Disco Duck… AKA Fun with Mirror Squares

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I saw something silly on TikTok and had to try it myself… find a random object and cover it with disco ball mirrored squares. My random object? A duck decoy.

A shiny pink disco mosaic duck figurine sits on a glass shelf. Surrounding it are colorful globes and a tin with illustrated children. The background features a wall with a leafy design, adding a playful and vibrant atmosphere.

Story Time:

Whenever I go to a flea market or a thrift store, I’m always looking for that one super weird and quirky thing that might be a centerpiece of a space. Maybe it’s a carnival figure in the corner, a Plinko game on the wall or a giant light up sign hanging from the ceiling. This search for oddities is truly one of my design priorities so when I saw a TikTok about two guys who covered a found virgin Mary statue with mirrored disco squares, I knew I had to find something random to disco-fy.

Step 1. Find the Object

I looked at my local antique market, Facebook Marketplace and Goodwill before taking to the internet for something to transform. At some point in my search, I decided a duck decoy might be an inexpensive, readily available and shapely object to work on and thankfully eBay did not disappoint.

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A wooden mallard hen duck decoy is displayed on a wooden surface. The decoy has detailed painting to resemble a duck, with a realistic color scheme. A "SOLD" banner is across the image. The listing shows a $5 price with shipping details.

Step 2. Prep the Object

If at all possible, clean your object as much as you can before doing any work… I used Krud Kutter and a paper towel to wipe my duck clean. My only tip here is to use a cleaner that won’t leave behind any residue and to use a cloth or towel that won’t leave behind any fibers.

Person cleaning a stone with a cloth on a wooden stand, surrounded by a tarp. A bottle of cleaner is nearby.

Step 3. Base Coat

I was planning on using THESE super fun pink mirror squares so for my duck, the base coat was pink. I used a spray paint from my stash so the color won’t be perfect, but it was pretty close. The only thing I would suggest is choosing a spray paint that isn’t too shiny so that the sticky mirror tiles will adhere!

Person kneeling on the floor, spray painting a duck decoy pink. The decoy rests on wooden blocks atop a green sheet. A bottle of cleaning solution is nearby. The person wears a light green jacket inside a garage or workshop.

Step 4. Apply the Mirror Disco Squares

I was a little worried this step of the project would take an eternity. I was SUPER pleasantly surprised that it didn’t take that long at all! Two things occurred that made this step not awful: thankfully the sticky squares actually stuck to the duck. I was worried the adhesive wouldn’t stay in place and I’d have to use my glue gun which would have added a whole other step.

A pink duck-shaped sculpture with a strip of shiny pink mosaic tiles around its body sits on a table. In the background, a room decorated with abstract colorful wall panels, a lamp, and various art supplies is visible.

The second thing I did that helped my cause was to apply the mirror squares in a whole row. In other words, when I removed them from the backing paper, I removed them as an entire row versus one at a time. This made it easier to cover more territory AND to line them up neatly so there was minimal gaps between my disco squares.

A decorative duck sculpture covered in pink sequins sits on a table. Behind it, a chair with a pink fabric backrest and a white cabinet with turquoise knobs are visible. The table is scattered with papers and pink sequin sheets.

And… that’s it! I watched a few episodes of Succession. I hid downstairs in my office. It was a nice little brain break and now I have this bedazzled disco duck! She lives in my dining room because ya know… fancy. And I love her. There are a couple tiles that have come loose along the bottom edge where they weren’t touching the duck enough but those can be easily re-secured with hot glue. And because I gave her a base coat of pink spray paint, you can’t really tell where there are any gaps between the mirrors so she really does look like a disco ball!