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Help with family room fireplace decor

3 years ago

Hi, we recently bought a house with a tall fireplace in the family room. We have young kids, so I'd like to add some storage with base cabinets on either side and shelves above but since the fireplace is shallow, they would stick out quite a bit. I'm also generally struggling with the decor here - the kitchen looks right into this family room and I anticipate this will be our main hangout area with the kids. I've attached pictures of the room as well as an inspiration pic for the cabinets/shelves, I'm just not sure if that will work with the family room since the cabinets/shelves won't be recessed and there's also a bulkhead with lights on the right side. Not sure if it matters but there are two skylights in the ceiling too. I was thinking of arranging the couch under the bulkhead and two chairs across from it on the window walls. My husband wants to put a Frame TV over the fireplace with an articulating mount. I would truly appreciate any thoughts/feedback!

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Comments (3)

Aglitter
3 years ago
First, you need to check your jurisdiction's building codes for what can go around your fireplace. This will help determine what you can and cannot build around it and to what depth. Second, above the fireplace is a bad place for the TV. Trust me on this one; I have a TV above my own fireplace in my main living area, and it just doesn't work that well. We have to be careful when using the fireplace regarding heat affecting the electronics, and the level is just all wrong for viewing. Ideally you want the top of the TV to start at the top of your sight line which is much lower to the ground than an above-the-fireplace mount would provide. Trying to mount a TV into that stone is also going to be a headache and possible risk of more extensive damage to the stonework. My living room is so small that there is literally no other place for our TV, and it's the only TV in the house, but in your case, it looks as though you have lots of room for a TV somewhere else.
Sam Q
Original Author
3 years ago
Thank you so much, Silverlined! Your feedback and personal experience are incredibly helpful - I'll be showing this to my husband, I'm sure your detailed reply will help. I'm so glad I saw your post - I actually thought I had deleted this post bc I reposted with different tags (design dilemma). Thank you again!
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Thanks for the feedback everyone. I am recovering this week fron an injury and bored, bored, bored, bored, bored! It is SPRING outside which makes it worse! Because I can't do much, I thought I would at least try to make myself useful on Garden Web. :) Az- Your piece over the mantle was actually resized from something I found online. I know Hobby Lobby and Garden Ridge get tons of stuff every year. Also try garden centers. I couldn't find an online source because I guess that shipping for something that large and heavy is prohibitive. The windows were pieces from an iron shop online that I scaled to fit your window. Those were almost 15", but they have different designs in different sizes. They have a 200 page book of iron that is great fun to look at (but their web navigation is less than stellar) --- I think you are right about a lighter table. I love that your furniture is so grounded, but a little lightness would be great. Something like that one in Daisy's living might be nice. OH! I love those mirrors Johnatemp posted! I have copper on the brain right now. I have been searching for months for the perfect vintage copper tray to go under my dog dishes. (Yes, you read that right:)
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Aglitter
3 years ago
Yes Sam, you can let him know that you will get neck strain if you watch it in that position very long. We have to lie down on the couch or sit very low with pillows propping our head to watch TV above the fireplace. Lower positioning for the screen is so much more versatile in terms of what type of seating and furniture is comfortable for your viewing sessions. You could put the TV in a corner or along one of your other walls depending on how you plan to furnish the seating.

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