Mirror too close to the wall for a sconce

corky1_2008 Harris

14 years ago

Help! The placement of the rectangular mirror with pivot mounts in my powder room is too close to the abutting wall. I had originally planned sconces on each side of the mirror but that will not work. My designer suggested one sconce on the wall abutting the wall next to the mirror. I am not sure that is the correct answer. I was thinking of putting a bar across the top of the mirror but read that this would cast wierd shadows on your face. My only other choice is too place a light on the same wall as the mirror but that would end up right in the middle of the wall between the sink and the toilet. I think that would also look strange. HELP AGAIN!

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iceqween13

14 years ago

Why not put the sconces on the mirror? That's what I'm doing. Mirror to the ceiling and to the walls on each side - sconces on the mirror? Will give more light too.

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Comments (9)

pirula
14 years ago
You can also hang two pendants from the ceiling, on either side of the mirror, where the sconces would be, in a perfect world.
Stacey Collins
14 years ago
Oh, that is a bummer. I just got finished planning out a similar situation and had to make a compromise by using a narrower mirror than I had wanted, and very skinny sconces.

FYI I did find some sconces less than 4" wide.

Can you get a different mirror?

If you consider sconces, as Pirula suggests (which we did consider) just make sure they are located more than 3' horizontally and 8' vertically from a tub edge or shower door. Otherwise it is not technically up to code, and your inspector might flag it.
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Hi @goredr, I meant start a new thread where your post was the opening statement. But, I like your picture. It helps very much to describe what you are asking. If you still care to begin your own thread, you just enter it at the top and add the picture along with it. You give the tread a title. Your Title could be something like "advice needed for mirror placement in makeup/vanity area". Or something shorter. I think you will get more feedback with your own post because it will be new. This thread is old and may be ignored. I think a lovely mirror of your choosing would look special and personal to you, between the sconces. It could be a long oval, a rectangle, with or without frame. I think a bevel would be a nice touch, especially with a frameless mirror. Since that is a makeup area, what other lighting will you have? I feel that the lighting you have now, may not be bright enough.
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The important distance to consider is the distance between the center of the vanity to the center of one sink. That distance never changes regardless of the size of the mirror. The wider the mirror, the less distance you have between the sconce and the mirror. If my calculation is right based on the measurements you gave, that distance is 21" (please confirm it as I don't explicitly see it on the measurements you gave us). The distance between the edge of the sconce and the edge of the 24" mirror is 6.25". This number came from that calculation: 21" -2.75" (half the width of the sconce) - 12 (half the width of a 24" wide mirror) = 6.25". Now if you use a 36" mirror, the distance between the edge of the sconce to the edge of the mirror would be .25" ( 21" - 2.75 - 18"). You don't want a quarter in. wall between the sconce and the mirror. If you were to find a 28" wide mirror, that distance would be 4.25" ( 21" - 2.75 - 14"). I think the width of the sconce is more in proportion with a 24" mirror. I also think a 24" mirror looks nicer with a 27.5 wide cabinet below it.
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Stacey Collins
14 years ago
I think the OP has one of those cool pivoting mirrors, a whole different look. We did originally plan to put the lights on the mirrir... but when i found out that the custom mirror with holes cut was >$250 versus the $40 Ikea mirror.... well I decided that a slightly narrower mirror with sconces on the side was just fine!
rhododummy
14 years ago
We had the same problem - had to replace the sconces with a top vanity fixture. The electrician told us that actually this would work better than pendants as far as quality of light goes. Pendants are good for highlighting certain areas (like in a kitchen), but can be unforgiving for activities such as putting on make-up, etc. Our top fixture looks/works fine!
andreadeg
14 years ago
We have the same situation as you. We have a 67 inch vanity that is fairly close to the doorway so we didn't really have space for a sconce on the side of the mirror. We consulted a bathroom lighting designer and he suggested placing the sconces (lugarno from Restoration Hardware), on top of the mirror and then place three cans in the ceiling across the vanity, thus light would come from different directions and help create more flattering light. We opted to not go with the cans, and, are just going with the sconces on the miror. We will also have a light fixture over the tub, and a can over the shower drain. For ambienece lighting we will have lighting in our linen cabinet and lighting underneath the freestanding vanity. Good luck!
sue_b
14 years ago
I am really happy with the three-light fixtures (AKA vanity strip) I have replaced in the two minor bath remodels we are doing. The light is fine for makeup application and you don't get weird shadows. Picking these out was the most fun for me, using a local lighting store. To me it is like jewelry and a lot less stressful than choosing tile, counter top, vanity, etc. My room is 5 feet x 7 feet and my inspiration bathroom did not have sconces so I never had my heart set on them.

another inspiration (I should have kept this GardenWeb person's name!)

{{gwi:1478886}}
sue_b
14 years ago
What did you decide to do Corky?
harcar
13 years ago
Andreadeg - could you post some picts of your bathroom with the Lugarno sconces on the mirror? I am running into the same issues with my master bath reno, and I'm considering the Lugarno triple sconces.

Thank yoU!

Mirror too close to the wall for a sconce

iceqween13

Comments (9)

pirula

Stacey Collins

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