It used to be that the fireplace was the heart of the home. Not only was it the main source of heat in every home, the hearth was also a place to cook, to visit with family and friends, and a place to cuddle together on a particularly frigid day. Today, most do not use the fireplace as the main source of heat, but the fireplace continues to be one of the favorite spots of the home. It is around the hearth that many families celebrate holidays, take family photos, and gather near a gently crackling blaze to ward off the chill of brisk fall days and cold winter nights.
Since so many people continue to use the fireplace as the focal point of their home, it is no wonder that many are looking for ways to accessorize their fireplace to make it truly unique and reflective of their individual personalities and decorating styles.
With so many accessories to choose from and more than a few fireplace decorating options, it is not uncommon for the process of choosing the right accessories for your fireplace to become overwhelming, especially if you have no existing fireplace accessories to draw inspiration from.
Probably the easiest way that you can begin to accessorize your bare fireplace is by incorporating the use of a fireplace screen. There are two basic types of fireplace screens which include the flat screen and the folded screen. The flat fireplace screen consists of a solid, unbendable structure which sits directly in front of your fireplace opening. The folded screen is constructed using 3, 4, or 5 panels and sits a little out from your fireplace.
Both flat and folding fireplace screens come in a variety of styles to compliment any home’s décor including Antique, Traditional, Contemporary, and Country. There are also many materials to choose from such as steel, brass, wrought iron, copper, glass, stained glass and polished iron. Fireplace screens can range from practical and plain to elaborately crafted pieces of art which are not really practical for containing a fire but are a very exquisite addition to any décor.
Another practical way that you can accessorize your fireplace is to purchase fireplace tools which match or compliment your fireplace screen. The most common materials used to create fireplace tools are iron and brass, but there are also many other materials to be found including chrome, bronze, copper, nickel, wrought iron and pewter. Fireplace tools can range from being simplistic in design to being elegantly styled with gorgeous accents made of materials such as marble and cherry wood.
If you want to bring life to your fireplace without having to build a conventional wood fire, perhaps you should accessorize your fireplace with a candelabra. The fireplace candelabra is a candle holder designed specifically to sit inside your fireplace. When lit the fireplace candelabra creates the warm flickering glow that you would normally get from a wood fire but without the wood and hassle of building one.
So, if your fireplace could use a little sprucing up, don’t despair. These are just a few of the ways that you can easily take your fireplace from ordinary to extraordinary.
About the Author:Pamela Tice is the owner of home decor websites specializing in unique Fireplace Screens and Fireplace Accessories. Visit http://www.fireplacescreensetc.com to get your hearth ready for the heating season and turn your ordinary fireplace into an extraordinary one.
Article Tags: fireplace, iron, screen
Read more articles by: Heather Berken Article Source: www.iSnare.com Permanent Link: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=67203&ca=Home+Management Article published on July 17, 2006 at iSnare.com
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2 comments:
Not a Bad Idea!
Fireplace Accessories
I completely agree. Fireplace accessories bring life to a standard and dull fireplace. In my home, the fireplace is my family's favorite place so we try to accentuate it by adding hand forged iron fireplace accessories. They look wonderful and completely blends with our hand forged iron furniture.
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