meg, keep in mind you want to be able to comfortably see in the mirror too. I know in my master bathroom, the oblong mirror hangs horizontally and I am not very tall, so to see my full view (or most of it) I go into the guest bath which has oblong mirrors hung vertically. But DH is tall and he needed to see in the mirror too so we had to make a compromise on the height. We also have lights above the mirror so it had to fit between counter top and lights. The master bathroom mirror is 7 inches above the backsplash top and mirror is 28 tall by 34 wide - which includes the brushed nickel frame. The guest bathroom mirrors are 2 inches above the backsplash top and mirror is 35 tall by 25 wide which includes the woven rattan frame. We also have higher vanities so the mirror is higher than it would have been without the higher vanities. Master vanity counter top is 34 inches from the floor, guest vanity counter top is 33.25 from floor - wanted to fit them in below previously installed outlets allowing for a 4 inch backsplsh. My ceilings are 8 feet so my photos wouldn't give you an idea about the higher part of the wall. I deleted my photos out of my computer - can post later this evening if you need them.

Thanks for your response springvillegardens. Seeing in the mirror probably won't be a problem because the mirror will be hanging vertically. The only people who might have a problem are little children as I'm pretty sure the bottom edge of the frame will be a little less than four feet high, and the top edge of the frame will be about seven or eight feet high.

I talked again to the frame store and they thought I shouldn't have the upper edge even with the window trim. And she also thought it shouldn't be much higher than the sconces. I'm tempted to get the mirror long enough that the sconces are centered vertically. Maybe I'll try to do a mock up.

meg, post on the bathroom forum too - there are many more folks there with lots of bathroom decorating and design expertise than I have. Someone might have had the same dilemna as you.

Will you have lights above the mirror?

You're having a mirror made?

I wonder if it might be much more expensive than finding one online. There are thousands available.

A mock-up might is an excellent idea -- just cut different shapes from brown wrapping paper and tape them to the wall.

I have 9 foot ceilings in my guest bath. The mirror is 36" tall, and starts just above the chair rail at around 41" from the floor.

I have never felt that there's too much room above the mirror, I do have a tall wall cabinet to the left of it that almost goes to the ceiling.

{{!gwi}}

Thanks for the comments everyone, and especially for the photo and dimensions daisyadair. Our sconces are on the side walls, not above the mirror, so there's no natural ending point. But I can see that the blank space looks fine.

mclarke: I originally thought that I would buy a mirror online too, but after going back and forth to the frame store sampling about 15 different types/colors of frames, I can see that finding the right frame that balances everything will be very hard.

I finally found an embossed wood frame that works with both the chocolatey gold crackle sconces, the dark brown of the emperador marble vanity top, and the brushed nickel of the faucet. (It's clear that I made some decorating mistakes with my earlier choices that I now have to deal with.)

The other issue is the size. I can't go wider than 32", but need it about 45" long. It's not a very common size although I plan to check out Costco Home's mirror selection today. Regular bathroom mirrors are not long enough and sofa mirrors are too wide, but we'll see.

I will post on the bathroom forum although I thought that they're still in the design stage. And I will post photos but I haven't had a chance to get the most recent ones--the ones that show the molding--onto my computer.

Here is what I have right now. The wall extends another 38" above the top of the sconce:

Thanks again for all your help. You are the greatest!

Hope this is not too late. I'm dealing with the same problems. This is what I've been told.

* Mock up the size you are thinking about with blue painters tape. I highly recommend this. Works great.
* Width of mirror should be no larger than the width of your vanity. (interior designer advice)
* Top of mirror should be at the same height as the top of your window (or other tall piece of furniture that is near by) so that your eye continues along the same line. (interior designer advice)
* I read somewhere that the bottom of the mirror should be 7-9" above the vanity base. I thought 7" looked better, but I have a flat pedestal sink with no backsplash.

My frame is 33x57. Price quotes I have gotten have ranged from $550-$1000 based on the frame chosen. Shop around as they all have the same access to frame suppliers. I found the small frame shops more competitive than Aaron Bros.

Consider bevel on the mirror of 3/4" to 1". Talk to them about how much bevel you want to show and let them figure out the right final measurement as some of the bevel is hidden in the frame track.

More expensive but one option is to combine two different frames together to make a thicker frame. I did this but used a very small bead frame inside (1/4" or so). It added $100 but my outside frame was on the inexpensive side and needed to be jazzed up.

Be careful in how wide your frame is because the mirror inside will get smaller.

Be sure they write down the outside dimensions of the frame you want. That way they are responsible for the final dimensions and figuring out the internal dimensions of the mirror.

Thanks for the info gaw1,

I have already ordered my mirror but I think it always helps to have more info on the board for others who might be dealing with the same issues.

I did use the blue painter's tape for our mock up and it helped a lot.

--the width of our mirror is roughly the area between our sconces. I could have gone a couple inches wider, but any wider would have had the mirror behind the sconces which, apparently, is a designer no-no.

--the bottom of our mirror is roughly even with the heighest curve of our faucet, maybe an inch or two higher.

--the top edge of our mirror is high enough that the length of each sconce is centered in the length of the mirror, with the lights of the sconces being higher than the middle.

Our frame is going to be much shorter than yours--by about a foot. Our designer (and the frame shop) both said not to match the window trim height, or the door trim, because it would be too high and narrow in our small room, but it's all a matter of personal preference.

--we went with a wider bevel, 1 1/4 inches as our designer recommended, although I think a 1" bevel would have been fine. I do worry about that but it's too late now. (I found out after the fact that using a wider bevel meant using a thicker mirror, which upped the price some more.)

We did use two different frames, one with more detail and coloration and the inside which is essentially a very narrow silverish beaded piece.

The only issue that I wasn't thrilled with was that they didn't know how well they could match the curvy patterns at the mitered corners. I gave them flexible dimensions so that they could play with it. I saw the frame in the shop a couple days ago and it looks beautiful. The design doesn't match perfectly but it's still great.

I don't know about you but I was shocked at the price. I must have been living under a rock.

Thanks for all your dimensions. I ended up going with a height even to the windows and doors. I think you are right that it is personal preference...that is what the blue tape is for.

I appreciate the info on the sconces. That is next. I found the ones I want, but have a feeling it is going to be a bear. Since I wasn't ready with mirror or pictures when they needed to run the electrical and do the drywall, I guessed at a height. Boy I wish I knew about this forum back then. Anyway, I think my hole (like 4" round hole) is way to high. I have a feeling I'm going to be doing some drywall work...DH is not going to be happy.

thanks so much for taking the time.