A fireplace offers a lot of design opportunity in a living room. It’s a reliable focal point around which to arrange furniture, and its details — the surround, mantel and hearth — create many possibilities for adding style and interest. Here, design and building pros share what makes these nine fireplaces a success.
Cellar Ridge Construction
1. Plaster, Concrete and Douglas Fir
Designers: Matthew Daby and Angela Mechaley of M.O.Daby Design
General contractor: Cellar Ridge Construction
Location: Portland, Oregon
Size: 544 square feet (51 square meters); 17 by 32 feet
Homeowners’ request. For this custom home, the owners requested a living room in which the furniture could be arranged around a fireplace and TV. “Our goal is to consider both of these elements as part of an overall focal point of the room,” designer Matthew Daby says.
Fireplace features. The fireplace features a surround with a soft textured plaster finish. To the right, a Douglas fir cabinet with pocket doors conceals a TV. A bookshelf and a reading nook sit to the left. “The asymmetrical composition is pulled together with a continuous floating concrete hearth,” Daby says.
Designer tip. “You don’t have to default to center-based symmetry,” Daby says. “Embrace the shapes and furniture arrangement in the room to create a balanced composition that will function around the fireplace, television and casework.”
“Uh-oh” moment. “A blank west-facing wall in the room was designed with minimal windows to block harsh sun and unwanted views,” Daby says. “Putting this fireplace-TV-book nook on that wall saved it from being too blank and boring.”
Project photography: KLiK Concepts
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Powell Brower Interiors
2. Slate, Painted Wood and Natural Maple
Designers: Nancy Powell and Bethany Brower of Powell Brower Interiors
General contractor: Bedrock Remodeling
Location: Falls Church, Virginia
Size: 200 square feet (19 square meters)
Homeowners’ request. “This newly married couple had her furniture from her previous home and his furniture from his previous home, and they hadn’t really discovered their joint taste in decorating,” designer Nancy Powell says. “They had a mix of overscale traditional, Colonial, industrial and transitional furnishings that didn’t function well in their new space. We worked on getting them both on the same page, and since their new joint style was a bit out of their comfort zone, we had weekly design meetings to make decisions on a palatable scale, versus all at once. The only items that stayed in the house were the plantation shutters, two midcentury modern chairs we repurposed from the basem*nt and the hickory hardwood floors. Everything else was a new purchase.”
Fireplace features. Custom slate surround and hearth. Custom wood design detail painted white. Natural spalted-maple mantel.
Other special features. “To add warmth and natural elements to the room design, we used a wooden media console, the unique maple mantelpiece, a beautiful white oak segmented coffee table, textural neutral fabrics, and a wool-and-sisal area rug,” Powell says.
Designer tip. “We had landed on an approved living room design and had started demolition when we recommended removing a partial wall dividing the living room from the kitchen,” Powell says. “Out of respect for the clients’ initial budget, we were trying to work around it, per their request. When they saw how great the room was looking, they decided to go for it, and a beam was installed, enabling the partial wall to be removed. It made all the difference.”
Project photography: Stylish Productions
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Nicole Forina Home
3. Marble and Wallpaper
Designer: Nicole Forina
Location: Short Hills, New Jersey
Size: 600 square feet (56 square meters); 20 by 30 feet
Homeowner’s request. “The client wanted her living room to feel like a usable entertaining space,” designer Nicole Forina says. “Adjacent to the space is a wine room that was converted from an old library, so it felt natural to incorporate a large custom banquette to give the space a more lounge-like feel, and to break up the expansive space into different seating areas for multiple groups to congregate.”
Fireplace features. Stepped surround and mantel in Invisible Grey marble. The wallcovering features a pattern that resembles rivets. “The goal was to create a more modern fireplace motif, while complementing the simple stacked moldings in the rest of the house,” Forina says. “We considered doing the mantel in wood at first, but our client could not resist using the Invisible Grey stone to pop against the dark features of the room.”
Other special features. Black-and-white tweed sofa. Teal swivel chairs. Acrylic co*cktail table. “The color scheme was derived from the single piece of furniture that made the cut and was brought from the old house into the new: a turquoise lacquered credenza,” Forina says. “The credenza was placed in the neighboring formal entry, but we wanted to thread that turquoise color into the fun adjoining space with teals and violets. Many other areas of the home are light white and bright, so we felt ready to create a darker space that felt more dramatic.”
