The Fireplace Mantel, Finished At Last!

This post was published in 2010 but I am linking it to:
Jennifer Rizzo
At long last the fireplace and mantel are finished! Just as a reminder this first picture was taking the day we bought the house. Though I had always wanted built ins around a fireplace, I didn't like these. They were actually laminate kitchen cabinets and were not in the best of shape. I also knew that we didn't want a TV above the fireplace. I wanted the fireplace to be the focal point of the room. (You can click on the pictures to enlarge them for better detail.)

BEFORE


The first picture below is my inspiration photo. It is from Country French magazine. I loved the mirror, the tiles, the mantel and corbels. So I asked Mr Comforts of Home if he could build it for me. He knew he could make the mantel, but we hired a contractor to build the faux chimney chase first. You can see pictures of that here.

INSPIRATION


The rest of the pictures are of the AFTER. I love how it turned out! The first picture I am standing in the eat in area of the kitchen. We are looking for a tall secretary for the right side of the fireplace - or two MATCHING book cases to go on either side. We even thought about using to large vintage doors to lean against the wall like the inspiration picture...I let you know what we eventually do.

A close up of the paint and glaze technique I used.

I thought I would show a few more pictures of the great room from different angles.

I would love to slip cover the couch in some sort of red pattern....someday.

We still need to add curtains to the windows and some area rugs, but that and all of the other decorating and nesting will happen in time.

I really love the way the fireplace turned out.

Welcome Home,

Penny