep going until you’ve got all 15 chalkboard pen frames in place.

Next, I used crafter’s tape to hold each photo in position. It’s strong, but not forever. So it’ll be easy-peasy when I want to trade out some of these photos with new ones.

I added a little corner detail on each photo with my chalkboard pen, to keep it fun — and the top portion was done like dinner!

Now to move on to the bottom portion. I positioned my bottom photo in place using another cardboard template and traced it with chalkboard pen — just like the top.

Then, I took my chalkboard pens, and a metallic glass pen I had kicking around… and just had a little freehand fun. I wasn’t feeling picky about placement of anything. I wanted a truly free-hand, imperfect look. It filled in the empty DIY mirror space around my photo beautifully and added a little artistic flare to it all.

This little family adventure photo frame is the perfect match for my new (and very unfinished) office/crafting space in the basement.

It adds that perfect dose of colour, and keeps family close-by for those hard-working moments. Plus, I love the idea of a big collage of family photos without cluttering up my desktop!

It’s also seen from our family room. My office space has a perfect little nook behind our new sectional. I love the rustic photo frame with our exposed beam too!

It totally seems at home among my crafting supplies, don’t you think?

There you have it. My old farmhouse window, turning rustic DIY mirror, turned fun artistic family photo frame. What do you think? Have you ever transformed an old window into something? Be sure to share in the comments — I want to hear about it!