OK, so this is one space in my house that has been pretty awkward since we moved in. It’s kind of a second living room, as we have a TV living room we use most of the time. This space is just across from the kitchen, and that door leads to a laundry room hallway with a small half bath and then access to the garage. We come in through that door often, so this space really greets you when you get home. I wanted it to feel cozy and super inviting, but I’ve had a hard time styling this space for some reason.
And I suspect that reason is the fireplace. Ha! I’ll tell you more, but first, here’s a mini tour of this room.
All we’ve done is paint the walls and trim white, hang curtains, and move all our stuff in slowly. No real renovations have happened in this space. But there is quite a bit of furniture.
First, this is the first home that was large enough for Trey to move his piano from his parents’ house to his house. They had always told him that one day he could have this piano, but it really didn’t fit in our last house. So when we found this house, we knew we’d finally have space to move it. Trey is probably more into guitar, but he plays piano and drums some as well, and I love to hear him play on this now and again. So that’s on one wall. In front of the window is where we put the couch we inherited from the studio house. And those were the main two pieces in the room until recently.
I knew I wanted to infuse a little more color into this space since the floors were brown, the stone fireplace is brown, the ceilings are brown, and then the piano and couch are brown. I love brown as much as the next gal, but that’s just a bit too much! So I knew I wanted a light colored rug with some color – and that’s exactly what I picked out. That has made a TON of difference in the space already!
I also moved our coffee table into the room but decided to paint/stain it as it was brown and, again, there was already plenty of brown in the room. I’m not 100% happy with how it turned out. It’s OK, but not exactly the color or texture I was going for. I was trying to stain it a bright lipstick red, but it looks more like a poorly painted orange Pepto-Bismol color to me. So I’m OK with it, but I’ll probably change it eventually.
Here is our fireplace. We found some photos of our home online from before the previous owner fixed it up, and it turns out that this fireplace was painted white before. The last owner painted it a faux stone color. I think they did a pretty good job as I actually thought it was really just stone at first. I probably would have preferred the white to the faux stone, but I don’t think we’ll paint it back as that just seems sort of crazy to me. Ha! But, never say never I guess. 🙂
Guys, I just don’t feel like I know what to do with this fireplace. I had a mantel installed, but I still don’t love it. I took out the insert (but saved it) as we never used it. I need to clean the inside (again, I had it professionally “swept” before last winter) and maybe paint it a solid black. I like the candles, but I need to elevate part of it. And then it has this unpainted edge all around the opening that I have to figure out if I’m going to try and paint to match the faux stone look, or if I’m going to build some kind of frame to go over it. What do you think?
I did commission Rachel to create an oversized weaving for me that I plan to hang above the mantel area soon. Isn’t it beautiful!? It’s going to look so good when I finally get it hung. Right now I just have it hanging around the house on a photo stand so it doesn’t get dirty or wrinkled. So, I think that will help the fireplace area, but I still feel like it’s just not quite coming together yet.
So far that’s about it. Lots of progress but still feeling stumped about the fireplace area. Maybe I should see if my library has a How to Decorate a Fireplace for Dummies book or something. 🙂 Thanks for letting me share! xo. Emma
Room Sources: Rug c/o Rugs USA, Wicker chair and pouf c/o Joss & Main, Couch/studio house via Fab, Curtains/IKEA, Record table/flea market, Coffee table/DIY, Cactus light/gift from Elsie via Etsy (similar), Oversized portrait painting/my mother’s from college.
Credits // Author and Photography: Emma Chapman.
I think it’s just because the fireplace is so massive. Maybe if you get a larger mantle like what Heather said or if you put long but thin pictures or weavings on either side of the mantle to cover some of that “stone” it may feel a little more put together. Overall I like the southwest vibe you’ve got going, though!
How big is this rug?
It looks amazing! It feels cozy and warm, I don’t know if it’s because of the fireplace or that stunning rug. Love it! Thank you for sharing the progress! Your blog is great and I love posts like this!
Yes to all these suggestions! The mantel is too small, the wrong color and the wrong style for your room. It doesn’t fit in with the southwestern vibe you’ve got going on.
Love the idea of a live edge wood, or even a rough edge stone mantel. Or do like one person said and remove the mantel altogether, leaving all the focus on the wall-hanging.
I agree with a live edge mantel. That would work better with the stone wall.
Sometimes a BIG bold change is what you need. Paint it white! It will tie the entire room together and I know you’ll love how neutral it will become. Everything else will POP! And that ceiling will finally(!) take center stage. It is gorgeous. Also, that wall hanging is magical!!! Wow! So beautiful. It, too, will look FANTASTIC on the white fire place 🙂
I think no mantel and just the hanging would be very lovely and have a much nicer impact.
Repainting the coffee table another colour would help as well.
I too like the idea of moving the couch closer & painting the entire fireplace would look amazing! Love the ceiling and the piano! And why not use the fireplace sometimes in the winter? Could be so cozy and a great alternative to watching tv.
