I hung the bigger mirror! What do you think? I'm loving how it fills the wall space so much better than the scrolly mirror. I think the proportions are just right. And the scrolly mirror is happily living in the office now, so don't feel too bad for it.
It took some work to get this beast of a mirror hangable. (PS I wasn't sure if this mirror was really "vintage" like the listing stated, but that tape on the back was definitely decades old. Nasty stuff.)
I ended up reusing the hardware that was already installed on the mirror. It was installed for the mirror to hang horizontally, so I unscrewed and moved the D-rings so the wire could run the opposite way.
I wanted to hang the new mirror on the screws that were already in our wall for the scrolly mirror (in the studs from when we filled in the giant H wall above the fireplace), so I installed the D-rings and strung the wire so the mirror would hang right where I wanted it on the wall.
When you're stringing the wire for a large mirror or piece of art, make sure your wire is a heavy enough gauge to support the weight (it will tell you on the package), and also that the wire is long enough to tightly thread through the D-rings at least three times. You want the weight of the mirror to be supported at the rings and not dependent on your wire-twisting capabilities (which are not that great in my case).
We needed three adults to hang the mirror and we were all a little wiped out by the whole undertaking. It was intense! But I was so happy with how the mirror looks on that wall. It's one of my favorite things to hang something up, walk away a few steps and then turn around and, Ta-dah! The big reveal in the context of the space! (come on, tell me you know what I mean here) This was a fun one to turn around to. :)
I am on the fence about changing the finish of the frame though. Part of me likes it as is, but I sort of also feel like it's too heavy and dark.
If I do change it, I'm thinking I would lime or whitewash the carved part and then gold leaf the very inside lip.
What do you think? That could be good, right?
(Man, I need to finish that skirted sofa table so I can hide that little sliver of fireplace that peeks out from behind the sofa!)
