I'm a firm believer in the design principal that every room needs to have a touch of black; it grounds the space. Recently I helped a friend add a touch of black to his own living room in one of my favorite spots - the fireplace surround.
Before the fireplace lacked presence in the room. It also unfortunately had been rebuilt at some point and featured a very new, ugly brick surround in contrast to the original antique brick hearth (floor). Ignore the unpainted trim to the right, I also helped redesign the trim throughout the room and it hasn't been painted yet!
While my cell phone snaps don't do it justice, the new painted brick surround is a great focal point, won't show soot stains if the fire smokes, and now pairs nicely with the untouched antique brick hearth. Small changes can make such a large difference.
I did the same in my own home. The fireplaces in my old COOP building are no longer functioning for insurance reasons but the fireplace remains a focal point in my living room. Above you can see how I painted the interior and the surround black.
Before (on a walk through with my Realtor before purchasing the apartment) you can see the surround painted white with no contrast to the mantel (and the hideously old wall to wall carpeting). What do you think of adding a touch of black to a space?
Hello Stefan, Those fireplaces both look great the way you painted and arranged them. Does the black element have to be near the floor (to ground it), and does it have to be architectural? I have some black furniture and incidental pieces such as that black-faced statue (featured in my last post), but I am not sure if these are sufficient to create the effect you have in mind.
ReplyDelete--Jim
Stefan I think this is brilliant. I have always loved black as accent pieces, tables etc; however had not really thought about the fireplace.
ReplyDeleteI especially love yours with the beautiful art above, so striking!
xoxo
Karena
The Arts by Karena
I do like a touch of black. I often choose to do that with fabric on a pillow or chair but I love it on a fireplace.
ReplyDeleteGreat job! Looks really good, your own fireplace especially. You are giving me ideas! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteboth great---I too painted my fireplace surrounds black---natural brick can be highly overrated, no?
ReplyDeleteYour mirrored chimney breast is very glam
You are so right - gives the chimneypiece the proper outline, which was blurred/obscured when it was white.
ReplyDeleteHow do you decide when to quit? I would have painted all the woodwork and mantle. Like you I like the touch of black. Ann
ReplyDeleteLooks great! I want to replace my ugly random stone surround with soapstone. Funny, I have an ottoman in that blue acorn fabric in your "before" pic. Time to recover!
ReplyDeleteStefan, I had for a while considered changing the black firebox surround! Now I will happily keep it!
ReplyDeleteBravo. I've never thought of this before but you see plenty of fireplaces that seem not as good as they could be, where the eye is drawn to the soot. The dark surround gives a crisp edge to the soot. After I read this I ran upstairs to see ours all trimmed out in slate. Our architect/designer took about 5 seconds deciding on it. How right they were. Thanks for helping me see it.
ReplyDeleteThe black made the fire
ReplyDeleteplace larger, who'd have thought.
You clever young man. Love it.
yvonne
stefan - this is GLORIOUS. a touch of black should be in every room - i agree!and this looks stunning. great job (the styling too!!)
ReplyDeleteThanks everyone! I struggled on whether to keep the original mirror on the chimneypiece or not but after making it 85 years I figured it would be a shame to be the one to rip it out!
ReplyDeleteIt's a huge difference, particularly to your own mantle. I really like the chic look of the two lamps on your mantle!
ReplyDeleteIsn't it amazing how a coat of paint can transform a space, in this case the fireplace surround. You are right about black, I would add that in one's wardrobe, black is a must.
ReplyDeleteBest wishes
It works - and it is something to keep in mind. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteLooks great, Stefan! Kudos on styling your own fireplace, too. I'm also a fan of the black.
ReplyDeleteYes to a touch of black.
ReplyDeleteYes to the black and the mirror. Very glam and elegant! I might be biased because I've painted my whole fireplace black!! For over 20 years the first floor of my house was all white. Now I've turned to the dark side of the force. It's a practical solution for working fireplaces as well as your show stopper.
ReplyDeleteStefan - OMG your fireplace is awesome!!!!! Can I post a pic of it tomorrow on my blog? - I love it! Where did you get that print? Love it all!
ReplyDeleteYour friend's fireplace looks great too. Such smart changes.
Stefan,
ReplyDeleteI love it. I did a little rendering of your hearth all decked out for the holidays but cannot find your e-mail. Can you e-mail me-
vanessche@optonline.net
maybe you can use it for holiday notes or gift tags.
thanks dear,
pve
This is so fantastic Stephan. What an enormous difference it makes, I lOVE LOVE it! so smashing and the black is a must in every room. Adore the bust, too. Have a great weekend.
ReplyDeletexo Nancy
I'm inspired...what prep and what paint did you use?
ReplyDeletePat - no prep seemed to be needed. I just used Sherwin Williams "tricorn black" in the Emerald paint line (the best stuff!).
ReplyDeleteThanks!
ReplyDeleteOur mantel is nowhere as nice as yours, but we did the same thing to our brick surround when we moved into our house. Made a huge difference.
ReplyDeleteIt is an AMAZING transformation; one made with so little effort!
ReplyDeleteAs soon as the Holidays are over I am embarking on the task of painting my woodwork..thanks to your excellent advice!
xo
Andie