A popular trend amomg DIY-ers is to create a ‘media wall’, by sinking their televisions into the wall and placing features around it, such as a fire or shelving.
And now a savvy mother-of-three has created her own version of the feature wall, opting to use a mirror as the focal point, rather than a television.
Annette Beddoes, 64 from Stafford, did just that, telling money-saving community LatestDeals.co.uk that while she has seen people putting their fire and TV together in their lounges, that was not an option for her.
According to the former kitchen and bathroom assistant, her TV was already up on the shorter wall.
She explained: ‘Creating a media wall here was not an option as there would not be room for the fire.
BEFORE & AFTER: Annette save a huge amount of money making a feature wall, using a mirror as the focal point instead of a television
Annette Beddoes (pictured), 64 from Stafford put her impressive creative skills to good use while making over the room
‘I had bought a wall mounted fire for the main wall from Debenhams a few months prior for £250. This was a good price as I have seen similar products in stores like B&Q for over £300.’
Annette, whose children are aged 41, 39 and 35, added: ‘I had never felt happy with the placement of the fire – it just never looked right on the wall. So I decided to box it in as if I was creating a media wall.
‘However, instead of the TV, I decided I would place a mirror there instead.’
She already had the mirror, which was as big as her TV. As it was metal framed, she knew it would sink into the wall really well.
According to Annette: ‘It was now time to purchase supplies. I bought the timber and plasterboard from Wickes. It was £37.50 for the framing timber and £20.40 for two pieces of plasterboard.
‘Next up was two pieces of timber for the sides, priced at £26. I also got two tubes of liquid nails for £8.
‘After that I went to B&Q for a roll of wallpaper which cost £22. Last up was wallpaper paste, which cost £1 from Home Bargains.
‘In total the supplies and the wall mounted fire cost a total of £364.90. The average cost for a media wall is at least £2300 so I have saved just under £2000 by going DIY.’
Annette noticed that people were pairing their televisions and fireplaces on the feature wall, but she set her mirror with the fire instead
Her technical skills from being a kitchen and bathroom designer came in handy for this project.
Annette explained: ‘First, I drew out the design on paper and took all the measurements from the fire and mirror to see how far out I wanted to go. Fortunately, the wall was big enough to take it.
‘I had done my research with the timber and plasterboard to ensure I got the right sizes beforehand, as I wanted to reduce the amount of cutting I would need to do and have minimal waste left over.
‘During this project, there were a few challenges to overcome. For example, you have to create an identical front frame and back frame, then add bits of timber in between.
Annette used timber to create the wall frame, noting that her measurements had to be exact, to ensure everything fit together perfectly
AFTER: Annette said she has ‘had lots of lovely comments’ on the room makeover, adding that she is ‘really pleased’ with it
‘You then need to check all of the joints are square and level. This took some time to get right.’
After that, she cut the plasterboard to fit and prep it for the concrete-textured wallpaper she found in B&Q. Then Annette finished the sides off with some timber that she painted in a contrasting colour, using paint she already had.
Annette revealed: ‘Overall I am really pleased with this project and we’ve had lots of lovely comments on it.’
Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, said: ‘Annette has created a truly professional-looking “media wall” using a mirror instead of a television. It’s good advice to measure up on timber before purchasing to reduce cutting and wastage.
‘It’s hard to believe how much money she has saved compared with what the professional cost would have been!’
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