Mirror wardrobe doors are cut by scoring the glass in one continuous pass with a glass cutting wheel against a straight edge, then snapping the score cleanly and sealing the freshly cut edge. It can be done at home on a thin unframed mirror, but for anything larger than a small panel the sensible answer is to have it cut to size by a glazier. Mirror glass is unforgiving, and a panel the height of a wardrobe door carries real risk.
Before going any further, one important distinction: if your door is toughened or safety backed glass, it cannot be cut at all. Attempting it will shatter the whole panel into fragments. Toughened glass has to be manufactured to its final size.
Look along the bottom edge and in the corners for an etched safety mark. Toughened panels usually carry one. If a mark is present, stop and order a replacement in the size you need.
Also check whether the mirror is bonded to a backing board or set into a frame. Many wardrobe doors are a mirror glued to an MDF panel, in which case you are really cutting two materials, and separating them without cracking the glass is rarely worth attempting.
A plain float glass mirror, unframed and unbonded, is the only realistic candidate for cutting yourself. Most are 4mm or 6mm thick.
Lay the mirror face up on a large flat surface covered with a blanket or thick cardboard. Any grit trapped underneath creates a pressure point and the panel will crack the moment you lean on it. Work in a clear space with good light.
Wear cut resistant gloves, safety glasses and closed shoes. Have a dustpan and a stiff brush ready before you start rather than after something goes wrong.
Clean the glass thoroughly with methylated spirit or glass cleaner. The cutting wheel needs to run on bare glass, and even a light film of dust will make the score skip.
Measure twice and mark the cut line with a chinagraph pencil or a strip of low tack masking tape. Tape has a second advantage: it gives the wheel a slightly quieter run and helps hold small chips in place.
Clamp a straight edge along the line, allowing for the offset between the edge of the cutter head and the wheel itself. Test that offset on a scrap piece first if you can.
Apply a drop of cutting oil or light machine oil to the wheel. Then, starting at the far edge and pulling towards yourself, run the cutter along the straight edge in one single continuous stroke with firm even pressure. You want a fine hissing sound, not a loud scratch.
The single most important rule: never go back over the score. A second pass ruins the fracture line and the snap will wander.
Move the mirror so the score line sits directly over the edge of the workbench, or place a thin dowel underneath along the score. Support both sides with your palms and apply steady downward pressure to the overhang. The glass should part along the score with a clean crack.
For narrow offcuts, running pliers give much better control than hands. Grip so the centre mark on the pliers sits over the score and squeeze gently.
A raw cut edge is sharp and the silvering at that edge is now exposed. Take the sharpness off with a fine diamond pad or a silicon carbide stone used wet, working at a slight angle along both faces.
Then seal the edge. Mirror backing degrades where moisture reaches it, which is what causes the dark speckling you see creeping in from the edges of old mirrors. A thin bead of clear mirror edge sealant, or setting the edge into a frame or U channel, prevents that.
If the door will slide, the edge must also run true. Any waver in the cut will catch in the track.
Once cut, the panel needs mounting in a way that does not clamp it rigidly. Glass expands and contracts, and a mirror pinched hard into a frame will crack in time. Use the setting blocks or gaskets supplied with the door track or frame.
Check the fit dry before final fixing. Sliding panels need a small clearance at the top and bottom of the track, typically a couple of millimetres, so the door lifts in and out without forcing.
Honestly, for most wardrobe doors it does. A full height mirror panel is heavy, awkward to handle alone, and expensive to write off with one bad score. Having a glazier cut it to your measurements costs less than replacing a broken panel, and toughened glass is safer in a bedroom in any case.
If the doors are damaged rather than the wrong size, a new set of doors or a new unit often works out better value than glazing work. Our modern sliding wardrobes UK sale range includes mirrored fronts made to standard sizes with the tracks and fittings already matched.
Where you simply want more mirror in the room rather than a mirrored wardrobe door, a separate piece is a far easier route. Our modern bedroom mirrors UK sale selection covers wall mounted and freestanding designs, and the cheval mirrors UK sale options give a full length reflection without touching the wardrobe at all.
You can browse the wider bedroom range at Furniture in Fashion if you decide replacing the unit makes more sense than reworking it. There are also modern mirrored bedroom furniture UK pieces if you want the reflective finish carried across drawers and bedsides too.
Do not put mirror glass in the household recycling. Mirror has a metallic backing and is not accepted with bottle glass. Wrap offcuts in thick cardboard, tape them securely, and take them to a household waste site. Sweep the work area with a stiff brush and then go over it with a damp cloth, because fine glass dust is easy to miss.
No. Toughened glass shatters if cut, drilled or notched after manufacture. It must be made to the finished size, so a replacement panel is the only option.
A glass cutting wheel with cutting oil, a clamped straight edge, running pliers for narrow strips, a fine diamond or carborundum pad for the edge, plus gloves and safety glasses. A blanket or cardboard under the panel is essential.
Usually because the score was gone over twice, the pressure was uneven, or grit under the glass created a stress point. A single continuous pass on a clean supported surface is what produces a straight break.
Yes. The silvering at a cut edge is exposed, and moisture will creep in and cause dark spotting over time. Seal it or set it into a channel or frame.
Cutting is cheaper on materials but carries the risk of losing the panel entirely. For full height wardrobe doors, a glazier cut panel or a new door set is usually the better value decision.
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