Proportion is everything

Today Jon and I went to an estate sale, which, for the record, are the BEST place to find second-hand items to restore (besides the Goodwill bins, of course).  This estate sale that we found today was a happy one, because a cute old couple was selling things just to downsize.  It also meant that they just wanted to get rid of their stuff, and would really take any offer.  Oh my word.  Jon found some treasures, like camping gear, fishing gear, and a foul weather suit (brand new!) and I found THIS:

The coolest mirror in the world.  The mirror isn't in it (it was whole, just not in the frame when I took this picture), but I was so excited about how BIG this thing is!  I don't know if you can tell in the picture, but it is at least 4ft x 3ft.  Mirrors are surprisingly expensive when bought new - one this size at Lowe's or Home Depot would be around $80 on the low end.  So right along with well-crafted wood furniture, mirrors are always a perfect thing to keep an eye open for at thrift stores or garage sales.  I only had a few dollars in my pocket, but I figured it would never hurt to ask if the woman running the sale would take $4 for the mirror.  SHE SAID YES!

So.  It was time to give our mirror a little update and a new home.  First I sanded it and wiped it down to get ready for black paint:

Now, for giving it a home.  A huge mirror is perfect in ANY room in a house, but my first thought was our entryway with the campaign dresser.  Here is what our entryway looked like before:

Cute and cheery, but that tiny mirror was getting lost on the huge wall, and it wasn't much of an entrance focal point.  So, here is the after with our new glossy black mirror:

Ha, that thing is HUGE.  We still need to figure out a way to get it hung up on the wall, but for now our little entryway has a huge statement piece for all of $4.  How cool is that?!