Many homeowners use mirrors for decor and to look into to see if they are presentable before they leave the home. However, there are a few other ways to use mirrors that you may have never thought of before. Here are a few ideas.

Direct light into dark areas

In Norway, a small town in a deep valley uses three mirrors on top of the hills to direct sunlight to a 6,500 square foot patch of land into the town square. The mirrors have allowed the 1,000 residents to enjoy sunlight in what would otherwise be a dismal place.

While you probably don't have that large of a space to illuminate by directing sunlight into your home with mirrors, the same effect works for dark areas such as hallways and interior rooms. You can direct the reflection of the sunlight into the darker areas of your home by installing your mirror on hinges. That way, you can move the position of the mirror according to the angle of the sun at any given time, on any day of the year.

Since the weight of the mirror and frame will be entirely on the hinges, the hinges will need to be installed into the wallboard with anchor screws. Of course, the weight of the mirror and frame should be as minimal as possible.

Look around corners to watch children

Unless your kitchen is open to your living room, you may find yourself panicking when you hear your children carry on elsewhere in the house or, worse, when you don't hear a peep from them at all. The answer isn't to regulate the children to the kitchen while you prepare dinner, because that just opens a whole other bunch of problems.

Instead, the children can stay in the living room and you can keep your watchful eyes on them by occasionally glancing into a strategically placed mirror. A mirror can help you look around a corner without leaving the kitchen. Teach your children that they can use the mirror to see you in the kitchen from the living room. This could be extremely helpful if you have a child with separation anxiety issues.

Play around with the mirror placement until you find the perfect spot for it. If necessary, you can use shims behind the mirror to direct the reflection of the living room to where you can easily see it in the kitchen. Shims can be glued to the backs of your mirrors.

However, if the mirror glass is flexible, then this could distort the images the mirror gives. To correct or prevent a distorted image, the mirror frame will need to be straight and sturdy to prevent the warping that causes the distortion of images. Most high-quality mirrors are sturdy enough to prevent distortion even with shims placed behind one side.

Create a faux pond in your flower garden

Place a mirror horizontally on the ground of your flower garden and it will give the optical illusion of a pond. This faux pond can also detract critters from your flower garden and to add beauty to your yard. Line the perimeter of the mirror with small rocks and pebbles to give it a more realistic look. In the evenings, you can set a candle in the center of your faux pond to illuminate the area.

If you do this, you'll want to surround the faux pond with enough flowers and greenery to keep your pets away from the mirror. However, if you have problems with your pets and other animals venturing onto the faux pond, you can surround it with a thinly-gauged chicken wire that can't be easily seen.

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