need help with mantle

3 months ago

Ok, the family room is a rally off shape and nowhere to put a tv, so it needs to stay above fireplace… for perspective, the mantle is 12 feet wide

How should we decorate?

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Comments (8)

grapefruit1_ar
3 months ago
I think that your fireplace and mantel are very attractive! But, are there wine bottles in the niches? If so, I would remove them as I am not a fan of using booze as part of decor.
bwhirish
Original Author
3 months ago
Yes they are… what else would you put in there?
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Congratulations, lyban! It's wonderful! I like the print better than the clock. Glad the lamp if gone. Love the orchid addition and the gourds. This feels more like the rest of your room. I'd be tempted to keep the print in the frame since it's a nice water scene and place your daughter's photo on your piano or the side table by the hearth. See what you think by switching the outward facing right duck with the one by the orchid. I agree with 3 dogs that a horizontal mirror may work but a round may be better, although you may not need any once you change the scones. IMO you don't need to fill the space or emphasize the height. I too have 20' ceilings in this house but prefer to keep the eye grounded to human scale. Even when we built our last home with more sane 12+' ceilings I kept the profile of art, furniture low. Nor do you need to bounce light since your room gets lots of wonderful light. I think your mantle may be too high to reflect back a nice image since you apparently take these photos from a catwalk on the upper floor. These are the reasons employed for using mirrors when not needed to check appearances. That being said, you may love the feel of a mirror, but get the sconces up before deciding. Again, great job!
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love your mirrors for the mantel, I think you are on the right track, just need a little tweaking. I would layer the round mirror in front of the tall mirror on one side and then add a large vase with stems on the other side. the height of the vase with stems would be higher than the round mirror but shorter than the tall mirror, you will have three different heights of items
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need help with mantle decor
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Comments (31)
The mirror is perfectly placed. In my home I deliberately placed 2 mirrors near windows to capture the light.. The solution is to hang some art where the mirror reflects it. From other positions in the room, the mirror may reflect the outdoors. Hard to tell from the photo. Placing a mirror in the correct place in a room allows you to optimise natural light. To do so, place the mirror adjacent to a window to perfectly catch the angle of light and bounce it throughout the room. https://www.countryliving.com/uk/homes-interiors/interiors/how-to/a854/how-to-use-mirrors-to-make-home-bigger-brighter/ Hanging a mirror in a dark part of a room does nothing to increase the brightness in a room. A mirror can only reflect the light that hits it, so it makes sense to put it where the light hits the wall, near a window.
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Comments (4)
What is the reason behing the mirror staying? It is reflecting railing, which is not interesting. The books are too short, so I would remove. I would explore choices: 1) all white pieces on the mantel, so it's more cohesive. Right now, the thngs on each side do not relate. 2) if the mirror is hiding something and needs to stay, I would paint frame black or dark brown and change the mirror out for art. I would also change it to horizontal. Then bring more color with accessories. Be sure to vary heights on both sides. Are those live plants on the coffee table? Try clustering them a bit more so they connect. Could do this on a woven/wicker tray to add texture. If not, put one on a book. What is the large piece on the bottom shelf? You could replace with a large basket underneath to keep throws nearby and to soften/add texture.
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PRO
BeverlyFLADeziner
3 months ago
It's my rule that when you decide to place a TV above the FP mantel, no accessories get placed on the mantel, so I would remove everything you currently have there. It's just a mess of random stuff.

No one places a wine rack next to a fireplace opening because wine is ruined if heated, so I have placed wood logs in the niches. If you want to use them for storage, then cut panels to fit the niches and apply the cut wood circles you can buy on Amazon to give it the same appearance.

Wayfair sells precut small birch logs for decoration in the niches.

I selected to lengthen the canvas above the cabinet to balance the room. Maximum 3 things on the top of the cabinet. None of them Yadro

I took away the brackets from the fireplace mantel. A good carpenter can hang the mantle without the use of wood brackets.

Instead of fussy small plants all over I added a couple of larger ones that don't fade into the background.
la_la Girl
3 months ago
^ agree crisp and minimal for the mantle when the TV is above - love the logs
bwhirish
Original Author
3 months ago
Love it! Thank you!
lisase
3 months ago
Love the logs and clean mantle!
chloebud
3 months ago
Love Beverly’s suggestions. Mantels and hearths alway look nicer when kept simple.
PRO
Everything Home
11 days ago
You might try adding more photos of the space. There indeed might be a better placement for the TV. Otherwise, we might suggest changing the mantle itself to something more simple. Please see a few images from our designers below for more ideas:
European Country Flair · More Info

Posh Home Remodel · More Info

Life of the Party · More Info

Down to Earth · More Info

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need help with mantle

Comments (8)

grapefruit1_ar

bwhirish
Original Author

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BeverlyFLADeziner

la_la Girl

bwhirish
Original Author

lisase

chloebud

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need help with mantle

Comments (8)

grapefruit1_ar

bwhirishOriginal Author

Related Discussions

BeverlyFLADeziner

la_la Girl

bwhirishOriginal Author

lisase

chloebud

Everything Home

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

bwhirish
Original Author

bwhirish
Original Author