The Look for Less: Leather-strapped mirrors <br> for the cash-strapped

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Hanging from a leather strap, the most desirable -- and imitated -- mirror of the moment has a sleek, masculine appearance that suggests equestrian hardware, camping canteens and pocket watches. The design also references the work of Jacques Adnet, who created accessories for the Parisian design house Hermes in the mid-20th century, as well as his own desirable and collectible furniture line.One of the looking glasses shown above is the Captain’s Mirror made in the United States and designed in 2001 by Tyler Hays, owner of the Manhattan design firm BDDW. Sold directly to decorators but now available through Lawson Fenning in Los Angeles, it set the gold standard with bronze details, topstitched leather and a $1,600 price tag for a 20-inch-diameter mirror. Others, which range in size from 16 inches to 18 inches, sell for $295 to $500.

Which is which? Answers after the jump.

This one, which was on the far right, is the Captain’s Mirror by BDDW.
Hays was inspired by seeing a mirror that was hung on an exposed nail, and he set out to reinterpret the look with luxury materials. Luxury indeed. In addition to the $1,600 version, there’s a 28-inch version that costs $1,800.

Why so costly?

The defining differences are the high-end materials and the made-in-America craftsmanship. The ultra-thin frame is made from top-quality distressed leather lined with wood. Instead of trying to hide seams in the leather on the exterior of the frame, the design makes it look distinctive with hand-finished crisscross topstitching.

Also tellingly, its hanging strap is attached to the circular frame with bronze fittings that complement the sculpted bronze hanger (a peg so chunky that BDDW refers to it as a puck).

See these distinctive details in the close-ups below:

Here at right, you can see a version created by Los Angeles lighting and accessories designer Jamie Young. At first glance, it looks like a dead ringer for the BDDW model, but it uses belt buckles to secure the straps to the mirrors and hangs from a significantly smaller metal peg than the BDDW Captain’s mirror.

The mirror is available in 16-inch- and 26-inch-diameter sizes that sell for $325 and $565 at the Lawson Fenning showroom in Silver Lake. That’s about a third of the cost of the BDDW mirror, but only your interior designer will know for sure. In addition to leather, it is also comes in cowhide, as shown here.

The 16-inch version of this Jamie Young mirror in brown leather only, can also be purchased online at Serena and Lily for $295.

Those who like the look of a hanging mirror but would like to have something just a little bit different might consider the Altavista line from Casamidy, a furniture and accessories company based in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.

Framed in hand-hammered nickel, Casamidy’s mirrors hang from a leather bridle tab in black, chocolate and natural saddle, as shown here, and look like a big pocket watch. They are available in sizes from 18 inches in diameter, $500, to 54 inches, $2,500, at Colcha on Abbot Kinney Boulevard in Venice.

-- David A. Keeps

Photo credits: Captain’s Mirror, BDDW; Jamie Young mirror, Jamie Young; Altavista mirror, Casa Midy

CORRECTED: A previous version of this post misspelled Casamidy as Casa Midy and Cada Midy. (It was a rough day.)