Decorative fireplace mantle, change your atmosphere
When we think of mantels, we think of elegant Haussmann-style marble fireplaces adorned with moldings. Prussian mantels in marble, cast iron and bronze. Art Deco mantels embellished with wood, metal, stone, earthenware, stained glass and other heterogeneous materials. Nowadays, the anti-pollution standard has extinguished the fireplace and given way to a new trend: the decorative mantel.
Decorative mantel, where to install it?
First, you thought you’d install it in the living room. Logical, but too banal for your taste and Madame’s. Your bedroom seems to be the perfect place, given the varying sizes of these dummy fireplaces. This time it’s Madame who thinks the room would be too full of furniture, with the wardrobe, chest of drawers, shelves… Why not the children’s room, where they could turn it into a kind of toy chest open onto… the mess!
But perhaps there’s no need to go into that now… The bathroom! An original room for a decorative fireplace, Its advantage is that it’s spacious, and this new piece of furniture would replace the all-too-traditional mirror cabinet. By adding towel rails on the sides, the mantel could be used for make-up utensils, with a rack for bath products.
Not forgetting the mirror on top, painted in lacquered black with white side supports. It would then be in perfect harmony with the black and white checkerboard of the tiles. A nice idea, no doubt, but this time Monsieur lacks enthusiasm… The last place we would have thought of, the entrance to the apartment.
Given its width, this would be ideal. The mirror in the center with little bouquets of flowers at the ends of the mantle, a family portrait, a key-holder, sunglasses, a shoe-holder in the hearth, a small decorative lamp, and Madame can touch up her make-up without having to go back into the bathroom, wearing shoes. The idea appeals to her, arouses her curiosity, and the lady of the house is already burning with anticipation.
A coat for 4 seasons
In winter, Christmas is all about the right decorations. Traditional holly and its little red balls. Colorful candles, garlands with magical reflections, twinkling stars that make little ones dream, biblical characters in the crib, Santa’s wagon pulled by reindeer and dressed in flashing lights… to make your tree green with envy!
In spring, the first flowers brighten up this mantle, surrounding your works of art. An opportunity to place a few frames from your amateur photography, such as the blossoming trees, against a glowing sunset that pierces a cloud of mist.
In summer, objects found at flea markets dot the mantelpiece: an old alarm clock, a retro clock with Roman numerals attacked by rust. Summer is always a time for repainting. Your white mantel, for example, could use a rusty hue. With the mirror fitted behind your collection of vintage objects, you’ll appreciate them from every angle.
Autumn is a time for vacation memories: seashells and starfish, dried lavender, family photos under a masterful firework display. Sand, in a transparent bottle topped with a miniature plant – the little things we notice most. Towards the end of autumn, the Halloween pumpkin makes its natural home every year.
The art fireplace takes off!
A military airplane pilot who couldn’t bring himself to leave his career behind without a lasting memory, decided to build a decorative fireplace from the carcass of an old aircraft. With the frame reworked with a sledgehammer, the retiree created his “hothead” work, a nickname that had always stuck to him. His chimney was made up of pieces of landing gear on the two pillars that supported the aileron-shaped mantle, all held together with fifties-era “old cuckoo” rivets. To this day, the aileron-shaped mantel is lined with a veritable collection of model aircraft from every era.
The mantel, jungle decor
As a nature lover, your living room is overwhelmed by a forest of plants. You knew that the blue decorative mantel you’d recently bought was out of place in this room, despite the leaf-shaped mouldings that made you decide to buy it. All you had to do was pull out all the green stops with genuine artistry. Today, this chameleon-like mantel has become an integral part of your living-room jungle. Sometimes, “it doesn’t take much to be happy”…
Trendy mantle or wall-mounted
Today, if you visit the Chemin’Arte website , the top fireplace is the wall-mounted one, with its modern, elegant lines. Whether the system is electric or ethanol-powered, it’s a joy to admire these sleek, avant-garde designs. The advantages: no smell or dust, no flue, and fewer mantels since they can be built in.
Returning to our coats, the current trend is to make maximum use of space. Original models feature compartments, ideal for books, glasses, wine bottles, games and videos. Some of these units are open like shelves, while others have closures with inlaid handles and small doors that blend into the décor, making them invisible. So our little secrets stay nice and warm.
When it comes to country homes, vintage stained woods are timeless. There’s plenty of choice, with innovative shapes blending the old and the new. Some models feature classic metal leaf moldings or small animal sculptures for nature lovers.
Colors without borders
The advantage of deco mantels is that most are made of wood, so they’ re easy to paint. Acrylic is perfect for this job, and all you have to do is choose your colors. To protect the paint and wood, you can apply a matte or gloss varnish, or why not a lacquered effect that will make your mantel smooth and pleasant to the touch, like marble.
Assembling your chimney
Are you a DIY enthusiast who wants to make your own mantel? You’ll need a drill, jigsaw, sander, ruler, pencil, square, hammer (and mallet), glue and nails (and screws).
Get cleats to support the structure, and solid pine boards. OSB 2 boards if you opt for more stylish mantle supports. OSB coated with a light oak stain and a coat of varnish looks great, but if you prefer white paint, this will also make the OSB boards stand out nicely. Your solid pine mantle, which you can cut into inventive curves with your jigsaw, before sanding and painting to your liking. All that’s left to do is add a few mouldings, which you’ll find in DIY stores. To choose your dimensions, make a sketch on a sheet of paper and a plan of the layout on the wall where you intend to install it.
From old to new
Reclaiming an old mantel for a new one requires imagination. The first step is to gently clean it with period moldings. Then add elements such as earthenware, stained glass, concrete paint, colored plaster, shells or colored glass pieces. If you’re looking for simplicity, a nice coat of paint may suffice.
There’s no limit to your imagination when it comes to decorating, and your mantel is just waiting for you to exercise your talents.
