DIY Rattan Style Sunburst Mirror Using Rope
The rattan furniture trend is out in full force and I am 100% on board with it. Rattan chairs, headboards, and bags, I’ll take one of each please! One of my favorite designs is the rattan mirror, so I decided to recreate the style with materials that I already had on hand. Instead of using actual rattan, I used macrame cord and mimicked the style, and I love it!
Materials:
MIRROR: THIS MIRROR IS VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT I USED
MACRAME CORD OR ROPE OF YOUR CHOICE: I LIKE THIS OPTION
I started out with a plain round craft mirror and some macrame cord.
I searched Pinterest for design ideas for the mirror that I wanted to create, and used that as a guide for my DIY. The design that I chose involved a larger oval shape, with a smaller identical oval shape inside of it, and straight pieces in between this pattern. The first step was to estimate the size of each piece of rope that I would be using. So, I took my macrame cord and placed it on top of the mirror to eyeball the length that looked good to me.
Once I had cut out my first three pieces, I used them as a guide to cut out several more of each. Based on the size of my mirror, I ended up with 18 of each.
Before gluing the rope to the mirror, I used a ruler to create a placement guide. I decided to have an inch and a half between the ends of the large oval, and to leave half an inch in between the oval shape and the straight piece.
With this decided, I used a tape measure, and two different colored sharpies to make marks the entire way around the mirror. I started with a black dot for one end of the large oval, then moved over an inch and a half and made another black dot for the second end of the large oval. Then I moved over half an inch and made a red dot for the straight piece, then another half inch and started over with a black dot. I repeated this pattern all the way around the mirror.
The next step is to glue down all of the pieces. I started by gluing all of the larger oval pieces around the entire mirror first. Then I moved on to the straight pieces and the smaller ovals. For the smaller oval, I simply glued them directly inside the larger oval shape.
To cover up all of the pieces that were glued down, I glued more macrame cord about 4-5 times all the way around the mirror.
The mirror looks great at this point, but because it’s made from rope, it’s important to starch the rope so that it holds its shape once it’s hung up. To do this, I mixed equal parts cornstarch and water (4 tablespoons of each) and added this mixture to 4 cups of boiling water. I removed it from the heat and stirred it until it formed a paste.
Using a paintbrush, I painted a generous amount of the cornstarch mixture on both the top and bottom of each piece of cord. Make sure you cover each piece entirely, then form it into the shape that you would like it to stay in permanently. I lined my table with kraft paper, but I would recommend using wax paper or plastic instead, so that it does not stick once it’s dry. Allow to dry for 12 hours then carefully peel away from your surface. To hang it up, I used the Command Brand velcro picture hangers.
I love how this decorative mirror came together. It perfectly complements my other boho decor, and I was able to make it at a fraction of the price of the rattan mirrors that I found for sale. As always, one of the biggest benefits of making your own decor is that you can customize it to be any design that you want. If you try it out, share a photo with me on Instagram or Facebook, I can’t wait to see what you do!
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