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You can splurge on an intricately veined marble countertop or wallpaper in every inch of your bedroom, but there are some home features that you can’t control unless it’s a new build—like the location of an unsightly electrical box. While hanging a piece of art over it or painting it to match your walls can help disguise the nonnegotiable item, designer Olivia Capuano of Olivia Jane Design has a more functional solution: Treat it like the skin-care collection in your medicine cabinet.
In a small New York City entryway, Capuano upgraded a standard wall mirror from Rejuvenation with a piano hinge (it’s long enough that only one is needed to handle the weight) in order to hide the fuses without rendering them inaccessible. “The box was the first thing you saw entering the apartment,” Capuano explains. For the mirror to appear flush against the wall (utility covers are often raised), Capuano worked with a millworker to place a slightly smaller arched wood panel that frames the electrical box. “The panel is secured at six anchor points, but for rentals I recommend using furniture pad stickers or a thin piece of MDF,” she says.
Due to the lack of sunlight in the entrance, the mirror works overtime, reflecting the glow of the overhead fixture onto the white walls. If windows are plentiful, however, Capuano says that her hack would work just as well with a large piece of artwork. This is the kind of cover-up we like to see.
Recreate the Look
