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Wanna know how to decorate an unused fireplace?
We’ve got you covered.
Let’s dive in.
When searching for a dream house, finding the one that has a fireplace is a win. Some people like to have one in the center of their house and the living room even though it might not work anymore. It may be for different reasons, but it still can be a great detail in the house. Many fireplaces in many homes nowadays do not work. Some were never even used.
Today many people decide to have electric heating or an air conditioner. These have put the fireplace out of work. It is not needed anymore as before.It is more complicated as it requires more work to have a good and functioning one.
You don’t have to remove the unused fireplace, you can cover and hide it. It takes a bit of creativity. By adding some details, you can have a new and unique decorative element in your house decor. Once cold and gray fireplace can become warm in a new way.
There are many different and creative ways to decorate a fireplace. It doesn’t have to look gray, lonely, and cold.
No fire – no problem! For example, you can fill the mantel with colorful lanterns. This will be a great substitution for fireplace light. Think about all the decorative lights used during the holidays. Christmas or Halloween for example. Imagine a bunch of sinister smiling pumpkins glowing from the dark fireplace. Or colorful stockings and sparkling strings of red, blue, green, and yellow light bulbs for Christmas.
If your fireplace is a traditional one, place a small sculpture or a bust on the top or inside the fireplace. It will look superb!
Imagine a fireplace as a canvas and paint your unique work of art, a collage. You are free to do anything and it will give you magical results.
If you’re reading this article, we know for sure you are looking for some ideas. Here are some of our suggestions on how to decorate an unused fireplace.
A chimney breast into a home office
Let’s start with the first idea on how to decorate an unused fireplace.
With a couple of additions, you can create a perfect, cozy home office or a lovely dressing table. Some closets are placed in the alcoves made by the hood of a forge. If you built a shelf to the chimney breast, it can turn into an office or a beauty table. Another advantage is that this solution takes very little space.
Disused fireplace
Another way is to adapt the theme of a fireplace to the style of the property. If your house is, for example, near the sea, you can use rustic materials, woven rattan, shells, ropes, a jar of different colored pebbles…
A dramatic bathroom feature
It is rarely a case someone has a chimney breast in their bathroom. This might happen if someone repurposes a bedroom or changes the entire plan of the lower floor. In case there is one, take it as a central element of the room.
You can either make it useful and use it for storing laundry baskets. Or you can decorate it with plants to get a more vivid and organic ambient in the room.
If you like this idea but you don’t have a chimney breast, you can always build an artificial one –just add a wooden mantel. This can be very useful in camouflaging pipes that are not so decorative.
Build with an instant fix
It might not be true for all new builds and some could feel a bit cut off of features. If you want to substitute the TV and you are searching for a different central point, a fireplace surround is a unique and retro option. It will lean to the flat wall for an immediate feature. You can also add a choice of electric stove or hearth for the finishing touch.
Keep things elegant with marble
Marble is a lavish and elegant material. It is a good choice for a fireplace both for aesthetics and practical reasons.
Marble is resistant to high temperatures. Fire won’t damage it, even if it is lit during the entire winter. Marble is a pricey material, but it is a good investment. It is long-lasting and it is good for achieving a polished and refined, more classical design.
Exposed brick
If you inherited a fireplace, check if it has a heating element instead of tearing it apart. Check if you can still safely use it. Exposed brick and the old heating element create effective contrast to the modern living room.
Turned into a storage place
This is also a quick and practical solution at the same time. Imbed a couple of shelves to the interior fireplace to get the extra storage space. You can add some colors to it by gluing a printed wallpaper to the back of the fireplace. This solution is an especially good choice for people living in smaller apartments.
Like flowers
Plants and flowers enable the space and give it vitality, a more organic look. Putting a couple of vases and pots of colorful flowers will boost up the fireplace elegance. It will enrich the fireplace and the entire room with colors and vividness.
As the seasons change, you can switch the flowers in the fireplace. In winter, you can replace vivid flowers with pine branches.
Put a log in the fireplace
Even if it is not lit on fire, a pile of chopped wood in the fireplace can seem decorative. To many, this brings up warm and homey feelings. This is a natural and organic way to upgrade the ambiance. Logs can be in different shapes, sizes, various textures…
Create a personal gallery
Choose some of the dearest pieces of art or photographs. Place them on the fireplace walls or above the mantel. You can make different combinations of frames, formats, colors… It is like creating a 3d collage. This will bring up the feeling of freshness to the ambiance.
As a fireplace is a focal point, to place something distinctive and original will bring up to it on many levels. This will give another dimension to experiencing art, different from usual.
Candles
Candles can provide you with a similar effect of warmth as a lit fireplace. However, without too much work and tumble. Candlelight creates a warm and romantic effect and goes well with any kind of home or fireplace. It is good to combine with any style.
It is also practical for some people who have allergies and can’t sit around the burning wood. They can enjoy themselves and won’t be bothered by respiratory issues.
Display wares
An empty fireplace can be seen as a framed spot for a bust, sculpture, or any artistic object. You can choose any object that has special value to you. It can be a souvenir from a trip to a foreign country, a large planter, a trophy, different ornaments, oversized bowls filled with flowers, or pine cones.
You can also use it as an open cabinet space. With the difference of it being on the floor in this case.
Concealing or hiding a fireplace
If a fireplace does not look good and cannot be repaired, the only solution is to cover it. The best choice is to seal it up somehow.
Fill the firebox with plywood and color the exterior of the wood so it matches the colors of the room.
Some other options are adding mosaic tiling. Combine it with wood for different colors and textures. You can also use decorative fabrics, fabric papers, decorative metals… Use anything, options are limitless.
Decorative display
And here comes the last suggestion on how to decorate an unused fireplace.
If there is a fireplace in the room, the room is in most cases oriented towards it. That is very important to know when choosing a decoration for an unused fireplace. It has to mirror and express the style and the design of its surroundings.
If there is no mantle, add one. It can be useful for creative displays without too much effort. There is a term – “mantle scape”. It refers to adding different organic, elements of nature to create a “landscape” across the mantel.
For a more elegant and posh design, add a couple of beams of shiplap above the fireplace. This can give a gentle texture against the all-white walls.
Some people are not fond of charred brick looks from the fireplace when it’s not in use. If that’s the case, hang a curtain to cover it up until the next winter.
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