You want this — it's a flat screen in a mirror

By Allegra Bennett
Examiner Correspondent 8/27/08

Thanks to innovations in flat screen technology homeowners can enjoy their favorite television experience hung up on walls in any room of the house, including the bathroom. But that’s the old news.

The better news is when you’re not watching programming you can make that huge plasma or liquid crystal display TV do a magic trick and disappear right in place. And it is not done with elaborate lifts and cabinetry. It’s all done with mirrors.

A flat screen television embedded in a bathroom mirror — the new must-have trend.

In the bathroom, there’s the growing trend of flat screen in a mirror. You can watch the traffic report, or early morning news while shaving or brushing your teeth.

When activated the LCD screen is visible as a window within the mirror. When turned off, the LCD is hidden from view showing only your reflection.

You would have to look really closely to notice the outline of the LCD screen that is built into the wall behind the mirror, which is functional for most tasks as long as you are not doing really close work like applying makeup.

“It’s a mirropane two-way optics that’s great for bedrooms and baths,” said Elliott Weir, a designer with Gramophone in Towson. The so-called vanishing technology from companies like Seura is usually installed as mirrors over the bathroom vanity.

Out in the living room, flat screens are hanging out over the fireplace where art and antique-framed mirrors typically held forth. But not everyone likes hanging it over the fireplace, “I hate to see a television in a fancy room,” said JoAnn Drehoff, of the Decorating Studio in Baldwin.

There’s a solution. To hide the screen’s true identity, fancy framed mirrors have entered the picture. When the screen is off all that is visible is a mirror. The LCD still can be activated with the remote from the comfort of your chair. This solution is a good compromise when there is disagreement over TV vs. fireplace placement, said Weir.

“I hate to see a television in a fancy room,” said Drehoff who feels it interferes with design. The fancy mirror is “a beautiful complement and you don’t have to design around it,” she said.

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