How can I decorate my large fireplace and chimney?

I would first paint the inside of fireplace a hot burnt orange. Hang the tv over it. Recapture the floor space and put your attention to the center of the room.

I would be inclined to make the fireplace the focal point by tiling it all the way to the ceiling.

Being old school i love the mantal on the fireplace , a large piece of iron wall art would look lovely !

Being old school i love the mantal on the fireplace , a large piece of iron wall art would look lovely !

first it needs a mantle

Cover it with rock and add a mantle, have to have one to decorate for Christmas

Thank you all for your suggestion.

Add a mantel that complements you style of decor for this room, as in rustic, country or formal. Keep it simple..

Adding a mantle , painting hung above it and one of those large rod iron clocks up high, would look fantastic.

Stencil plaster trees on it--- I did a room wall background green and trees white plaster.. painted leaves individual

I love your floors & you have the same type of colors in your furniture, rug, & floors that I have. For me I went with a Mediterranean theme & color scheme.

I don't know about you but I live on a very tight budget & if you don't have a man or helper in your life you learn & teach yourself how to do things like building whatever you need.

So here's what I did in my livingroom. I bought plain white pine boards from Lowes that measured 1 x 8 x 80 to fit my fireplace. Used a stud finder & marked my screw spots for my L-brackets. 1st picture is L-Bracket over kill, Guilty!!! It was my 1st mantle build. I didn't miter my boards to make them fit I just butted them against each other. I L-bracketed the 1st top board to my fireplace. Then screwed the front board into the edge of the top board. I covered the unsightly screws with some large upholstery tacks. Then stained it. I painted the walls in a darker mustard color for some warmth & sponged the fireplace in that same color with a 2nd color 2 shades lighter.

I think you have a wonderful place & wish I had your beautiful floors.

The only thing I think you're missing is a comforting color on the walls but we all have different taste. Good luck with whatever you do.

I'm a fan of finding something you like on Pinterest, then making it your own. That's what we did when we had a fireplace put in last year. Here is ours. Photo taken at an angle because it's a see through fireplace to outside and the sun is coming in. Check Pinterest for inspiration.

The first thing I noticed was the rounded corner hearth...To me it should have square corners...now for a suggestion that you wanted...I think I would either use ship lap wood.."think Fixer Upper"....or rock look tile on your fireplace...a mantle is not needed .... and then hang art work, tapestry, metal sculpture or even a pretty quilt if it suits your decor.

If you don't want a mantle and you're not going to burn in the fireplace, get a really nice tapestry or a small persian rug and hang it above the fireplace. Fabric always looks wonderfully rustic against stucco and won't produce glare from your problem light fixture.

You don't need a mantel, just add a fire place screen, you might consider two floating shelves stagger them then decorate accordingly...

Stagger means to put them at different levels

You say you don't want a mantle but what about matching your window crown molding. Putting it down rather than up snugging ceiling.

I'm thinking a great but simple copper fire screen ,a simple wood mantel with a tree stenciled on the wall look lovely ....perhaps with some copies of family photos tucked in the branches : )

I suggest surrounding the fireplace opening with something like tile or embossed tin squares. Measure from the bottom of the opening to the top of the hearth. This would be the width to use around the entire opening.

Also hang a large painting or wall decoration. Whatever would fit in with the decor of the room that suits your fancy.

Large wrought iron decorative panel would loo great!

Or this

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A fireplace screen is a must. Try Hobby Lobby or some other accessory store for 2 tall wrought iron sconces and put flameless candles in them and a colorful picture in between. Think scale on this large wall.

We found this 12 x 24 tile at Lowes and did it ourselves!

Did you guys plaster it? Maybe a plasterer can come in and add some floating shelves at different heights and then plaster it to match/ paint it. That would look great with oversized candles or photos. It would be a mess to remove the plaster, however I am partial to the distressed plaster loo with brick peeing through at certain points....see this example. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/482377810070760343/

or

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/260082947202139029/

I would get 2 half-round columns floor to top, place them on the wall if room, or on the ends of the fireplace. I would frame the inset with a beautiful metal banding. Fireplace could be painted (fireplace) pumpkin or hunter. You could use half round cornices in solid pumpkin with brass accents to match banding. A decorative rut in a cream and taupe swirl in front of fireplace.