Designer tip. “Don’t be afraid of the dark,” Forina says. “Aside from the white oak floors and the light ceiling and trim in Benjamin Moore’s Decorator’s White, most of our elements are dark. It really made all the jewel-toned colors of the room pop, including the art.”
“Uh-oh” moment. “We originally made custom draperies on the large floor-to-ceiling window in the back of the room with some really gorgeous Pollack fabric — embroidered threads of turquoise, teal and black on a white linen background — but when it came time to install, my client decided against covering up her new, modern windows. Rather than waste the gorgeous fabric, we repurposed it onto a Kelly Wearstler accent chair that sits next to a funky étagère in the space.”
Loire chandelier: Visual Comfort; Rivets wallpaper: Phillip Jeffries
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Foxhall Homes LLC
4. Molding and Wood Wall Planks
Designer: GTM Architects
Builder: Michael Villa of Foxhall Homes
Location: Bethesda, Maryland
Size: 340 square feet (32 square meters); 17 by 20 feet
Developer’s request. This was a spec home built by Michael Villa of Foxhall Homes and designed by GTM Architects.
Fireplace features. Trim carpenters used cove molding to construct the custom layered fireplace surround. “Cove molding is typically used for crown molding,” Villa says.
Other special features. Villa used the same hardwood planks as on the floor to accent the walls flanking the fireplace. Built-in floating cabinets with glass fronts provide storage. A wicker chandelier complements the wood tones of the planks and decorative beam.
Assembledge
5. Matte Black and Custom Oak
Designers: David Thompson and Mitchell Streichhirsch of Assembledge+
Location: Huntington Beach, California
Homeowners’ request. Renovate a 1960s home to honor its roots while adding new life and detail.
Fireplace features. Matte black surround built into a custom oak shelving unit that spans the living room wall. “The fireplace is located just below a TV that’s been recessed into the black accent wall, creating a unified accent in the living room that contrasts the light wood,” designer David Thompson says. “The cabinetry creates horizontal lines, connecting the front yard fire pit and seating area through the living room to the backyard swimming pool and cabana beyond.”
Other special features. Large-format terrazzo tile floors. Sliding doors on both sides of the living room connect it to the front yard and backyard.
Designer tip. “One of the biggest moves that contributed to the success of this space was the removal of a large two-story fireplace on the rear-yard side of this space,” Thompson says. “When we first walked the house with the client, we decided that this fireplace element was overwhelming the backyard and the building’s volume. We agreed that removing it would allow the front and back yards to be connected through the living room, achieving a true indoor-outdoor living space.”
“Uh-oh” moment. “To create the true indoor-outdoor experience, we really wanted the sliding doors to completely disappear, but due to the plan configuration, there was no place to pocket the doors,” Thompson says. “Our solution was to create a frame that would float free from the building and allow the sliding panels to completely open. The result provides the living room with an unobstructed connection with the pool and the rear yard, and an interesting detail of these floating doors outside the building that create an abstract framed view of the landscape beyond.”
Click Architects
6. Blackened Steel and Western Red Cedar
Designers: Steve and Cheryl Click of Click Architects
Location: Seattle
Size: 400 square feet (37 square meters); 20 by 20 feet
Homeowners’ request. “It was important that this room feel light, refreshing and welcoming,” architect Steve Click says.
Fireplace features. The surround and mantel are blackened steel. The wall is tongue-and-groove western red cedar in a light gray finish. “We used it on other walls throughout the home and as exterior siding, to provide continuity between the inside and outside,” Click says. “The tongue-and-groove profile allowed us to conceal storage cabinets.
“We used tall ceilings, south-facing windows and light paint colors to create a neutral background palette, allowing the beautiful stained cedar walls and steel fireplace to stand out. We designed a TV niche to lessen the impact of a large TV and to prevent the need for mounting hardware. The niche seconds as a great spot for art if a TV isn’t needed.”
Designer tip. “Make sure every detail is considered individually and holistically,” Click says. “Apply this concept throughout the building in order to accomplish a cohesive design.”
