apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I like the suggestion of fabric mounted on thin board. I was thinking thin curtains at first, but I think that if they were pushed aside too much the mirror would peek out and look bad. The fabric on a board would solve that problem (maybe you could even do some cool wallpaper mounted on a board).

That said, when I first looked at the picture I got dizzy from it, I can't imagine seeing it in real life. We kitten sat for some friends once and the kitten was both enthralled and horrified by her reflection in our living room mirror, I can't imagine what kind of a crisis this would have created for her ;) Doesn't it drive the cats nuts?!

hmm, I would try to reason with the landloard and see if you can take them down... (as one mirror has already fell off).

if not, i would say use a paper (maybe wallpaper? but not adhered to the mirror, like tape it...)to cover the mirrors. i could only imagine how difficult it would be to remove cat hair from stretched fabric.

you could always use 'post it' notes.. (like the small cool entry from 2006 link)

Use spray starch and handmade paper to cover it, and then the starch and paper will peel off later, when you need to move. It might make the paper more luminescent, and yet cut down on the reflectiveness...

I think it's genius!!! Leave it as is and admire it.

Just not too much. [Does your health insurance plan include inpatient mental health treatment?]

Get a sheet of thin MDF at Home Depot, cut to fit ($20 Companion jigsaw at Sears!)...paint. Mount with lots of rubber cement.

Wow. That is one of the most phenomenally ugly things I've ever seen.

if they're glued on there, why not find a way to take them down without breaking them, paint, and when you move, put them back up?

There's a product for windows that might help you conceal that eyesore, while at the same time recycling light and help to lower the contrast between the shiny dark surface and your white walls. It's a thin white removable film sold by the roll for about 10 dollars (you'll need about one or two for this particular surface). It'll block excesive reflection, however it'll also still bounce some of your windows light. If you still hate it, you can paint over the film and just as easily remove it when you need to. Good luck and let us know what happened.

What the hell is the matter with people? Good heavens that is ugly. Whoever installed that should be brought up on charges. It's even worse that it almost magnifies its own fugliness. You seriously need to talk to the landlord.

If that doesn't work, try the foam core thingy.

That is spectacularly awful. WOW. Let me recover first...

First off, do you need curtains in the windows? How much light actually comes through?

Second, have you talked to the landlord yet about taking them down? Maybe tell them that you guys will do the work, they don't have to worry about anything? That always worked for us in our NYC apartments...

The post on the wall of post it notes is awesome - this might be a cool idea with different colors...depending on your decor.

I think the velcro panels with fabric attached might be your best bed.

We had a mirrored wall in one of our apartments and I hung saris along the whole wall - it looked really cool. Go saris!

I think sheers to cover the whole thing could be sufficient. But if you leave the mirrors in place you have to replace that fallen one first.

Oh, my. This is the most horrible thing I've seen in a long time.

Take the mirrors down. Just do it. Reason with your landlord, print out this post w/comments, and explain that it's 2007 and no one wants a mirrored window seat.

Have you actually asked the landlord if you can remove the mirrors?

You have to either remove them or cover them up if you can't accept them. You can cover them up with something hard, like plywood or cardboard, or soft, like fabric or paper.

Warning, though: the window pattern is going to be ugly even without the mirrors, and anything dark on the walls is going to accentuate the problem if the windows or uncovered. The air conditioner adds to the problem.

Maybe the mirrors actually are a pretty good solution. Using mirrors to mimic windows is an old idea. Nothing does it better

My suggestion is to leave the the mirrors and put up traditional curtains over shears, treating the entire bay as one window.

I am always curious what drives people to do stuff like that..

I think narrow curtains with a single valence to cover the top would be the easiest/quickest approach. But you would have to cover the slimmer windows b/c I do not know how you will find a narrow enough curtain.

The idea of fabric glued to the board sounds interest but try and use the fewest pieces of board to prevent unnecessary joints.

Or a combination of boards to cover the long pieces of glass with a valence on top.

Or ignore superstition and accidentally throw a hammer in the direction of the window...

Talk to your landlord and stress that you think this is a safety hazard. More of the panels could fall and seriously injure you or one of your cats! If your landlord senses a potential lawsuit, he may not complain if you want to take them down.

Sorry to divert from the original post, but I am soon moving into an apartment that has closet doors inset with mirrors (i.e., the doors themselves are not full mirrors, but the regular wooden kind with rectangular mirrors inlaid in each one). I will be owning the place (yay!). Is there any problem you can see with simply painting over the mirrors? (I have no DIY ability or knowledge at all, as you can tell.) Thanks!

I think Anne in Chicago has the right idea

But if you can't do that, try some contact paper. You can get it with patterns, or in plain white. It will peel off when it's time to leave & there won't be any residue.

Paris, making your landlord think that you might sue him is not a good idea. It's a bad idea.

hang a couple plants in the window and you will have an instant greenhouse!

Functioning - or false - shutters might be nice.

There is only one solution -- do it up with a mechanized disco ball. With that thing turning it will catch the sun, bounce off the mirrors and your cats will be leaping around all day trying to chase the light (like a laser pointer for the cats, but way way better).

(Seriously, take them down, risk the security deposit.)

Oh my. That is so ugly. Good luck

Use strippable wallpaper. It comes off really easily and the choices are endless. With that small area to cover you'll be able to afford the best. Since the mirrors are smooth, the wallpaper will be really easy to adhere and you might even change the wallpaper every few months depending on your mood.

Put up a disco ball and charge admission.

Get some cheap MDF, cut to fit, paint, and maybe add some trim.

