Interior Design Fireplaces
If you are considering a career in interior design, fireplaces may become either your friend or your enemy rather rapidly.
Though they do have a practical purpose, the fireplace can cause quite a dilemma for any designer. Aside from the many things that can be placed on top of a mantle, designers will have to decide what color to pain the surface and whether or not to create texture on top of a flat panel. While the right decision can really open up a room, the wrong decision can create chaos (not to mention an unhappy client). The best way to go about tackling this type of project is to ask your client whether they plan to build any fires or not (believe it or not, lots of people just have these in their homes for show!). Once this has been determined, the overall interior design (fireplaces and all) can begin.
To start, look around the room itself –do you notice any one type of style? If so, your client may wish to keep this theme going. If not, you may want to ask about the sort of direction they wish to take. Sometimes, those that have a traditional space will want to get rid of it completely (and vice versa). If your client tells you to go ahead and do what you like, think about the overall shape of the room before you continue.
While a red brick fire spot may be traditional, it may make the space smaller if you are not careful. In this case, consider painting it white in order to open up the room. Likewise, placing large stones or shells on the front of a fire area may make it stand out, but is it practical? After you know what you are going to do with the front of the surface, you will then have to turn your attention to the mantle. Thanks to a large history of interior design, fireplaces have come a long way from their rustic beginnings.
Mantles should be free of clutter, though they should also reflect the client if they are inside of a family room. This means that you need to find a way to showcase important items while allowing this area to really stand out – not an easy task.
There are many ways to go about interior design fireplace-wise. All it really takes is a few hours of client consultation coupled with the many different styles that are available today.