Hi again! For anyone that's interested, I have finally managed to have a go at my varnished stone fireplace and am pretty happy with the results… It's not perfect but makes a huge difference in terms of light in the room and cost me next to nothing! I used a tiny bit of annie sloan paint to dull and lighten the stone - my mum sent me leftovers of 'paris grey' that she had used on some furniture. The link I had found which described the painting process belonged to an artist, so I was aware that my results would differ quite drastically from hers, but I'm still happy! I also had a new mantlepiece made from old planks that my boyfriend has had stashed away for years - a carpenter we often use put it together for the equivalent of about US$10. We don't own the house so I haven't waxed the paint on the stone (meaning it can be washed off with water and a light scrub) and the new mantlepiece is literally slotted on top of the old one and discreetly screwed in place. It is no huge home improvement project but made a big difference to the feel of the room using minimal time, money and mess… Now just the rest of the room to decorate…!

We do not deal with fireplaces, but we create all the stone surrounding for them. Lately we have install a fireplace similar to what you are looking for this in the picture is just the naked insert probably the best place to contact is Total Renewable in Somerset: http://www.totalrenewablesolutions.com/ despite the website not showing direct images of fireplaces/stones/inserts etc. they currently install and deal with a lot of different brand of fireplaces including MCZ from the previous image. Hope this help! good luck!

You will need to check with your landlord and ensure any wiring is safe and accessible at all times. I would be tempted to make a sectional bookcase in three parts over the whole chimney breast. If you send me the dimensions and a side section detail I'll do you a sketch. You will need to remove it and make good when you leave but at least you may be able to use it in your next home.

I am completely new to everything to do with interior decoration and find myself on my own a bit. I am trying to find out how much it would cost to get a stone brick mantlepiece and surround put around my gas fireplace. I have no idea who would even do that...I can't find any purchase options online. I know how I want it to look, but I don't know what the bricks are called/what the pricing options are for different kind of stone bricks...My googling has left me at a complete loss. I'm based in Glasgow. The fireplace itself is in need of some maintenance but is otherwise fully functioning, I'm just investigating how much it would be for the mantlepiece at the moment. Can anyone just even give me some pointers of where to look/who to talk to?