I did the picture posting wrong. Sorry about that. Let me try again.

Here is a link that might be useful:

I can't open the pictures.

I know this is going to sound kooky but I saw a place recently where they framed each section in decorative wood and stained it to match the kitchen and furniture. It looked beautiful!

Please take a look at the other pics as well (thanks forhgtv for posting them for me). I can't decide if the mirror is too "smokey" - I think if it were lighter, it would be easier to work with. Of course, when the carpet is traded out for hardwoods, and the furniture is up-to-date, maybe it will be a very different look with the mirror.

I think you might be right. Since it is smoked it does seem a bit dark and it actually reflects the side and back a lot of the furniture which is kind of visually distracting. You could try to see what it would look like without it by hanging a white sheets or paper over it temporarily. If you like the look, you could always paint over the mirror as a temporary fix. You would have to hang any artwork with really heavy duty Velcro or something --don't forget and nail into the glass:)

I never liked those full wall mirrors back when they were in style. I hated walking into a room with them because you are forced to look at your whole self. LOL Then there's the matter of walking into the mirror, literally. LOL I say it needs to go and that's just my personal preference. What I did like were the half wall mirrors that people used on the upper part of a wall that was usually those framed bathroom mirrors side by side or spaced equally across the wall.

So, I hate the dated, "smoky" look. But, more than that, I hate how dark my dining room is (as well as my living room). I'm hoping that trading the dark blue carpeting for wood floors and cream/beige area rugs will help lighten the areas. I have no northern or western windows in my twinhome, so I lose a lot of natural lighting. Maybe I should also consider installing a tubular skylight or two? In a northern climate (with 6 months of winter), I NEED more light. Anyone have any problems with tubular skylights? I am going to take your advice and try white sheets or big sheets of white butcher paper over the mirrors to see how I like it. Any other ideas or suggestions?

That serving piece on the left try putting it on the mirrored wall in the middle.
You said you're replacing the furniture.
Is one of the pieces going to be a large china cabinet? If so, that would
break up the mirror in the middle and completely change the
look, only leaving about 2 to 2 1/2 feet of mirror on
each side of the china cabinet, which could enhance the
room by making it look larger, and also reflecting much needed light.
Replace your floors and furniture first, and then decide if
you like it better with or without the mirror.

I agree with you, I think it would look better without the mirrored wall. I wonder what is under it?

Take it down. It doesn't make the place look bigger, just cluttered, because you see everything twice. You can always hang a framed mirror if you need the light reflection.

I don't think the dining room has sufficient depth to place a china cabinet on the mirrored wall. The sofa table on the left side of the picture might work.

I'm not really concerned about what's behind the wall because I know someone who is good with drywall and re-plastering walls. I've had him do a number of projects for me, and his work is wonderful and reasonably-priced.

I was thinking that I would paint the wall to match the other walls (or slightly lighter/darker), and then I would hang a large framed mirror on the wall. Something like this, from HGTV (assuming I can post this pic correctly).

Here is a link that might be useful: HGTV

I like it, but I would hang art on it (lightweight stuff, suspended from the ceiling), and put a console table or narrow buffet on the wall.

Treat it like normal wall and see if you like it better.

If you do a search on GardenWeb for Solar Tube, you will pull up lots of threads from people who have them. They love them.

If the mirrors were not smoked, I might encourage you to work with them, but I vote to remove them.

I also vote to remove the mirror. Believe me, it is pain to do it but you will be happy you did:)

Don't be too quick to eliminate the smokey mirrors--it may be coming right back into style. Check out the links below and be amazed. Some of these are quite lovely, and may give you a sense of whether you might ever like the way yours look.

Here is a link that might be useful: Habitually Chic (blog)

I agree still lynnski! I mentioned above about a town home I saw where they framed each panel in with stained wood to match other things in the house and it was beautiful. In the link you posted (2nd to last down) Allison Sarofim did painted framing in a slightly different way...I do love that too. However Kee lover, if you just don't like that mirrored wall you should rip that sucker down.

For the record, I "waffle" back & forth about keeping the mirrors - which is why it has taken me so long to address the situation. And the fact that most of my money has gone towards practical updates (new furnace, roof, garage door, tiled shower stall, appliances, etc.)so I haven't been able to focus much on decor.

I like the clear mirror; I hate the smoky mirror. I stopped by a glass company on the way home today to ask if there was some way to rid the mirror of the "smoky" look. Nope. It's mixed into the glass.

It seems that if it's done "right" - the mirrored wall can be beautiful. If not, the look is "messy."

I think with the layout of my dining/living rooms, that the look becomes "messy." So, how about a large mirror that is only on the upper half of the wall, so it doesn't reflect as much mess - table legs, back of sofa (because that will be there regardless of which furniture I purchase).
I'm trying to post images again. Let's see if I did this right.

Ballard Designs had some huge panel antiqued mirrors a couple years ago, I just looked and they don't have them now, but they were beautiful and I wanted a whole wall of them.

If you think you might like to keep the mirror, I like the idea of trying to get the look Ballard was selling, by adding framing (even mullions maybe) to make it look like several tall mirrors, which would give it structure and vertical thrust, and antiquing over the smoked mirror. The ones in Ballard were so heavily antiqued they really didn't function so much as a mirror. To see if you like this, get some brown construction paper (hardware, paint or big box store) and make three big frames, tape them on. You could actually temporarily antique the mirror with some kind of water based paint that would come off easily, in the French dry brush look (paintbrush, dip in paint, blot it off so it's almost dry, then streak the mirror with it, maybe throw on a few flicks...)

I do not think the mirror is making the room look cluttered. When you get your new floor in and the kind of furniture you want, if the room is beautiful the reflection is going to be beautiful.

In this context, it looks like a 1980's mirrored wall and I don't think there will be anything that will change it unless you were to alter the architecture big time.
I think you should take it down. I normally don't advocate accent walls, but I think I would think about an accent wall with a fabulous contemporary chandelier. It doesn't have to be expensive. I would seek out Ikea for design inspiration in this case.