The Gardener’s Mirror

The first beaded mirror was  designed by myself, Michael Chandler, and made in  way back in 2012.  Inspired by an 18th Century, Neo-Classical Robert Adam design, these beaded pieces are now made in Cape Town by the talented Zimbabwean ‘wire-smith’ George Magaso under my supervision. The mirrors come in different colours, levels of detail and  can be ordered in bespoke sizes.  This is reflected in their pricing. The entry level mirrors are the ‘Madame-Style’ mirrors which are made from acrylic beads from China. The Gardener’s mirrors are made up from a mixture of acrylic beads and very fine, and valuable Czech beads which are made from glass. The Gardener’s mirrors are truly a product from the global village: made from materials from China and Czech,  inspired by a Scottish architect working in England 250 years ago and finally created by a Zimbabwean and South African – so much to be celebrated! While there are other poor-quality knock offs, Magaso and I work together to create works that I firmly believe will be as beautiful in 200 years time as they are today.