This way, the monitor holds the frame instead of the other way around. Since the most weight comes from the monitor display, I decided to use a VESA mount.

The whole assembly was about 22lbs and I didn’t feel comfortable using the picture hanging kit to hold the entire weight.

Use VESA mounts to hang the monitor + frame on the wall.

For cable management, use glue or zip-ties.

Attach the power supply to Raspberry Pi and the monitor.

Refer to the Raspberry Pi setup instructions in the next section.

Connect the Pi to the monitor via HDMI cable.

Test it out with the lights off and shining some light from behind

Use black cardboard to reduce the light bleeding from the back of the mirror.

This helps reduce the weight and also keeps the whole assembly as slim as possible.

Apply a coat of primer (I find using a spray easier and quicker).

You might have to sand the inner frame down a little if you can’t get the mirror or the monitor to fit inside the frame.

Raspberry Pi 3B+ or Raspberry Pi 4b with MicroSD card, Power Supply.

Vesa Mount ( Option 1, Option 2 based on the total weight of your assembly).

Make sure its dimensions don’t exceed 18″ x 24″ and it has support for a VESA mount But you can use any 27″ monitor to maximize the available screen space on the mirror.

I sacrificed one of the monitors I had (Dell U2717D 27″ Monitor).

Black Cardboard from a local Dollar Store.Two-Way Glass Mirror from Amazon (MirroView 18″ x 24″).Shadow Box from Michaels (Black 18″ x 24″).But the end result is something to marvel at and brings a smile every time someone looks at it. Needless to say, this is a huge upgrade both in terms of size and cost. My first version back in 2016 was a cheap version of this with a 2-way acrylic film on a 7″ android tablet. I finally built something I dreamt of 6 years ago.

Raspberry pi magic mirror modules