DIY: Chrysanthemum Starburst Mirror

Photo Courtesy of Little Things Bring Smiles

Want to know the secret to making these beautiful mirrors? It's much simpler than you may think: plastic spoons. That's right, you need very few materials in this simple at-home DIY. Make sure you get all of your materials as cheap as possible, the purpose of this DIY is to save you money on a priceless piece of wall art that will be unique to your space.

You will need:

• 9-Inch Round Mirror (or larger if you want to make a bigger piece)

• Approx. 300 Spoons (depends on how many rows you want to make and how large your mirror is, so overbuy spoons) - you can use white ones or clear plastic ones but you will have to spray paint the clear plastic ones or the backing can be seen
• Industrial Scissors or Bone shear scissors so that you can easily cut through the spoon handle
• Duct Tape
• Hot Melt Glue Gun with Glue Sticks
• Cardboard or Foam Board  (larger than you want your wall decor to be)
• Pencil
• Compass or string
• Spray Paint (optional, you can choose to go with colored spoons instead)
• Fine Grit Sandpaper
• Mirror Hanging Kit

Here are the steps you should follow to achieve this beautiful wall decor: 

Trace around your mirror onto your foam core or thick cardboard

Use your homemade compass (string tied to your pencil to draw the diameter and hold down the inside portion of the string with your finger) and measure out an inch (this will be for one row of spoons)

Depending on how many rows you want to make, go that many extra inches and draw the diameter of the circle with your pencil compass on every inch as a guide

Cut your foam core or thick cardboard around the outermost circle you have drawn

Cut out the center-most circle as this will be where you will glue your mirror on from the reverse side (if you are going for a recessed look). Skip this step if you plan on gluing your mirror to the front of the piece so that it lays atop the petals

Cut your spoons up, removing the handle from the base of the spoon

Start hot gluing the base of the spoons upwards (so that they stand out three dimensionally like flower petals)

Work in sections, start around the outside of your design and leave about an inch between each petal

On the 2nd layer, make sure you place your petals in the gaps you left on your first layer

Keep moving inwards in layers until you have reached the center on approximately half of your decor piece. Complete the other side of your piece.

If you chose to color your flower, then spray paint your petals in a well ventilated area and make sure to get the backs of the spoons as well so that they don't look dual toned from the sides (unless you're trying to achieve this effect). If you want to achieve a dual-toned effect or multi-colored effect you're going to have to paint your spoons and let them dry before gluing them down.

Apply a second coat of spray paint to the petals for a more full coverage finish (glossy or paint is also an option). Allow your petals to dry elevated.

Hot glue your mirror either to the front or the back of your piece (depending on if you want it to look recessed or like it's coming out of the flower) but make sure to only use the hot glue around the edges and that it does not become messy - you are gluing to the foam core or thick cardboard

Apply the mirror hanging kit to the back of your piece, this is really easy with foam core because you can just push nails into it if you don't have a wall-hanging kit and it will just stand on your wall

You can even try this project with a photo frame or clock!




What else can you make out of plastic spoons?

Remember, you can always go the easy route and avoid purchasing spray paint and the mess of painting altogether and get colored spoons! And don't force yourself to stop at just one color... you can design a rainbow! You can buy huge quantities of spoons in bulk for very cheap prices, so play to your heart's delight.