Sorry this took so long but I do have the pictures now. As I had said, we have done a stone fireplace with cabinetry on both sides. On the right will be our 40" flat screen with a shelf that will slide out and the doors can be closed or open, but they will slide back so they won't be in the way. This is just the boxes at this time. There will be white trim, mantel and the finished cabinets with bookcase on both sides. Now the problem, I don't know how to post on this site. I have shutterfly so I can put the pictures there. If anyone wants to tell me how to post on here and I can understand it GREAT, otherwise if you want to send me your email address I can send pictures. Let me know, Susan

We, too, have a big stone fireplace that is a focal point. There are windows on both sides, so no place for a tv there, either. We opted for a built-in cabinet on the right-hand wall. It is recessed, and I have shutters that close over it (although I haven't installed them yet--it's on my "to do" list). The other side of that wall is the master bedroom. So having a recessed cabinet in the living room allowed me to have a similar recessed cabinet in the master bedroom. Although we were originally going to use it as a tv area on the bedroom side, I opted to make it built-in bookshelves. A benefit to having the recessed area in the living room is having a shelf that I can display something above the tv--breakable things that I don't really want the kitties messing with. We have lighting (on it's own switch) up there, to show off whatever I'm displaying. Below the tv is another shelf where the other electronics are. There is another set of shutters to cover up all that crap...I mean, all that very important electronic equipment. And their cords, since the plug in is located in the recessed area. The fireplace is on the North wall. TV in the East wall. We have a couch on the South side, centered and facing the fireplace. A loveseat and recliner on the West wall, facing the tv. The recliner is kind-of diagonal. We have an open floorplan, and the kitchen is on the Southwest side. From there, I can watch the fireplace AND the tv, which is kind of nice. I don't have it yet, but there will be a large coffee table in front of the couch.

Will you actually use the fireplace? How much use will the t.v. get? Is it for occasional viewing or nightly viewing?How much use will the t.v. get? Is it for occasional viewing or nightly viewing? Which direction are those windows facing? This arrangement is not good if you will actually use the fireplace, with one of the couches with it's back to the fire and neither near it. If you go with this t.v./fireplace arrangement I'd consider placing your sofas in an L so both can view both the t.v. and the fireplace. With windows on three sides this seems like a problematic room for t.v. viewing, as I'd assume you'll get a lot of glare. Perhaps you could put the t.v. opposite the fireplace, and arrange the furniture so that there are two seating areas? Also, make sure you're mocking it up with furniture to scale so you can see what will work.

Thanks. Did you put in a linear fireplace? Which did you get and how do you like it? We are trying to decide between linear fireplace with TV above or offset fireplace (linear/traditional/vertical) and offset TV. I tend to like the offset but not sure how it will affect resale.