Mirrors add magical quality to décor

Mirrors have enjoyed a history of mystique as they seem to have a magical quality about them. In early history we read of native tribes that feared mirrors believing they were seeing their own ghosts. There is the superstition of seven years of bad luck if you break a mirror, and the amusement park house or mirrors is always a charmer, particularly the mirrors that do such a great job of distorting your reflection.

This distortion is done by bending the mirror. Concaving will shrink while convexing will expand and a wavy mirror will make you appear all crinkly. The retail establishment security mirrors, the side view mirror on your car and condominium driveway mirrors are all examples of convexed glass.

Have you ever stood in front of one mirror and liked how thin you look and another time in front of a different mirror and thought how fat you look? Most of what you see is a direct reflection of your bathroom scale, but some of it has to do with the tilt of the mirror. If the mirror is tilted forward, you will appear shorter and wider. If tilted backward, your reflection will be taller and thinner. Even a slight tilt will have this effect. When you buy a mirror make sure it is thicker than one-eighth inch. A mirror that is very thin will not lie flat. If it is not flat it is curved. If it is curved the reflection is distorted.

Besides reflection, mirrors do a great job of decorating. They can be used in place of a picture or other wall hanging, looking good above a console, behind a sofa, at the end of a hallway, next to a chair, over the mantel or on a “What-do-I-do-with-this-wall-space” wall.

Bathroom mirrors will sometimes corrode around the edges. This is caused by moisture penetrating between the glass and the metallic backing. If you purchase a good mirror to begin with, it should come properly sealed so moisture cannot penetrate. If it is too late for that and your mirror is developing the black creeping crud, there are solutions.

You cannot eliminate the problem, but you can cover it up rather inexpensively. There are two popular methods: one is applying an overlay of beveled mirror strips around the edges and another is applying a wood frame all around the mirror. The creeping crud will continue to creep but the process is very, very slow and might even be stopped if no more moisture gets up under the mirror.

Did you know that mirrors are good for your health? Put a full length mirror where you can see yourself as you step out of the shower or tub and see if that doesn’t encourage you to exercise!

When you put up a mirror, be aware of what it will reflect. A mirror in a dining room that would ultimately reflect dirty dishes in the kitchen isn’t a good idea. A mirror on a wall that would reflect a bathroom isn’t good either.

Mirrors spread light in a room and can add sparkle to dark corners. Cut up strips of mirror placed adjacent to each other give a festive effect to the room as objects dance off the mirrors in interesting ways akin to a kaleidoscope.

Rosemary Sadez Friedmann, an interior designer in Naples, Fla., is author of “Mystery of Color.”