Restoration of Sterling Silver Dresser Set Mirrors

Sterling Silver Mirror Refitting & Replacement

 
polished sterling sliver hand mirror and brush with dents removed

sterling silver hand mirror and Brush Set

Sterling silver hand mirrors present unique issues. Polishing the sterling silver hand mirror fitter is not a problem. Great care is taken to polish only the sterling silver hand mirror frame lightly to preserve the pattern and details.  I do not polish the hand engraving. The sterling silver hand mirror shown above was dented and damaged, but the critical issue was that the mirror it came with did not fit properly.

mirror not fitting into tarnished sterling silver brush and mirror set
sterling silver hand mirror with new glass and brush

In the examples above, I did the minimum amount to restore this hand mirror. A new plain glass mirror was cut to the correct size, and the dents were pushed out so the bezel would fit properly. Then the brush and mirror were carefully polished.


hand mirror sterling silver polished
re-silvered sterling silver mirror after polishing

Decorative sterling silver hand mirror

The glass mirror was removed, re-silvered, and put back into place. This was extremely difficult as the mirror was set very deeply with an inflexible wire around the mirror. Reusing the original beveled hand mirror glass is a priority. Re-silvering the mirror will not remove scratches, chips, or the “ghosts” in the mirror, but a new mirror is extremely expensive and the new mirrors look too new and modern. The imperfections in old mirrors are part of their character. After the mirror was put back in the entire sterling silver hand mirror was polished.


Sterling Silver Mirror Repair of Dents and Cracks

dented, wrinkled and tarnished sterling silver mirror before repair
polished sterling silver after dents removed

STERLING SILVER MIRROR RESTORED

This 20th-century dresser set mirror smooth surface means that every imperfection shows. It took a tremendous amount of work to get this smooth.

STERLING SILVER MIRROR DENTED

The mirror back was wrinkled and dented both on the back surface, at the top of the handle, and along the edges.

mirror with dented edge and split seam in sterling silver
dented back of sterling silver mirror

sterling silver mirror back dents

The back of the mirror was very badly dented with sharp dings. Sharp dings are very hard to remove. The smooth surface of this mirror made every imperfection very obvious.

Sterling silver mirror dented edge

The edges of sterling silver antique and vintage dresser set mirrors are often badly dented. In this case, the seam along the edge was also split and had to be repaired.

sterling silver mirror with glass removed before repairs
close-up of cracks and holes in sterling silver mirror fitter

Sterling silver mirror Had many cracks and holes

This sterling silver hand mirror had many cracks which are pointed out by the yellow arrows. It also had a very poorly done repair (center above the handle) so it obviously had been worked on before. Using my high-tech TIG welder the cracks were repaired very carefully. This mirror also had many holes from rubbing when polishing. The holes were filled in at 10-power magnification with sterling silver. After the repairs, the mirror was reset. (This is not the original mirror.)

I recommend you polish your dresser set very gently with cotton balls, Q-tips, and silver polish to avoid damage from aggressive rubbing. Do not wash the hand mirror. Do not let the mirror glass get wet.

back view of repaired and polished sterling silver mirror, comb and brush
sterling silver dresser set with repaired cracks and new brush

harnd mirror with tear in sterling silver handle
sterling silver hand mirror repaired

sterling silver hand mirror With Repaired Tear

sterling silver mirror fitter with repaired bezel

This sterling silver hand mirror was part of a brush and mirror set. The highly embellished silver had torn at the handle and had other cracks and holes.

First, I TIG welded the crack back together in its correct position and then added silver solder to the front and back of the crack to strengthen the repair. For the bezel set of the mirror, I added sheet silver. This matched the brush aesthetically but also reinforced and concealed another crack in the silver fitter. For sterling silver fitters, I always do the best possible to conceal and strengthen the repair in a way that complements the decorative elements.

CLICK HERE to learn more about repairs made to the brush in this set.


Re-Silvering Hand Mirrors

imperfections visible in vintage and antique  mirror
resilvered sterling silver mirror

DRESSER SET MIRROR RE-SILVERED

The mirror in this photo looks flawless - it is not. Even after re-silvering the mirror, there are always ghosts or imperfections in the glass or scratches on the surface, but the mirror has a character suitable to the age of the dresser set.

DRESSER SET MIRROR CLOUDY

Old dresser set mirrors are often cloudy or scratched. Instead of replacing the mirror, I recommend taking out the mirror and having the mirror re-silvered. New mirrors are very expensive and look inappropriately new and too perfect.


re-silvered mirror in polished sterling silver fitter
old damaged mirror in sterling silver fitter

Sterling Silver mirror fitter with resilvered glass

The example above shows a mirror before and after it has been re-silvered. The mirror must be removed from the sterling silver fitter before it can be re-silvered.

I do not resilver mirrors myself, but take them to a local glass company that does re-silvering of mirrors. This is another specialized task in the restoration of dresser sets.

Removing and resetting a mirror takes great effort and expertise.


re-silvered glass mirror in sterling silver fitter

Originally, all of these sterling silver hand mirrors had beveled glass MIRRORS.

If possible, it is best to reuse the old mirror.  Old mirrors always look much better (in my opinion). The old mirror can be removed from the sterling silver fitter and resilvered with all the ghosts, imperfections, and character of time. This is my recommendation.

If the glass is broken, a new mirror is the only option. A new plain glass mirror costs significantly less than a new beveled glass mirror, but it looks incorrect.  A new beveled glass mirror is all handwork. There is no such thing as ready-made replacement parts.  

There are three types of bezels holding the mirrors in the frame. The mirror has to fit exactly right. I mean exactly, exactly, exactly.  If the mirror is broken then save the pieces. It can be used as a pattern for the new mirror.

The mirror bezels are very thin and fit right under the front edge of the sterling silver frame. Taking it in and out is super tricky. Do not do this yourself. If the bezel is kinked, it doesn't fit correctly.

Contact me any time about your sterling silver mirrors, brushes, or combs.

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