I would mention the the landlord that one piece has fallen down, and you would like to take it all down for safety reasons. Don't threaten to sue, just mention it like you are being helpful. Tell him/her that you would take it down, patch any holes, and then paint so it matches the rest of the room. You could mention that it is rather dated.

Wow. That's all I have to say at this point. Maybe also-cruel. Mean. Yuck. DISASTER. But it's completely fixable. Flat slick surfaces are easy to cover so not worry. Use it as an opportunity to use any 2-D surface for decoration. Sometimes you have the inclination to do that and hedge away for whatever reason, but this situation is imperative--you must! Or you just might suffer from progressive, irreversible vertigo!

Paris is right. If one mirror has already fallen off, you should definitely ask your landlord if it's ok to remove the rest before someone does get hurt. Attaching anything to the mirrors may not be the best solution if the mirrors themselves are coming loose from the wall.

True, Kelly M. Point well taken. If it is more dangerous to leave them up than to take them down, by all means, use that as the diplomatic tactic--anything to help! I was thinking light-weight attachments like paper, but yes, lets be honest, it is a safety hazard. If this was San Francisco or LA, a good earthquake threat could be enough to yank them. I think the landlord should give two reductions on rent--one for the effort of removing them and saving him/her from a lawsuit and the second for the mental grief of living with that for any amount of time.

You could rig something up to hang drapery panels in front of each of the mirrored panels. I have seen curtain rods that suspend from the ceiling, though I have no clue where to get them.

It is truly unfortunate that somebody found it necessary to spend a lot of time and money on this.

I vote for the safety hazard excuse with your landlord.

I'm speechless.

put etching solution over it, that makes it looks like sand blasted effect, it will tone done the mirror refelction and leaves you a pale looking panel.

Um, I agree with all, that goes to 11 on the fugly scale...but *what* is that reflected in the mirror on the far right?

It looks like a humongous grey sinuous face with a gloomy eye.

It's not, is it?

it's so wrong. how about latex paint? i think when it's time to move wet and strip off with a razor blade scrapper.

Thanks for the comments everyone! We're renting out someone's co-op apartment, so the owner is indeed attached to the way things are, and taking them down is sort of out of the question.

Given the narrow windows, this is going to be a problematic area no matter what, but we're liking the idea of fabric or wallpaper to cover up the mirrors. The product that Djluckyonline mentioned (the cover-up film?) sounds intriguing--is there a name for it, and where can it be found?

AlmostAD--that is probably a light effect. One of the problems is that smudges do tend to show quite a bit. No worries about the cats, though, they don't seem to mind.

Thanks again, and we'll post "after" pictures for sure.

oh dear.

Another low tech possibility would be to cover the mirrors with paper or fabric using 3M "poster tape". It will hold whatever you choose flush against the mirrors and is removable.

JHjules,

I think Gila Privacy Window Film, Frosted, might be what Djluckyonline had in mind,. I purchased mine at Lowe's: www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=88113-74130-PFW486&lpage=none

However - I don't think I'd put anything adhesive such as this film, contact paper, or wallpaper directly on the mirrors. It would be the ultimate irony if you went through all that work just to endure a bit of reduced fugliness, then in the end you pull all the mirrors off the wall when you try to remove the sticky paper!

The adhesive film is sort of cling-on product, at least when I've used it in the past. It's not going to pull the mirrors off, and even if it did, she could get that Liquid Nails for mirrors and put them back on.

I agree that this is really ugly, but I think that the windows would be terrible without the mirrors, too.

I think that nice shear curtians would hide the mirrors and let in light. Under shear curtains the mirrors may even improve the amount of light that comes in. Living in someone else's apartment is a drag.

I have had great results using two techniques. My first choice might be to take fabric cut to the size of the panels, soak them in liquid starch, which you can find in the laundry aisle (usually hidden on a bottom shelf). Make sure you squeeze out the excess liquid starch and apply the fabric to the mirrors. You will need to smooth it on to the glass. (be sure to have rags available to mop up any excess liquid). A wallpaper squeegee would work well to smooth, but a barely damp sponge should be OK too. The end result is like wallpaper. You can peel it off at any time and just wash the starch off the mirrors. Or you could use "matte medium" which is available at any art supply store. I use a damp sponge to sponge on a thin layer in a hazy pattern and repeat coats as necessary to obscure the glass, be sure that the preceeding coat has dried before applying the next one. I have used it to block windows with bad views. It can be scraped off with a razor pretty easily.

I'd just take them down and paint the wall. What's your landlord going to do, evict you? If he ever says anything about it, explain that (as someone suggested) one came off and almost landed on your cat. Tell him that you really don't want them there, and that you'll put them back when you move out. But I wouldn't ask first. It's much easier to appologize after the fact then to ask and have him say no.

Wait 'till it gets hot and humid this summer, then tell the guy you're renting it from that they all fell off over a period of a couple of weeks. I mean, one's already gone. How's he gonna argue with that?

Help - love all the suggestions, but I have a similar mirror situation only it covers one 9' wall and another 8' closet. I want to be able to use the wall space - e.g. put things on the wall - so covering is not an option. How much does it cost to remove the mirrors? they are put on with that adhesive/glue stuff - in my prelim research, it looks like that can be extremely hard to get off, and may ruin the underlying wall. Does anyone have any experience with this? It's supposed to be fairly dangerous as well (due to the risk of the mirror breaking into millions of tiny shards and going everywhere) so does anyone know a good contractor for this? Thanks!

My, this takes me back to my childhood. My mother put mirrors on EVERY WALL she could get her hands on -- you know, those mirror squares that had double-sided tape on the back. When she was getting really fancy she would create checkerboard patterns with mirror and cork squares.