By LIN ELLIS
DavidsonNews.net

The origins of the starburst mirror are a bit unclear, but bulls-eye convex mirrors date back to at least the Venetian Republic. Starbursts reached a pinnacle in the 1940’s Hollywood Regency period &, at the turn of this century when high-end auction houses started to get ecstatic bidders for these jewels, mainstream companies took notice & began to reinterpret them. Starburst mirrors have been used extensively in design in the subsequent years.

Most starburst mirrors are a meld of decoration & art ~ they add dimension, glitz, glamor & kinetic energy to a room & do what all mirrors do…bounce the light around a space. Some designers & interior stylists veer away from an item or trend when it becomes too mainstream, but since this style of mirror has been around in some form for centuries, I predict it will be so for many more. They work well in their most popular places ~ over a fireplace, bed or sofa ~ but also can be selected for more unexpected places in a home.

Sunburst On The Scene Mirror at Wisteria ~

Starburst Mirror at Crate & Barrel ~

Starburst mirror at Viva Terra ~

Kimani Starburst mirror at Horchow ~

Locally, in the new shop in Kenton Place in Cornelius, Smart Deco, are 2 starburst mirrors ~

And, probably the cheekiest sunburst mirror was created for Barbie’s 50th birthday by the king of modern kitsch & wit, Joanthan Adler. 65 black & white mailott-clad Barbies from 1959 create the burst in this mirror ~

Lin Ellis is one of the principals of Running in Stilettos, a full-service property care, personal concierge & lifestyle management firm covering the southern Lake Norman area. Lin is passionate about art & design & started a design blog, Style is in the Details, two years ago & also writes all of the blog posts for Running in Stilettos.