I was thinking about fireplace surrounds today. So I decided to browse around a little and see what I could find. Take a look… some of these are pretty awesome!
1.
This one totally wins the award for bringing nature into the design. I love, love, love the use of a naturally smoothed piece of wood for the mantle. I wish I could reach out and touch it!
But it’s the stonework that really ROCKS! (heh) And the way it ties in with the built-in to the right which so skillfully curves back to allow for the window. Perfection! LewFrenchStone.com
2.
This one wins the award for integrating real art into the design, like artsy art. I’ve always been amazed by great mosaics and this one really looks cool to me.
Finish it off with some beautiful woodwork and you’ve got a winner. What’s really neat is that I think this is in a bedroom. hhmosaics
3.
The award for great use of colors goes to this one! I really love the way the art ties-in with the wall color and the window treatments! I’m not sure which came first, the painting, or the room, but they go together perfectly!
I always find a warm place in my heart for the way bright white woodwork contrasts against colored walls. Houzz.com
4.
This one… this one just gets the award. Period. Grand Prize for best room overall. Can you tell I like it? Light filled, beautiful woodwork, great wall color, built-in seating, cool floors. Great room.
An interesting piece of architecture to take note of is the tapered upper portion of the column. This one is done right. You see these with too much taper or not enough taper all the time. I don’t know the formula, I just know right when I see it, and this one is right. Houzz.com
5.
Cozy and Simple goes to this one. Old brick painted white always looks good. It can be a chore to get the mortar joints painted well, but it’s worth the effort. You would definitely want to use a semi-gloss paint if you plan to build real fires. (smoke) DIYNetwork.com
6.
The best Comfy Cottage award goes to this one! I can’t see it, but I can imagine snow on the ground outside and some hills with trees bare of any leaves (something I almost never see). I love the contrast of the green against that old brick.
Something about this one… just seems so inviting and comfortable. CountryLiving.com
So, which one is your favorite?
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I love the very first fireplace you posted. Our first house had a nice stone fireplace like that, but it also had a hearth area you could sit on as well. Ioved it. It is what sold me on the house.
I have to agree with you, the one with the column is the best pic there. I love the paint color, the bench and the woodwork. I am a sucker for beautiful trim work.
How about some kachelofens? And who in the States can make/install them.
I love all things stone so #1 is lovely. We know a Bible Camp in Northern Minnesota that has gorgeous stone fireplaces built by folks we know.
Yup that column is definitely right, I agree. The balance is just perfect to hold upper wall. To tapered it would have look liked it was used to prop the up the wall.
Love the style of #5, usually painted bricks will turn me off but this one is done so nicely.
How do you determine what style of mantle to use on your fireplace? I have a boring builder basic tan marble around my gas burning fireplace. It needs a mantle and I’m leaning in the mid-century modern direction. However, I’m having an awful time trying to find something in that style. I live in the midwest & everything I see is traditional. I’m ready to build it myself, but I’m at a loss for resources on the design/how/scale. Any ideas?
The last one is my favorite – yes very inviting! And I like the room that’s your favorite, but I don’t think the fireplace itself really adds very much. It seems like a dresser/bookshelf/interesting antique could be there just as easily and look very cool. Looking at these pics make me sad that my fireplace isn’t a working one. Oh well.
Mary – I had never heard of a kachelofen until you mentioned it, but I’m really intrigued by them now that I know what they are. Look for more on that!
Condo Blues – My inspiration usually starts with pictures. I rarely have a truely original idea! I find one or two I like and then design that into the conditions that I have in front of me in real life. Google Images is great, Houzz.com is great, flickr is good too. Just start with a search for mantel (or mantle… I can never remember which it is!)
Abbie- I agree that the other elements of that room really do so much on their own, that the fireplace isn’t the “feature” but it works great there. A working fireplace isn’t too tough to add! Gas burners can be really simple, relatively speaking! A few more months and you’ll forget you wanted one!
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