How to Frame a Round Mirror — No Fancy Tools! • Ugly Duckling House

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Hey all! It’s Tylynn, dropping in from Bitterroot DIY again. Have you seen the price tag on the all-too-popular round mirrors at the store lately? I can’t believe how expensive some of them are! I recently finished a small entryway shelf and wanted a small round mirror above it. After searching and searching, I finally decided to try my hand at framing a thrift store mirror. Total cost? $3.

how to frame a round mirror without a router

Yeah … much more affordable.

There are a few tutorials out there to frame round mirrors with a router. However, my sister-in-law has my router right now, so I challenged myself to come up with a different method. I’m happy to say that the only tool you need for this project is a jigsaw and some clamps!

Enjoy the free plans and let me know if you have any questions!

Materials

How to Frame a Round Mirror Without a Router

Step 1. Cut out the back frame.

Trace the outside edge of the mirror onto your board so you have starting point for the diameter.

Decide how wide you want to make the frame. I went for 1/2″.

Find the center of the circle and mark 1/2″ to the outside of the mirror diameter (or however wide you want the frame).

Cut out the circle with a jigsaw.

The outer edge of the circle in the photo above is 1/2″ from the traced mirror diameter. The mirror diameter is the center red line.

Mark a third circle 1/2″ to the inside of the mirror diameter (center line) you traced in Step 1. That is the innermost line in the photo above.

Drill a hole inside the frame as a starting point for your jigsaw blade.

Cut the inner circle with your jigsaw.

There you have the front face of your frame.

The mirror I used was only about 6″ in diameter, so I was able to cut the whole frame out of a spare 1 x 10.

If your mirror is larger than a single board width, check out how Angela from Angela Marie Made laid out the frame for a large mirror. Follow her layout and then use a router to cut the circle.

Step 2. Cut out the front frame.

Using the same method as above, cut a second circle out. Cut the inside edge to exactly the diameter of the mirror. Cut the outside edge to exactly the diameter of the outside edge of the front face frame you just made.

Step 3. Attach both frames together.

Stack the circles from Steps 1 & 2. Glue and clamp them together. The outside edges of the circles should line up exactly. There should be a small lip on the inside edge from the wider circle (step 1) for the mirror to set into.

Step 4. Finish with paint or stain.

I sanded the frame down really well and covered the outside edge in wood filler to fill any gaps between the two pieces of the frame. It’s difficult to cut a perfect circle with the jigsaw, so use wood filler to fix any discrepancies along the edges. Let the wood filler dry and then sand down.

Paint or stain the frame as desired. I used black acrylic paint and sealed it with glossy polyurethane for an industrial vibe.

Step 5. Attach the mirror.

Flip the frame over and glue the mirror in place. I just used a mirror adhesive from Home Depot.

Weight it down until the adhesive dries.

Step 6. Attach the chain.

Attach a small black chain to the top and you’re good to go!

I added a round piece of cardboard to the back one everything was done to close the mirror in and protect it. Just cut the cardboard to size and glue or nail it to the back.

For more project ideas like this, I’d love it if you stopped by my blog. You can also find me on Pinterest. And to stay up to date with the latest shenanigans, follow me on Instagram!

Don’t forget to pin it!