Vintage Adirondack Mirror

Description

Rare 1930ish Adirondack/Twig Folk Art Mirror.

Distinctive and rare wood frame of pine and/or oak.

Creatively hand-carved and etched. With … more Rare 1930ish Adirondack/Twig Folk Art Mirror.

Distinctive and rare wood frame of pine and/or oak.

Creatively hand-carved and etched. With underlying original deep walnut colored varnish.

Likely from the 1930s-1940s … based upon the style of construction and the square headed cut nails; one of which we intentionally lightly sanded within one of the corner flowers … on the face … to reveal its age. (See photo sequenced # 3.)

Two additional larger square cut nails were on the back side of the mirror… at the short frame ends … securing old braided brittle picture wire strung to them … used to hang the frame … horizontally.

We carefully removed those 2 nails and re-inserted those 2 nails on the back … as illustrated on one of the long rails. (See photos sequenced #s 10 & 11.) We did so to preserve this original “hardware “ and “expose them” … for age-dating purposes.

We … did not want to risk one of those situated nails used to hang the mirror… coming loose, dislodging, and damaging the mirror by falling; but, as noted those 2 nails are available for re-installation if so desired.

The original glass mirror had been replaced before we purchased it. It’s a newer piece of glass, evident by the form of lettering on the back of it. The existing glass mirror does have some very minor surface spotting. Nothing overwhelming.

We also had several new metal set push points installed on the back, to secure the mirror in tighter to the wood frame, as displayed.

We sparingly spot touched up the original gold leaf border with vintage gold leaf paint … believe it or not, from a NOS Sears brand of authentic gold leaf paint in an old-fashioned half-pint metal can … from the 60s-70s … from Ft. Worth, Texas. Courtesy of Four Corner’s Antiques. It matched very well. (Thanks to Alex & Chuckie.)

Furthermore, we had “installed” 4 new alligatored picture hanger brackets … 3 on the horizontal and 1 on the vertical. In photo sequenced # 11 you will detect a small cavity hole where said vintage cut nails were extracted.

There are further some small “air gaps” between the glass mirror and the very inside edges of the wood frame.

Those “gaps” exist sporadically at the mirror glass border seams and at the 45 degree diagonal wood frame joints … that could be easily “filled” with brown tinted Durham’s wood putty or brown pliable vinyl caulking … if you’re kinda like me … and are tempted to “over-work” vintage … to the point that it gradually loses its vintage aura. (My wife reined me in here, so as to honor its vintage quirks. So, I refrained.)

We did sparingly spot stain some small scratches with a dark express Minwax stain and wiped on a very thin hand-rub poly over the frame … to bring back its luster.

It’s a really distinctive piece.

And seemingly somewhat rare … based upon our extensive time
on-line … searching for comparables.

This piece should not last long. Not long at all. Even at its relatively higher listed price.

(It weighs approximately 3.1 lbs.) less