Home decorating ideas for fireplaces and mantels are dictated by design, and fall into one category, ether they are traditional, or contemporary. When your decorating style is contemporary, however the fireplace is classified as traditional, then it will need to be Incorporated into the same design scheme. Generally speaking most people shy away from renovating a fireplace, believing that the value lies in the fact that one exist, rather than what the facade looks like. In my design travels I have transformed dated, plain, or plain awl full, surrounds, and I have found that any fireplace enhancement does add value to the home.
The top three fireplace re-designs I would like to share with the anticipation that you will identify with one or all three. Fireplace number one is a 1960’s black, and terracotta faux stone, black mortar, raised hearth, with a rough cut wooden beam as the mantel. The new decor for the room make over was a soft modern design, however the early American frontier motif on the fireplace was definitely not working. The raised hearth extended into living area by two feet limiting valuable floor space, and interrupting the natural traffic pattern of the room.
This particular re-design required demolition of the stone, rough cut wooden mantel, and raised hearth were removed. The wall was repaired, and prepped for a 20″x20″ blue pearl granite tiling set on a 45 degree angle pattern, with stainless 2″x2″ detail tiles. A floating fire box was created by the removal of the hearth for a fresh contemporary approach, and allowing two feet of additional floor space. The clunky old fireplace went from a no show to a new show stopper, and now has became a cohesive focal point to the soft modern design.
Fireplace number two, was a two story red brick, with a low rising hearth contemporary that was converting to a traditional style for the new transitional room setting. I designed a separate surround, with mantel unit that was custom made to fit over the existing fireplace wall, and leaving the brick hearth exposed. The design was a simple eyebrow arch, traditional cove molding, clean line details, and painted in elephant tusk white. Most building codes will vary across the country, so please be aware that an eight to twelve inches of a non flammable material such as brick, stone, or tile fixed around the fire box is a code requirement.
The same look can be achieved if only a mantel application is used instead of a full surround by constructing a wood box, and attaching several stacked moldings for a decorative accent. The mantel should be wider than the fascia, wrapping it around on each side returning to the wall. This may require metal supports or bolts to be drilled into the hard surface areas. The right accessories are key to every mantel presentation, and by the way I never use mirrors, because they only reflect unwanted images like the ceiling fan. A large art glass plate on an easel, tall architectural candle holders, glassless framed art work will eliminate any unattractive reflections, or eleven Chrystal candlesticks to list a few suggestions.
Fireplace number three, a 70’s dated dark brown, taupe, and black brick clear to the height of an eight foot ceiling with a stand away, or sometimes referred as a bump out profile, and accented by an oak crown mantel. The fireplace was flanked on ether side by a set of built in dark oak book cases, without proper lighting it made the entire area appear dark, dungeon, and forbidding.
The first task started by dry walling the top half from the mantel to the ceiling by attaching firing strips directly onto the brick allowing for the installation of the dry wall. A great technique for drawing the focus to the fireplace, and not the wall, with the addition of crown molding at the ceiling and an updated paint color on the wall.
The dated brick was the next challenge, if one could imagine how brick looks after being burned in a fire. One of my many talents is faux finishing, and I began to paint the darkest brick to imitate the lighter coloration. A painted fireplace from a resale perspective will devalue a home, considering this factor only a percentage of the brick is painted revealing a total updated lighter brick surround, and therefore tricking the eye.
Painting the oak mantel white separates, and defines it from the book cases. the dark book cases are highlighted by the addition of recess can lighting, and the old wooden shelves are replaced with glass shelving allowing the light to filter through the entire fixture. Three very different designs with unique transformation make overs, simple or as complex as you desire, so go ahead do it yourself, and turn up the heat.