How To Make Sunburst Mirror using Popsicle and Ice Cream Sticks

This tutorial on using popsicle sticks to create beautiful home decor is just one of my first projects (its a first try too!)

How To Make Sunburst Mirror using Popsicle and Ice Cream Sticks

MATERIALS:

• Popsicle sticks
• Ice cream sticks/scoops
• Circular card board or Styrofoam
• White glue/Elmer’s Glue or wood glue
• Poster paint/acrylic paint (any color you want)
• Paint brush
• Mirror (circle is best of course)

Step 1 : Gather your materials

Step 2 : Take the mirror out of its original casing/frame

Step 3 : Turn the mirror over (wrong side) and smear some glue on it.

Step 4 : Press the mirror into your cardboard or Styrofoam, make sure it is centered.

Step 5 : Lay your popsicle sticks on the periphery, estimate how much popsicle sticks you need before using glue to lay them around your mirror. I choose a combination of popsicle and Ice cream scoops because it looks more interesting for me.

Step 6 : Apply glue one by one on the popsicle sticks.

Step 7 : And attach them to the Styrofoam/cardboard like this.

Step 8 : Continue working around the mirror like this. By the way, I just eye-balled the lay-out :)

Step 9 : First layer done! At this point, it looks okay, but I want to add more elements of texture and contrast so I’m going to add a layer of ice cream sticks/scoops.

 Step 10 : Put a generous amount of glue over the popsicle sticks, this would serve two purposes, one is that it will help bind the popsicle sticks better and two, this would be where you will stick the 2^nd layer.

Step 11 : Plan the lay-out of your ice cream sticks/scoops.

Step 12 : Stick them all in! You’ll notice at this point there are still gaps, so off to the 3^rd layer we go! :)

Step 13 : Put in a generous layer of glue (my favourite part).

Step 14 : Put in the 3^rd layer like so.

Step 15 : As you can see, the 3^rd layer is for added texture and also to seal in the gaps.

Step 16 : Once all in, put in another layer of glue, but make sure they look kind of nice, because this is for texture and once dried and painted, it would look like a carved design on your popsicle sticks.

Step 17 : Let dry for 12-24 hours (48 hours is better but I can’t wait).

Step 18 : Make sure your paint is smooth and has no blobs or dried paint in it.

Step 19 : Start painting! See how nice the glue looks being raised like that which creates an interesting textural element to it.

Step 20 : Paint all around the mirror, making sure to get to the nooks and crannies of the popsicle and ice cream sticks. I chose gold because it looks classier than a flat color like white, plus it fits in with my other sunburst mirrors (you’ll see later).

Step 21 : Voila! Here is the sunburst mirror family all being dried together. There’s papa mirror (at the back), mama mirror (the gold one), and baby mirror (the one in the front).

Step 22 : A close-up at the mama (ahem) gold mirror haha :) Looking great!

Step 23 : Display the mirror either resting against a wall or mounted on a wall. Hope you like this guide. Feel free to leave your violent reactions on the comment space below, Just kidding :)