Santa may be snubbing his nose at your fireplace due to its outdated look, but you can change that. Many talented people are in the business of redoing the surrounding area of a fireplace with simple or ornate designs.
Changing the area around your fireplace, often called a “fireplace surround,” can be a quick and easy upgrade. No need for a major remodel because most surrounds can cover your existing surround.
“There isn’t anything we can’t do with a fireplace,” said Bruce Almo, owner of Island Masonry in Arlington. “Brick was hot 19 years ago; today it’s stone.”
Stone fireplaces have been around for a long time, but they are fast becoming a popular choice for homeowners. The nice thing is that you can have a fireplace that looks like it’s made of carved stone. Instead, it’s made from concrete and lightweight aggregates that are cast over real rocks, Almo said.
These faux stones come in many styles and colors, so you can get any look you want.
For example, you can have the charm of an English cottage with a cobblestone style fireplace. If you love the outdoors, you can have a river rock look. Or, you can surround your fireplace with big, blocky stones that immediately conjure up images of castles and medieval times. Whatever your taste, many options are available. All come in various shades of gray, taupe and other earth tones.
It can be hard to detect the difference between these faux stones and real stones. Plus, they are half the cost. “People always want the real stuff until they see the fake,” Almo said.
You can spruce up your chimney, too. “We can take an old, cruddy chimney on a house and cover it with stone to make it new and updated,” Almo said.
Martha’s Design Center in Everett specializes in wood fireplace surrounds, another popular choice. Owner Martha Augustson has been designing them for 25 years. She says that changing the area around your fireplace can add tremendous value and aesthetics to your home.
Her fireplace surrounds are mostly one of a kind because she rarely duplicates designs for customers. She has a notebook of pictures that show a range of styles to inspire ideas, and she will come to your home to offer suggestions.
One customer had Augustson design a Cantonese-style fireplace surround in honor of the baby they were adopting.
“I do what customers need to have done to make it work with the decor of their homes,” Augustson said. “I’m very careful about making sure customers are very informed about what they are getting,” she added.
At Martha’s Design Center, you can choose from hundreds of appliques and moldings to create the grandeur of Greco-Roman architecture in your fireplace surround. “You will never get tired of looking at these,” Augustson said.
She emphasizes that creating new decor for a fireplace is a collaborative effort between herself and her customer. She loves the shared experience. Customer participation is a big part of making a custom surround. “We have a lot of fun designing these,” she said.
Fireplace surrounds can come in a variety of other styles and materials.
Contemporary designs tend to have clean lines and are made of granite or glass mosaic tiles. Gas burners might have an artfully placed pile of stones instead of log burners. The options are limitless and most designers are willing to customize the surround to fit in with your decor.
Costs for a new fireplace surround typically range from about $500 to about $2,000, based on materials and if it extends above the mantel.
Martha’s Design Center
1806 Hewitt Ave.
Everett, WA 98201
(425) 343-8561
Island Masonry Co. Inc.
22507 40th Dr. NE
Arlington, WA
(425) 754-1547
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