“Uh-oh” moment. “I’d say the ‘uh-oh’ moment for this fireplace was dealing with the concealed door alignments and operation,” Click says. “The doors are fairly heavy, and the concealed hinges have limited adjustment. To solve the problem, we used locking push latches to keep the doors aligned when closed, and we installed a device that allows adjustment vertically to keep the door in plane.”
Wall and ceiling paint: White Wisp, Benjamin Moore
User
7. Board-Formed Concrete and Travertine
Designer: David Lucas of Lucas Interiors
Builder: Matthew Cole of Hill Construction
Location: La Jolla, California
Size: 1,300 square feet, including kitchen area (121 square meters); 26 by 50 feet
Homeowners’ request. A clean, coastal, contemporary design with a floor plan that opens to the ocean and interior courtyard.
Fireplace features. Board-formed concrete with a Titanium travertine hearth. Basalt firebrick in a stacked bond pattern lines the back of the firebox.
Other special features. Vertical-grain hemlock wood ceiling.
Designer tip. “One element I really liked in the space was that it wasn’t overlit, which I think can happen often on projects even with the ability to dim,” builder Matthew Cole says. “The lighting for the room is very warm and intimate at night, and the recessed fixtures provide flexibility depending on future furniture or space modifications.”
“Uh-oh” moment. “The offset fireplace venting was a real challenge, as the structural design and weight of the concrete would have crushed a traditional B-vent fireplace flue,” Cole says. “So we had to create a custom-fabricated structural steel chase through the concrete wall to house the flue ducting. We worked closely with our concrete and steel vendors to establish a design and implementation solution that worked with the sizing of the required flues.”
re:architecture
8. Black Tile
Designers: Rick Epstein of re:architecture and Stephanie Waddell of Istoria Interior Design
Location: Boulder, Colorado
Size: 880 square feet (82 square meters); 22 by 40 feet
Homeowners’ request. “The homeowners wanted the coziness of a living room with a strong indoor-outdoor feel,” says architect Rick Epstein, who used Houzz to research ideas. “It’s an open plan, so they wanted an airy space for family living and entertaining.”
Fireplace features. Modern black tile with a subtle pattern. “It has an almost digital feel to it as a contrast to the wood ceiling and wall,” Epstein says. “A continuous white marble bench creates a place to sit by the fireplace and gather.” A niche on the side of the fireplace stores firewood.
Other special features. Douglas fir wood covers the wall and ceiling. Concrete flooring with radiant heat.
Designer tip. “I created a window at the end of the bench that frames a special tree and open oculus [round opening] in the roof overhang,” Epstein says. “This creates a stronger indoor-outdoor connection.”
Hsu McCullough
9. Quartz Slab
Designers: Peggy Hsu and Chris McCullough of Hsu McCullough
Location: Los Angeles
Size: 365½ square feet (34 square meters); 17 by 21½ feet
Homeowners’ request. An open-concept living room designed for entertaining, that also would open to a wood deck and swimming pool.
Fireplace features. Quartz slab surround (Rugged Concrete by Caesarstone). “We wired the fireplace wall for a future TV, if desired — hidden behind the wall art hanging,” designer Chris McCullough says.
Other special features. White oak cabinets and flooring. An exposed steel structure painted white adds architectural interest in front of the windows.
Designer tip. “We think the curved sofa and the partially open back lounge chairs look great from every angle of the great room and exterior,” McCullough says. “This works especially well because the area behind the sofa is a glass wall of sliding doors. This enhances the pavilion feel when the sliding doors are open to the outside.”
“Uh-oh” moment. “The swimming pool was supposed to be located so the long side of the water body was parallel to the rear property line, a lap pool running full property width tucked to the rear,” McCullough says. “During construction, the swimming pool excavator found a nearly 30-foot-deep pit of metal parts — old boilers, car bumpers. To stabilize the soil for a swimming pool in this unforeseen pit area of junk deep below the ground level was going to cost a lot more money. Therefore, we rotated the swimming pool 90 degrees to run parallel with the side yard, thus avoiding the pit. The pit was cleaned, filled and a tree was planted at its position.”
Furniture and art selections: Claudia Andrade-Desbiens of Modern Mecca; wall and ceiling paint: Wimborne White, Farrow & Ball
More on Houzz
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