Mirrors serve many different purposes, functional and decorative. Aside from letting you see your reflection, mirrors reflect lighting, which can be extremely useful when designing and decorating your home. When the correct size and shape of the mirror are hung in a space, it can change the overall appearance of the room by bringing in more light or giving the illusion of more space.
Mirrors are available in a variety of shapes and countless sizes, which means there is a mirror for any style, any design, and any space. The most common shapes are round and rectangular. Just because they are the most common, doesn’t mean that they go everywhere, one shape may be a better fit than the other. Here are a few tips to help you determine whether you should hang a round or rectangular mirror in your space.
Create Space
One of the biggest advantages of hanging a mirror is having the ability to make a space feel bigger than it actually is. In order to achieve this goal, you can use either a round mirror or a rectangular mirror, depending on placement and the look you are trying to achieve. Hanging a large mirror over a large piece of furniture accomplishes two different things: first, it focuses attention on the piece of furniture, and second, the reflection of the opposite wall, creates the illusion of a larger space.
If you are wanting to use one single mirror to accomplish the idea of more space, consider using a round mirror. Round mirrors are good in this application as the furniture beneath them is typically square or rectangular, therefore, a round mirror provides visual variety. In order to maximize the effect of giving the illusion of more space, consider a fully mirrored wall. In order to achieve a fully mirrored wall, you’ll need to stick to rectangular mirrors, either one giant mirror, or grouping a number of smaller rectangular mirrors together to achieve the look and feel.
Furniture
Mirrors can be used in a variety of creative and unique ways to enhance furniture within a space. Not only are you elevating your furniture, but you are also elevating your space. Adding mirrors to the front of dressers or cabinets not only makes the furniture look more modern, but also adds light to a room, and can enhance and display items in front of the mirrors.
Enhance Light
Aside from making a space feel larger, mirrors are great at adding light to a space as well. Because mirrors reflect light back into the space, it is advisable to place a mirror directly across from the light source. So, what works better in this space, a round or rectangular mirror? It’s going to depend on the overall look you’re going for. Round mirrors are ideal if you are wanting only one mirror, as the round shape will add some variety to your space. On the flip side, if you use two rectangular mirrors close to next each other, it can create the illusion of having windows within the room.
Display
There is a reason why mirrors are always used in design and decorating, because mirrors on their own, can be an attractive design piece. They can be used as a stand alone piece, or they can be paired with other decorations, such as, paintings to complete the look of a space. The straight lines of the rectangular mirrors, bring a sense of stability, whereas the curved lines of round mirrors are softer but more energetic. Knowing the different energy that each style of mirror gives off, can be beneficial and helpful when trying to decide on the right shape and size for your space.
Regardless of the shape or size of the mirror that you decide to use in your space will enhance and bring warmth and depth to your space. When you are ready to hang a new mirror, contact Gordon’s Glass to order a custom cut mirror, round or rectangular to complete your space.
