Here's the before pic.

Maybe I'm stuck in a time-warp but I love the fireplace, And I think the accordion window walls will fit your home style much better than the french doors.

Your have a MCM home. Those have become trendy. I believe that trend will develop into a long-term appreciation for MCM style and that homes that have not ripped out and destroyed the original features will be more valuable than those that have. Just like a Victorian with original woodwork and other features is worth more than one that has been gutted. In a lot of markets, MCM homes with original features are going for big bucks.

So, besides a coat of paint, I wouldn't change a thing. If you must change anything, please be true to the bones of the home. Don't try to make it into something it's not. Unless you're doing an entire home remodel, you could make things look incongruent.

On the patio, are you talking about the niche? I don't know what that originally was. You could be right and there may have been a woodstove out there. If you have a source for wood to burn, it would be cool to have a woodstove out there. Both for outdoor cooking and to extend patio use into the cooler evenings and shoulder seasons. Be sure to have things checked out by a chimney person to ensure that it's safe to hook something up. If you don't want to go that route, I think it could be a fabulous place to create an outdoor storage for BBQ supplies.

To gain more appreciation for this style of architecture, you might want to spend some time poking around the RetroRenovation dot com website. The Atomic Ranch website and magazine are also excellent with lots of beautiful, inspirational photos.

Have fun with your MCM house! I absolutely love the exterior you've shared. What does the rest look like?

Try the decorator forum.

some friends did the same as jrb451, it knocked 40-50yrs off the age of the house. today's look and thought is almost anything covering a standard brick fireplace is an improvement. and the right tile does wonders.

I'm with Funkycamper - I like the brick. I don't dig the brass though. The pictures are pretty small for me so I could be totally off base, but my initial reaction was to get rid of the brass (is that an option for you?) and add a thick looking wood mantle at the top - just fit it over what is there - in a dark stain to pick up the tones in that gorgeous floor.

kpesto, That "gorgeous floor" unfortunately only looks gorgeous in photos. In person it is completely scatched up. I would simply refinish it, but we are changing the shape of the kitchen that's also contained in this room and unfortunately this will leave an irregular shaped hole in the wood flooring that we can't hope to match nor hide. Thus, that flooring is all long gone! :D

Funkycamper, actually, I am doing an entire home remodel... the place was a foreclosure mess and almost every room had to be stripped down to the studs except the wooden floors in the upstairs bedrooms (and those are scheduled to be refinished in a couple years when all my initial costs are covered). Here's a look at my thoughts for the room...

(ignore the bad photo quality :D )

Aha, well that changes things! I like the drama of a to-the-ceiling fireplace. I think you have some very lovely plans sketched out there. My one concern with your idea pic is the lack of seating that faces the fireplace. It looks like maybe a loveseat faces that way, but with the couch in the sight line? If you aren't the type to want to cozy up near the fireplace then it is no biggie, but I thought it was worth a mention.

I am 100% the kind that wants to cozy up to the fireplace... but we aren't sure yet (and really won't be until we get the cabinets installed) if there will be enough room between the island and the fireplace to allow for a couch facing it and ample walking space around furniture. We're just kind of winging it with the above layout being our starting plan. I have to buy ALL new furniture for this house so there's a lot of play there.