Thank my husband and I did it Over a weekend. It is heavy tile, but required minimal cutting and no grout! Just mastic. Also we used satin finish rounded edging on the corners which finished the rough edges nicely.

UPDATE!

An additional problem has arisen. Some of the carefully selected oak logs in the fireplace were infested with termites so they all were discarded. Now we are faced with what to do with the empty firebox. Whatever the result for the entire project I'll be posting picturges.

My wife wants to tile the fireplace wall. We will be shopping for the tile sound.

Tile is a great idea and easy to do. Attach the first row along a level chalk line and let it dry, then build up from there. When picking your tile remember the style of your room. Large marble tiles are beautiful but not in a country setting. Remember once they are on there's no changing your mind. We put 1foot by 2 foot black shinny tile on the bumped out wall behind our TV wow what great affect. But the stone version we put on the wall in our condo gave a real warm affect in an all window corner room. Another problem we had was colour. Something might look great at the store but when you get it home the light changes. I suggest you get one or two and bring them home, check the look in your room before you drag creates home only to have to drag them back. Happy tilling!

It looks like it is dread colder room. Think about making your fireplace a focal point. That doesn't mean a bright color, remember you have to look at it everyday. If there is a lot of natural light I would sugest a warm brown. Maybe the colour of the floor. If not I would consider a glass tile soft green. I may sound off the wall but the juxtaposition of color will make a very beatiful statement. I can only imagine that your sofa is a beige color. If not you may want to draw the sofa color onto the fireplace.

What you see is a bare fireplace wall. When all is finished we hope to have a attractive fireplac. Please view the following then tell me if you still consider it a 'dread colder room'.

Fireplace framing and mantel would make a very big difference. You can even find antique frames/mantels. Then either put a beautiful large picture or mirror above the mantel. Paint that wall a pretty Pumpkin Burn Orange color like your tiffany lamp.

antique , very large,clock on top and you are done,(they are easy to source and inexpensive) with a mantle in black metal to match the clock. Maybe a few candles. It looks crowded in that area, with windows, do you need the blinds?Can the TV be placed on the wall and give you more room in that end of the room? just a few ideas, Good luck.

There are some very attractive mantles for fireplaces now which is what I would do to break up that large blank space.

If you know what you want and what you don't want then you have answered your question. Since you live in the south I would go with a sculptural piece insipid by nature. Like trees foing in the wind to give it movement and interest. I don't think your place is dreadful I think it's all one color in different shades of brown which is a warm color. I think that the problem is the sofa and it's pattern which is outdated maybe think of upolstering in a light pattern for some interest. I love your carpet and leather chairs.,but with dark floor and tables it just looks like a cave. In he sense that it is dark. As for the fire place I would bring some greenery that's real not some plastic thing or candles but I think a plant would look very nice there. And yes there are plants that thrive with little light. It looks like your room gets plenty of light which probably makes room super hot so I understand why your blinds aren't open to allow lighti into room. I don't like accent colors on one wall I think fireplace looks very rustic and the stucco is great for south. I wouldn't put a picture of a horse up but I would look for something abstract with movement. I just think that the leather on chairs reminds me of freedom and running wild and whrilwind. That's why I keep saying movement. Your house is interesting because it has rustic features like stucco yet the trim is all super traditional. It just hasn't made up its mind as to what it is so if you end up picking tile I would go traditional to match other finishes in architectural features.

Thank you for your comment.

A major design change is coming to the entire fireplace. This change will better fit in with the downstairs. The many suggestions received helped us discover this new path.

In progress photos will be posted. Thank you all. 🙏

You could buy a beautiful mantle suitable size to the fireplace, then stencil the wall with a large stencil that looks like brick. Then put the mantle up.

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