Let’s talk about a small makeover that turned into a lesson in patience. Back in January we decided to keep the mirror on our master bedroom door—unlike the one on the guest bathroom door, which we removed because it showed the person on the toilet their entire body. The bedroom mirror, however, didn’t force anyone into awkward bathroom reflections, so we agreed to keep it if we could give it a thicker frame to make it feel less like a flimsy, college-style mirror. That plan took until September to become reality.
Functionally the mirror has been great for checking outfits, fixing hair, and the occasional flex, but the plastic clips holding it in place weren’t very attractive.
We’d seen other bloggers give mirrors a trim upgrade and figured it’d be straightforward. The plan: remove the door, lift the mirror off, reattach it with mirror adhesive so the clips wouldn’t interfere, cut molding with a miter saw, and glue the trim around the mirror. Simple enough—famous last words.
First I took the door off its hinges so I could work on it flat. I traced the mirror outline with a red pen so we could place it back exactly where it belonged. With the clips unscrewed, the mirror came off without issue.
We picked up a tube of Liquid Nails Mirror Adhesive at the hardware store. It’s formulated not to damage the mirror’s reflective backing, which is why we chose it. We also sanded the door where the mirror would adhere to rough up the painted surface, as recommended.
The adhesive was a bit stinky, so we moved the gluing step to the sunroom. Following the product guidance, I applied blobs of adhesive and, with Sherry’s help, pressed the mirror back in place and let it cure for 72 hours.
At the store we also found some trim with a groove that fit over the mirror edge—perfect on paper. After measuring and cutting, we realized the thin trim made the mirror look even cheaper, so we scrapped that version.
We returned to the store and picked a beefier trim with a wider face—about three inches—so it wouldn’t interfere with the doorknob but still provided a more substantial frame. To align the mitered corners with the mirror’s bevel, I extended the bevel line with painter’s tape and marked my 45-degree cuts on the trim before cutting them on the miter saw.
After dry-fitting the pieces, I used heavy duty Liquid Nails to glue the trim to the door, laying a bead on the side that would contact the door. To keep everything from shifting while it cured, I tapped the pieces in place and taped them down.
Unfortunately, after letting it dry for a day and reattaching the door, the mirror slid off and knocked the bottom piece of trim loose. The other three pieces held it enough that the mirror didn’t crash to the floor, but the experience was alarming and left a small chip that would be hidden by trim.
Re-reading the adhesive instructions revealed a clue we’d missed: “Do not use this product without a permanent support system.” They also advised letting the glue set for a full week and applying adhesive to the mirror back rather than the door. Armed with that information, we started over.
This time we applied adhesive to the mirror in smaller but more numerous blobs and added crossed lines to help with coverage. For a permanent support, instead of reinstalling the old clips (which would interfere with the new trim), I carefully set small finishing nails into the door around the mirror’s edge so the nail heads would act as tiny supports to prevent sliding.
We left the mirror undisturbed for seven full days, even though that meant a week without a master bathroom door. To test it before adding trim, we propped the door upright on a pillow overnight—if the mirror slipped, at least it would fall gently. It passed the test, so I re-glued the thicker trim, let it cure flat for several days, and finally rehung the door.
After all that, the update is subtle but effective. The white trim on the white door provides a layered architectural detail that complements the larger mirror nearby without competing with it. It’s not a dramatic transformation, but it finishes the raw mirror edge nicely and removes the clear plastic clips from view.
The thicker trim cost about $12 and the mirror adhesive added a few dollars, so the project totaled roughly $17 if you don’t count the initial, too-thin trim we bought and hope to return. After several steamy showers and a week of careful curing, the door has held up with no further incidents.
Have you attempted a small, straightforward project that turned out to be more finicky than expected? This one certainly tested our patience, but in the end it’s a modest, satisfying upgrade that keeps the mirror functional and much more finished-looking. For now, success—and a little more privacy—has returned to our bathroom.