Mirror as Decoration and Function

Special Review Mirror as Decoration and Function

The Mirror in Interior Design

In this article, I am proposing some interior design ideas. I am also analysing the function of the mirror in interior design. In this article, the mirror is seen as something functional. There is also obviously a decorative purpose to the mirror. However sometimes these points can be forgotten.

The mirror is function:

Suppose there is a small room e.g. a small-sized bathroom. In this bathroom, the mirror is obviously functional. It is used by the man for shaving for example, to wash teeth. However, when a piece is so obviously functional as the mirror, there are ways to make the mirror more decorative. I am saying here that in some way, it is easier to make something so functional as the mirror in this bathroom setting into something decorative. You can aim to have a mirror with some element of ornamentation or you can choose to have a certain type of glass for the mirror. You can choose to have a certain color scheme in the bathroom and to use the mirror as the central element in this scheme.

However, when a mirror is so obviously functional, you can add mirrors that are more decorative in aim. You can have for example, mirrors at the foot level. You can have mirrors which just show the abdomen level.

The mirror is decoration:

In the living room, a lot of times the mirror is put above the fireplace and when you think about this, there seems to be something decorative about this. It is decorative in the sense that the mirror seems to be the main ornament. It is a central piece of decorative furniture and even though its function is obvious, decoration seems to be the main purpose. If the main reason is decorative, then you can add to the interior by using other mirrors in a more functional setting and showing up the decorative purpose of the central mirror above the fireplace. Again in this living room setting, you can show up the functionality and decorativeness of the mirror object by adding mirrors at foot level along one of the walls.

Another interior design idea is to put a folding mirror in the corner.. a kind of triptych of mirrors which fold inwards... Another idea is to have a mirror on one wall continuing into the other walls; Various effects can be used- e.g. two long rectangular mirrors of equal size at the corners of each wall...or else the mirrors do not have to be the same size at all. The mirror then is decoration and function. What about the mirror as space as something which creates space.

The mirror is space:

This is a well-known purpose of a mirror. When you have a large space e.g. a hall you can use mirrors in different ways to create more space and you can aim for this effect in small spaces such as an ordinary living room. However since you already have a large space in a gathering hall or a large retail area for example, how should mirrors be used? Then the mirror can be used in such a way as to create the interior. This can be done when there are mirrors along a whole wall. There can be continuous mirrors along a wall or just long vertical or horizontal rectangles of mirrors. You can have a mirror, then wallpaper then a mirror again. If the room is rectangular, the corners of the space should have some design element. The corners of the rooms are where the walls 'overlap' and interior design effects can be used to emphasize this area. The mirrors emphasize in some way the central space but the side corners can also be emphasized through objects e.g. lampshades...

The mirror then is space...and it is function.. and a good interior design idea is to look at the mirror in a living room. If the mirror is above the fireplace, ask why it is there. Is it for function or decoration or another reason or probably a mix of all three. In a living room, you may be unwittingly using the mirror as a central decorative object but you are not bringing out the full effect. This may be because of the mirror itself or general bad interior design planning for your room. In interior design, the purpose of the room is an important concept. The question of having a definite purpose for your room arises when you are looking at your room and its space. The mirror must have a specific purpose and this purpose can be brought out through the way the mirror or mirrors merges with the color tones in the room as well as the overall space and other furniture of the room.