Nate Berkus Is Standing Behind This “Dated” Mirror Trend

published May 20, 2024
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Nate Berkus attends the Global Premiere of "Mean Girls" at the AMC Lincoln Square Theater on January 08, 2024, in New York, New York
Credit: John Nacion/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures

There was a period of time not too long ago when mirrored walls were everywhere — bathrooms, bedrooms, and living rooms (along with soft pink wallpaper and wall-to-wall carpeting!). More recently, mirror walls have morphed into something more along the lines of a gallery wall, broken up into panels or separate frames versus one big individual piece of glass. And even now, designer Nate Berkus is making the case for bringing back this semi-controversial mirror trend — albeit with a sophisticated twist. 

In a recent Instagram post, Berkus advocated for installing walls made up of antique-looking mirrors. “An antique mirrored wall is one of my favorite statements to incorporate in a home, like we did in our previous NYC home’s entryway and our current dining room,” he captioned the post. “Mirrors work with the light of a room, creating optical illusions and can make the room feel larger than it is.”

“And to think that lots of folks out there got rid of their mirrored walls … because it was so 1980s,” one person commented on the post. Berkus proves that this decorative feature doesn’t have to look old-school, though, as seen with his own designs below.

The key to his mirror wall success is that he opted for an antique finish, meaning the mirrored panels have a distressed border that makes them seem like they’ve been there for a century. Then, when more decor elements are layered on top, the mirrors fade into the background while providing much-needed light and depth to make the space feel larger and brighter.

Even placing furniture in front of the mirror wall also makes it blend in rather than stand out. Like wallpaper, this feature is intended to function as an accent, not a key focal point.

Take it from Berkus — mirror walls never went out of style. If you have one of these “dated” features in your home or want to DIY your own, you can find faux aged panels on Etsy in various sizes to get the designer-approved treatment. Or, Pottery Barn carries an antique-inspired 30.5-inch square mirror for the same effect on a smaller scale.