A fireplace is a magnificent feature in your home. However, over time you might decide to renovate your house, which means you will probably have to give the hearth a makeover too. Nowadays, you can just simply reface the fireplace to fit in with style of the whole room. This applies to moving into a new home that has an existing fireplace but it is not how you would like it. Bear in mind that, materials can change over time and the areas surrounding the hearth may show wear and tear over the years so it is a good idea to update the hearth area too, especially when the fireplace is the most focal point of your home.

You can simply change the face of the fireplace for example, if the surrounding area of your fireplace is made up of tiles, you can replace the tiles with relevant colours to suit your new style or if you fancy a big change, you can replace your fireplace completely with a brand new multi-fuel stove or a wood-burner.

Below are some basic ideas of the type of reface you could aim for:

• Stone (from floor to ceiling to make a statement). The right colour of stone that goes well with the rest of the room could add beauty to the room!

Top Tip: Want that country feel? Add character by selecting the larger fieldstones, it’ll change the whole outlook of the setting.

• Granite tiles for solid fuel fires. These types of tiles are made to allow for expansion and contraction from the heat so they are great for your home, you can choose from many different colours to match your room décor.
• Panelling. A great way to give your fireplace a built-in appearance! There are a variety of colours to choose from, so you can easily coordinate with your décor.
• Wall Tiles. You can now get these in all shapes and sizes, opt for larger tiles for a more modern look.
• Add a mantel then decorate the mantel to your taste or keep it simple.

Make the hearth area a perfect place to gather around and enjoy!

These are just a few ideas on how you can re-decorate the surrounding area of your fireplace. If you have any suggestions, please comment below:

You’ve finally got the perfect stove installed, you have had your chimney swept, so what’s the next step? Making the area look aesthetically pleasing so you can enjoy your fire with a beautiful surrounding?

Here are 4 ways to add visual appeal to your fireplace mantel.

Mirror, Mirror on the wall…

Adding a mirror above your fireplace mantel can make the room look bigger, it can also create a sense of spaciousness and openness.

Top Trick: adding a mirror can fool the eye into perceiving more space, depth and makes the room look larger than it is.

Themes

By having a theme each season, you can play around with many decorations, in the summer time you may wish to add fresh flowers in a lovely vase to draw attention to the fireplace. In the spring, you may want to add some colourful plants or light coloured ornaments on the shelf of the fireplace mantel and light fresh linen scented candles to make the room smell fresh. In the fall, you may wish to be more creative and add Halloween decorations, pumpkins, and leaves on the mantel. Finally, in the winter time you can add candles, lanterns and Christmas decorations to give you that Christmas feeling.

Family Photos or Paintings

If you want more of a homely feel, you may wish to hang a family canvas or frame a family photo and place it on top of the mantel for family and friends to see. Camera shy? What about putting up a photo of your pet or a nice painting?

Less is More

If you prefer to keep it simple, just simply add a few decorations on one side of the mantel so it does not look too cluttered. You may even want to add a few logs on one side of the mantel, to give you a nice minimalistic look.

There are so many creative ways to make your fireplace stand out. What are some of your tips?