How to choose a wall mirror for a hallway
A hallway mirror is the one most people use every day and think about least. It is where you check your collar on the way out and where guests get their first look at the house. Choosing one is mostly a question of size, shape and height, and none of those is difficult once you have a tape measure in your hand.
Start with the wall, not the mirror
Measure the width of the wall where the mirror will hang, and note what sits beneath it: a console table, a radiator, a row of hooks. As a rule of thumb, a mirror above a piece of furniture looks settled when it is between two-thirds and the full width of that piece. Above a bare wall, aim for the mirror to fill roughly a third to a half of the wall width. In a narrow hallway the mirror will be seen from close range, so anything under about 50 cm across tends to look like an afterthought. Our square mango wood mirror at 92 cm is a good size above a console; the oval mirror at 154 x 92 cm is a statement piece for a longer wall.
Round, square or oval
Shape changes how the hallway reads. A round or oval mirror softens a corridor full of straight lines: door frames, skirting, floorboards. It also works well hung lengthways above a low console, where a tall rectangle would look cramped. A square or rectangular mirror suits a hallway with a more formal or symmetrical layout, and a carved or textured frame gives the eye something to rest on if the walls are plain. If you are unsure, hold a sheet of paper cut to size against the wall and look at it from the front door.
How high to hang it
The centre of the mirror should sit at about eye level for the people who use it most, which for most households is between 150 and 160 cm from the floor. If the mirror hangs above a console, leave a gap of 15 to 25 cm between the top of the table and the bottom of the frame so the two read as a pair rather than one block. Check that the mirror does not catch a window or a bright light directly opposite; a glare in the glass is tiring to look at every day.
Light and reflection
A mirror only brightens a hallway if there is light to bounce. Place it where it can catch daylight from a door pane or a window, or opposite a lamp. A pale frame, such as the whitewashed mango wood used on several of our wall mirrors, keeps the whole arrangement light against a white or neutral wall. Dark frames read as a stronger outline and suit a hallway with darker paint or a patterned floor.
Fixing a heavy frame
Solid wood mirrors are heavy, and a hallway wall is often plasterboard. Weigh the mirror (the product page usually gives it) and use fixings rated for at least twice that weight. For plasterboard, use hollow-wall anchors or, better, find a stud. Two fixings side by side keep the mirror level and stop it swinging when the front door slams. Wall fixings are not included with our mirrors, because the right ones depend entirely on your wall.
A note on dressing-table mirrors
If the hallway doubles as the place where you do your hair, a lit mirror may suit better than a plain one. Hollywood-style LED vanity mirrors give even, shadow-free light with three colour tones; they are designed for a table top or wall mount near a socket rather than a bare corridor wall, so plan the cable route first.
The short version
- Measure the wall and the furniture beneath it before you shop.
- Choose round or oval for a hallway full of straight lines; square or rectangular for a formal layout.
- Hang with the centre at eye level, about 150 to 160 cm from the floor.
- Place it where it can catch light.
- Use fixings rated for twice the weight of the mirror.
When you are ready to choose, every mirror in our mirrors collection lists its dimensions, frame material and mounting type on the product page.