It might be an everyday essential when you’re getting ready in the morning or doing a last-minute check before you go out the door for that big night out, but mirrors are more than just functional. They can also play a key role in interior design, creating extra light, a sensation of space, and even acting as a focal point to a room.

From decorative wall mirrors to free-standing floor mirrors, incorporating these shiny must-haves into your décor is a smart way to add interest to almost any room. Here are a few of our top tips on how to decorate with mirrors.

How to decorate with mirrors in the living room

Whereas a mirror in the bathroom or bedroom has a certain requirement to be functional as well as elegant, mirrors in the living room have much more scope to be purely decorative. Wall mirror sets can add interest to an otherwise plain wall by breaking up the visual ‘line’ across an area and creating almost ‘moving pictures’ through the use of reflections. 

They also reflect light back into the room, giving it a brighter, airy feel. Regard decorative wall mirrors as a key element or even a primary focal point in your living room, but remember not to position them too high or too low to achieve the maximum effect. 

Decorating with circle mirrors

Circle mirrors can be a wonderfully quirky addition to any space. Rather than the usual square or oblong mirror, a circular variation adds interest. Position it so that it reflects an outside viewpoint and you can create an illusion of depth and space, framed in a very different way from the usual ‘window’ design you get with oblong mirrors. Round mirrors can be used to create a porthole effect too, perfect if you’re going for a nautical or beach theme in a bathroom.

Circle mirrors are also a traditional feature of Middle Eastern and Asian design, which we predict will be a big theme in the coming months. By using small circle mirrors in your interior design, you can pick up on a theme and choose accessories such as round, highly polished platters, bowls and chrome-effect vases to ‘mirror’ and enhance the effect.

Using decorative mirrors to make a space look bigger

As well as creating a stylish focal point in a room, modern decorative wall mirrors can also be used to give the appearance of space in a smaller room, especially as they tend not to have restrictive frames around them. More traditional designs will also work, but to get a really effective illusion of extra space, choose a wall mirror that has an ‘edge-to-edge’ design with no frame. To add interest, look for mirrors that have etching or engraving on them that emulates the ultra-fashionable designs of the Art Deco period.

Small decorative mirrors can be just as effective as a single, larger mirror. Use them as you would a collection of pictures, ensuring that they’re positioned at the correct height to get the best overall effect. Your mirrors should be at eye height (as long as the person putting them up isn’t over six foot!).

Don’t overdo it!

While decorating walls with mirrors is a great addition to any interior design plan, like everything else the key is not to overdo it! Keep it simple and focused on either a set of smaller mirrors or a single focal mirror. 

In the bedroom, you have the option to incorporate a free-standing floor mirror into the mix, but in other rooms such as the living room, wall mirrors are your best option. Keep it simple and you’ll maximise the effect and create that wow-factor that clever decorating with mirrors can produce.