A beautifully adorned fireplace can be the ideal place to keep yourself warm in the winters. Many modern homes feature fireplaces with contemporary designs, that beautify the living room immensely. They range from sleek streamlined to high-end designs. A fireplace without a mantel looks bare and open. A well planned fireplace mantel adds elegance to the interior of the house. Therefore, you must pay a little more attention to the fireplace mantel plans while installing a fireplace.
Around the 12th century, fireplaces throughout Europe had chimneys while the architectural designs were mostly influenced by the Renaissance styles. Designs of a fireplace and its mantel will depend on the interiors of your house, the climatic conditions and the frequency of usage. Some of the most beautiful designs are carved with wood and bricks that have a traditional appeal.
Common Types of Fireplace Mantels
The Stone Mantel
Stone mantels are expensive, especially when made from marble. A marble fireplace looks contemporary, chic and adds elegance and charm to a fireplace. You can decorate the mantel with hand crafted materials and other kinds of home decorative pieces. Limestone and slate rock mantels are comparatively cheaper than marble mantels. Granite fireplaces look extremely gorgeous. You can also look for other types of natural stones to decorate the mantel.
The Wooden Mantel
A wooden mantel complements fireplaces that have a traditional décor. You can varnish the wood for rendering luster to the mantel. Many contemporary designs have evolved with painted bamboo as mantels. A wooden fireplace mantel is usually crafted from barks of oak, maple, cherry and pine. They are quite inexpensive as compared to other types.
The Firebrick Mantel
Firebricks look exquisitely beautiful. They have countryside appeal and the burnt tinge of firebricks appear amazingly beautiful. The bricks are naturally tanned that creates a unique theme for the fireplace mantel. Brick mantels with rustic settings are perfectly traditional Contemporary brick mantels are raised in amalgamation with a variety of stones and clay.
Tips to Design a Fireplace Mantel
Once you know the type of mantel that will suit your home, you can go ahead with the artwork and the color scheme. The design and artwork depend on the material used for construction. For example, a wooden fireplace is usually enamored with antique pieces while a marbled one can be ornamented with porcelain showpieces and contemporary showpieces.
Color
The color scheme should complement the interior design of your house. You can opt for either light shades (blue, rose, off white, etc ) or bold shades that would blend well with the material of the fireplace mantel. A pure white mantel built with marble looks brilliant. Shades of poppy orange, muted green and saffron are modern hue. Early century fireplaces had eye-catching tableaux arrangements for their mantels.
Architecture
The architecture of the fireplace mantel include the artwork, accessories and ornamentation. If every decorative piece matches the theme, then your fireplace along with its mantel will look extremely beautiful. Ethnic crafts, artifacts and travel souvenirs look wonderful on a mantel. You can place them on the tabletop or on the pedestals. Red corals, wall scones, mirrors and aqua bottles are some other accessories for fireplace mantels.
I'm sure you have understood the concept of a fireplace mantel from the ideas explained in the aforementioned content. You can come up with some more designs by exploring your aesthetic senses. Get the perfect design and let your fireplace look brilliant and beautiful.
