Changing the fireplace in the 'library' - how?
Dear fellow Houzzers
Having never done anything like this before, I would be very grateful for some thoughts, views, advice, dos/don'ts etc.
We have this fireplace in the 3rd reception room we call the library.
We think it is a mish-mash of late 40/early 50s style and the house is (very) late Victorian/early Edwardian. The fireplace is not attractive and does not go with the period of the house at all. So it has to go.
We have seen this fireplace which I think is really pretty and is more 'edwardian' in style (at least that is what my research has led me to believe!)
(the OH apologises for the bad photoshop job!)
Edited to add: The OH has also found this one which does rather go with the overall ridiculousness of the room! FYI we call it the room of ridiculousness as we are going for an over the top Victorian study/gentlemans club style. Full of artefacts, curiosities, and silliness really. :D
Now for the problems/questions/general cry for help.
1. I don't know if I want to burn stuff to get heat or have gas piped through.
2. To burn stuff I would have to get the chimney lined
3. To get the chimney lined I would need scaffolding as the chimneys are really high - access and cost issues
4. I don't know if I need the chimneys lining if I have a gas fire insert
5. I don't know if I can get a 'burning stuff device' to fit in a fireplace that looked like the one I want.
6. I am in a smokeless zone city so need a flue insert as the smokeless fuel can degrade the mortar in the chimney apparently(?)
7. I don't know if I can get a gas fire put in to that fireplace and what the costs would be.
8. I don't have an endless budget (who does :()
9. I don't know what order to do stuff in.
10. I don't know if I can get the fireplace put in and leave the decision on the heat method to afterward when I have saved up a bit.
11. I don't know what to search for on Google to help with answers.
12. I don't know what is under those horrible dirty beige tiles
Our gut is to go with getting the fireplace changed and leave the heating method. This will allow us to decorate the room and save up. We need the outside of the house painting anyway which needs scaffolding to do, so doing that and a flue at the same time would seem sensible.
Any help/advice etc most gratefully received!
Comments (33)
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Comments (14)There is a large cupboard downstairs for storage which is a big plus. Might live in it for a bit myself but still want the possibility of renting it out in the future. The hallway storage is an amazing idea for the washing machine! I never thought of that. Do you think it would be too much of a squeeze to make it two bathrooms as well? One on-suite leading to a bedroom that would take the place of the now bathroom, then a hallway bathroom for visitors both located in between the two bedrooms. Thank you so much for your response....See MoreHow to modernise fireplace
Comments (7)Thanks Sonia! I was leaning towards white too although I do love that last pic with the blue! I should have also said, we will strip off the wallpaper and paint (assuming paper comes off nearly enough!). I was thinking of a navy or teal along the wall with the fire and maybe a pale grey or white on the other walls....See MoreRead all the books in your home? Transform your library.
Comments (3)Sorry but I’m going to be less polite than Sonia -I would be ashamed to colour coordinate my books,whether they are read or not. I’m not sure how this ever became a thing. If they’re never going to be needed again pass them on for others to enjoy and buy something more suitable to decorate your shelves. As you can tell, this hit a nerve......See MoreAny advice on how I can either remove, or renovate this fireplace?
Comments (4)Also should have asked in other comment - what is it you don't like about it currently? I like it but I'm biased of course because I chose something g similar myself! If you like the shape and overall design but would prefer a different colour then it may be possible to alter (spray paint?). You would have to check though that whatever you put on top wouldn't cause the metal to rust or become blemished in some way. Alternatively you could leave the surround and change the hearth? And/or depending whether you use it as a fire look at changing the fire basket bit? Are you doing other work in this room? And what's the overall look/feel you want to achieve?...See More
T Gray
6 years agoT Gray
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rachelmidlands
5 years agoOooh, I love this room. Going for something similar in our dining room only with a slightly more rustic/industrial look. I too am guilty of the billy bookcases, they are useful tho. Totally agree with changing the fireplace. The one you have is nice but I don’t think it agrees with your styling. I’m hoping to change our seventies monstrosity (in a Victorian house) to a full on cast iron jobby :) Do keep us updated as you’re giving me loads of ideas. Don’t forget the aspidistra!
T Gray thanked rachelmidlandsT Gray
5 years agoAnd so it begins! Is it weird to be super excited about building work? :) Some photos of the progress so far.
As you can see we have cleared the room, which meant removing the mirror. The people who did the plastering thought it was a great idea to leave the mirror in place and plaster up to it, so we have to get a plasterer in to fill the gap. They also thought it was a fabulous idea to leave the alarm PIR in place and plaster around that too!
The plaster coving was glossed and had yellowed really badly as you may be able to see in the pic below so had to sand and give it 2 coats of decent brilliant white emulsion. First coat on the ceiling done too.
T Gray
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoThe workmen arrived the next day to remove the fireplace.
Here you can see the old back boiler in all its glory. Bit of a mess as the whole thing was filled with dust and rubble from when they built it. An earlier bodge!
Once that lot was cleared out a beautiful chimney opening was revealed!
At this point we wavered on what we were going to do. Wouldn't that make a lovely spot for a wood burner? Well, yes, but we are in a city centre, we have paid for the gas to be done and it would not fit with the room really. Oh well, we know it it there and we can always dig it out again.
Bye, bye
T Gray
5 years agoAll finished and we are just waiting for the plasterer to come around later today to fix where the mirror was.
Once that is done, we will have this put in place
With these tiles (the green matches the emerald of the chaise)
and a lovely walnut surround.
It is a modern repro, but it is sympathetic to the room and the house and enables us to get one room how we want it. We have been here a year now and are starting to get a sense of what we want to do with each room. As per all the advice on here it is a pretty good idea to live in a place as it is before embarking on major changes. Though I will have to give the OH some breathing space before the next one (really dislikes the disruption and DIY!) ;-)
More photos soon!
T Gray
5 years agoBeen a bit busy over the last couple of weeks with work and doing a bit of wallpapering every night (who knew wallpapering an 11 foot drop was torture on an amateurs arms and shoulders!) we have finally got it done. Been doing some research too and apparently the house is Edwardian not Victorian, though lots of Victorian styles came through into the period. Edwardian is apparently 1890 to 1914 (even though Queen Victoria was still on the throne). Every day is a schoolday!
Anyway, the look we have gone for is very old fashioned, opulent yet comfortable and cosy. It is not quite finished as I am going to investigate some oak mouldings to get the bookcases looking less Ikea and more country house library. It really won't be to everyone's taste and is quite different to most of the styles you see on here but we like it. :)
The other bit of completely awesome news is that we won the recent Houzz/ Schneider light switches competition and a lovely lady from Schneider has come to visit to show us the switches we could have. Having not won anything like this before I am incredibly excited! They are not fitted yet but we will be sharing photos of the typical bodge we have found in the house that this will fix.
In addition to how the room looked before we moved in, here is a photo of the room when we first decided to buy.
And now... from the door
And from the patio door
And the other corner
The picture on the mantel will be replaced by a big ornate gold framed mirror. We grabbed the pic from an antiques place but it turns out to be a print - darn it, Antiques Roadshow hopes dashed! lol!So, onward and upwards, the study is probably next, I am feeling the possibility of a 60s mustard and grey vibe in there!
T Gray
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E D
5 years agoT Gray
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Emily