I think a different mantle could really perk up the fireplace – I can envision a large, wood shelf the sit off-center so it wraps around that left edge kinda like: http://hgtvhome.sndimg.com/content/dam/images/hgtv/fullset/2014/5/15/0/DP-Lauren-Bland_white-brown-contemporary-living-room-mantel-close-up_s3x4.jpg.rend.hgtvcom.1280.1707.jpeg
Love the rug, love the whole vibe of the room! Also, this idea came to me as I was gazing lovingly at your fireplace, trying to think of a more modern-looking mantel that didn’t compete with all that pretty stone, and I’ve never seen it done before, but…
YOU SHOULD DO A LUCITE MANTEL!!!!! That is all. (But how cool would that actually be?!)
I agree with the mantle needing some more weight. You could always stain it a darker brown. More colour accents is great, but definitely embrace the brown and natural tones. I like the fireplace that faux stone, it looked real to me. Check out Geninne D Zlatkis Instagram. She’s a great artist working and living in Santa Fe, New Mexico. It’s full of colour but embraces the earth tones of New Mexico. She’s got some fabulous pictures of her house as well. Her handle on Insta is geninne. If you haven’t already heard of her.
And pulling the couch forward is brilliant. Having the couch closer, might entice you to cozy up in front of the fire place. You could put a sideboard behind it to house the record player and I think maybe a bookshelf or two would be could on either side of the window might balance out that majestic fireplace.
😀 Sure it will be awesome
I am going to apologize now for sounding harsh and snooty….but it’s all out of sheer love and adoration I promise! I love the earthy neutral vibe you have going….the rug is gorgeous! I agree that things are a bit brownish and I agree the coffee table colour is not working….brings out the orangy tones in the wood too much. Maybe a blue/black to tie in with your artwork above the piano. And while that weaving is amazing….I feel the colours are too muddy against the colour of the fireplace. It needs to pop!
Your living room is goals! <3
P A I N T T H E F I R E P L A C E W H I T E ! It’s painted faux stone, anyway…go for it.
And take the mantle down, hang one statement piece up. BAM!
I love your vibe. Keep up the awesomeness and keep on sharing!
(Don’t you love how everyone has an opinion 😉
Ditto!
I love your room! Even if your mantle is too small, a wood or stone mantle is too obvious to me. I would paint the mantle the background color of the portrait or the color of the door. Add something tall and heavy (visually or literally) to the right of the sofa. (Why is it always easier to solve other people’s spaces than your own?)
Paint the sucker white, and add a chunkier, more mid-century modern stained wood mantle. The cut of your current mantle looks off somehow – I think it’s too small, and the trim is too something… traditional? Something about it reminds me of the mid-2000s. I’m thinking something like this: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/37436240628272374/. Also, I totally hear you about too much brown – I think the way to temper too much brown is with a LOT of white, some glass/lucite, and metal.
That piano is so gorgeous, and the fireplace is just awesome. I really like how the rustic feel of the thick rug stands up to the fireplace.
My suggestion? Make this room into a true music room where your husband can enjoy playing with his band mates and friends, as well as it being a second living/entertaining space.
I’m not talking about a gear room, but a comfy, inviting space for pickin’ and grinnin’ sessions. Your husband could hang his guitars on the walls when not in use. The rug and the tapestry would absorb the sound bouncing off the stone and wood, improving the acoustics. The room already has a masculine, rugged vibe to it with that amazing stone, the lovely wood textures and that dramatic leather sofa. I’d push that a little further by moving the rattan chair and bringing in one or two heavier feeling chairs to balance the big couch, piano and fireplace. I’d also suggest a textural window treatment instead of sheers.
You’ve done such a great job on the space–it’ll be cool to see how you finish tweaking it! 🙂
The woodwork and paintings enhances the beauty of this room. Beautiful!
Happy Sunday
www.lovecompassionatelee.com
My husband does awesome mantle instillations using huge solid pieces of lumber. wish we lived closer! Check out our instagram! gandjwoodworking. There is only a few mantles there as he does lots of other work. I always love a white fireplace, but not sure about stone being painted white. Its amazing how much it brightens a space, which is why I’m always all for it. We don’t use our fireplace (gas and broken) so i cut a piece of plywood, sprayed it black, and cut a bunch of 1-3 inch slices of a thick branch and glued it to the black plywood to look like stacked logs (that may not make sense), and placed it in the front of the fireplace opening. i can pull it out at any point but i’ve left it there for years.Pinterest: faux stacked logs in fireplace. good luck! the room is beautiful!
I like the color of the fireplace. I think the mantel is too small though and may be throwing the whole thing off. A slightly wider, chunkier (heavy and thick) and dark color would look better and pick up the floor tone. Then you could also place a larger item on it to make a bold statement instead of many small ones. Otherwise the room looks very cozy. I have two quick questions 1. who is the artist of the portrait above the piano? And 2. the croton plant on the piano looks so healthy. Does it need lots of light? mine is leggy and drops leaves all the time but I face north and wonder if it isn’t getting enough light.