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Home Decorating

Fireplace wall needs help

13 years ago

We recently built and thought that we would put built in bookcases on top of the existing cabinets on either side of the fireplace. Now I think built in bookcases may be too busy and I was thinking of putting in floating shelves. Do you think I could do floating shelves that are only 4 feet long and stagger them or I should do the shelves the entire 6 feet? Or do you have any other ideas how to treat this space? Thanks.

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Comments (8)

User
13 years ago
I think floating shelves especially 4 foot ones, might look too light visually compared to the heaviness of the stone fireplace. I would do the bookcases.
deeinohio
13 years ago
I agree. Your hefty stone fireplace needs more than floating shelves.
Dee
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To my eye the fireplace does not have attractive proportions. The hearth is too wide and and overly deep for its height, the wood box is too small, the ceiling trim too bulky, mantle too large and too high. And the doorway looks squashed in beside it. No amount of whitewashing or painting is is going to change any of that. The good news is that it looks like the stone isn't boulders stacked up like some of the photos people have posted above. I think it's rock veneer, flat pieces of rock stuck to a cement/wire mesh base. If it's veneer, you should be able to see that from the side. Can you stand by the round mirror and take a picture for us? Veneer can be removed relatively easily by someone with experience and the right tools. Then you can have the room you want. You can shorten the hearth and put the TV to the left of the fireplace which would look much better than above it. Now is the time to do it, when you're re-doing the floor. If not, be sure to keep a box of the flooring for later if you want to remove or shorten the hearth and need to fill in the floor. My house also had an overpowering stone fireplace and the best thing we ever did was replace it with a normally-proportioned fireplace surround. IMO these large stone fireplace walls look great in big chalet-style homes with high ceilings, and are out of place in regular homes.
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mchaney1
Original Author
13 years ago
Do you think having bookcases under the windows would be too busy?
palimpsest
13 years ago
I think bookcases under the windows would make the windows look more purposeful and integrated. I also think they would appear as one solid object and look less busy than a number of little shelves.
awm03
13 years ago
Gosh, I'd even incorporate the windows into the bookcases. Build a shelf around each window, in other words. Great back lighting for colored glass displays And if you put in lights, it would be soft moody lighting at night. I think it would cut down on sun glare too.
hilltop_gw
13 years ago
Bookcases would be great. Definitely would not go with 4' staggered. Longer floating shelves might be ok, but I think they might look scanty.

Do you know what kind of would your cabinets are, what brand or stain color? They are beautiful! We're getting quotes for some custom built-ins for an office stained a dark chocolate or expresso. Cabinet maker is going to price out oak, but I told him I wanted to see a sample board before ordering. I'm not sure what the grain will look like.
mchaney1
Original Author
13 years ago
You would not believe it.... I got each of these cabinets for 100 each off of Craigslist (new) (there are 4- 36" cabinets). They are Brookhaven (Wood-mode) cabinets in Maple. I am not sure of the stain color - I will look for you. But I bought the stain from the cabinet company to have the matching color when we do "whatever" we are going to do above the cabinets.

Would anyone be able to photoshop some book shelves above the cabinets for me. I was initially thinking of ending them below the windows but I am open to ideas...Thick floating shelves, incorporating windows, etc. Thanks so much!!!!!
Oakley
13 years ago
I'm not good at cabinet/shelves suggestions except you're hiding that gorgeous FP with the TV.

Have you thought about building shelves to house the TV on one side of the FP? I've seen other posters do it and it looks very nice.

Because of the darkness of the rock, it looks like there's a black hole in it. It too pretty (and expensive) to hide.

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