Decorating Dilemma: 90-Degree Fireplace Mantel

[valanice]

Calling all decorators! I'd love some advice. :)

We just moved to a fabulous new home (well, new to us) and while I love decorating, there are a few things I'm just stuck on. The main thing is the fireplace. If anyone has tips to offer, I'm all ears. :)

UPDATE 1/27: Added more pix with current furniture.

Comments

[anonymous]

Have you done anything to this yet? We had a similar type of fireplace except that instead of having brick half way up the walls, we had stone that went all the way to the ceiling. We have now removed it after living with it for 10 years. However, the vent pipe for ours was beige. This made me wonder also if you could paint your fireplace the same color as your walls in the proper finish to make it blend. I wonder if a nice simple framed photographs would look nice - hung above each mantle so its even, and not even put much of anything on the mantle to give it a cleaner look. I have purchased inexepensive black frames that had a wide white mat, and then as a result offered perhaps a "5x7-ish" type opening for a black & white vacation/landscape photo, etc. Maybe you could place some short interesting votive type candles (I'm thinking Pier One style) along the mantle to make it symmetrical since it is inevitable that due to its size, it is somewhat of an eye-catching area even though your furniture is not oriented around it like a focal point.
Or maybe you could do more narrow, but taller frames of a print or something on the wall & have some kind of taller candlesticks on either side.
I think your room looks beautiful. Sometimes there's not a lot to do with an unconventional fireplace, but the rest of your home is so pretty that I'm sure whatever you decide will be just right.