FAMILY ROOM
The clients desired an updated fireplace wall that would give a nod to the Mid-Century styling of their newly purchased 1958 home. The existing fireplace was faced with stack stone and included a raised hearth. The room was dark with the closest windows being on the covered back porch. Around the corner from the fireplace wall the hallway led to a small guest room with a wide opening and an existing, large modern barn door. This door, with horizontal panels served as the inspiration for facing the fireplace in clean, horizontal grained rift-cut white oak panels. The new fireplace design extended the horizontal wood design with 42” wide floating shelves above low enclosed cabinets for storage. The existing hearth was removed along with the existing stack stone, visually freeing up floor space and leaving the remaining firebox now a foot above the floor. The designer selected a custom, handcrafted Mid-Century style 4” circular pattern tile to be applied below the firebox as well as above and on each side.
Honed Absolute Black granite slab was specified for the new floor flush hearth as well as framing the inside and front edge of the firebox and the countertops on the new adjoining low cabinets. Circular hardware pulls in a polished chrome finish added a reflective touch of jewelry to the expanse of the clean horizontal design as well as repeating the circular tile pattern. The millwork lighting in the floating shelves helped illuminate the fireplace wall which extend the space.