When pore your space around a focal point , furnishings make all the difference .

Ali Harper

While there are on the face of it countless way toarrange a room , there are sure considerations that can help you create a balanced , well - think - out room .   Here , we ’ve gathered our top steer for style furniture around a open fireplace to ensure a more cozy , inviting placement .

living room with pewter hued stucco fireplace, oatmeal colored tweed sofa, marine blue grasscloth wallpaper behind bookshelf area, white oak wooden beams on ceiling, mixed wood chairs with neutral cushions and rattan basket

Credit:Ali Harper

1. Figure Out How You Use the Space

Before style furniture around your open fireplace , it ’s imperative to think about how you apply the room . If it ’s a destination for watching the big secret plan every Sunday , your advance might be unlike than if you ’re using it as a moreformal sitting elbow room . Will you want guests to be able to put their invertebrate foot up ? Are mass of surfaces for crapulence necessary ? How about a plot table ? Finally , will storage be an issue ? Living in your space before you determine the appropriate trappings as well as the layout is always advisable , especially when you ’re also working with be element like a fireplace .

2. Keep Sightlines Clear

hazard are you want your hearth to be the focal point of your space . For that ground , it ’s important to keep sightlines as clear as potential . If your fireplace is visible from your front door , ensure the fence furnishings are n’t too tall or wide to knock out the perspective . While it might go without say , order an item like a bench directly in front of a fireplace can make the space feel closed in and cluttered . endeavor to create breathing distance around each section or zone of your room . This can give a feeling of a more wide country while also allowing your fireplace to shine .

3. Determine the Right Scale

If you have a small open fireplace , keep that in head when selecting furnishings as bulky pieces could dominate what you ’re trying to highlight . The same can be say of pairing more petite furnishings with a commanding open fireplace . The scale leaf of the two should feel cohesive .

Although you might think it ’s all about size , a furnish ’s colour , way , and fabric character can all play a function as well . Keep in judgment your room ’s color pallet as well as the style of your piece of furniture and fireplace . Feel innocent to mix aesthetic , but guarantee there is cohesion so the regalia does n’t finger cacophonic . Weaving a color throughout the space ( even if it is used in various pattern or on a variety of interior decoration items ) can achieve just that .

Finally , move things around until you discover the right residuum . The chair that you originally thought would be pure next to the sofa might be ideal tucked to the side of the open fireplace instead .

4. Keep Traffic Flow in Mind

dealings flow should always be top of judgment when it comes toarranging furniture — irrespective of the distance . While you might require to get a big couch smackdab in front of the hearth , that might not be a realistic pick if it ’s a chief thoroughfare . Area carpeting can be a great agency to organize furniture in a neat fashion while leaving a path for foot traffic . reckon it a subtle way to point family and friends in the right instruction .

5. Focus on Conversation

Fireside chats are the poppycock of winter dreams , so keep conversation at the vanguard when it come to arranging your furniture . Ensure seating area are close enough for more informal conversation . If the area surrounding your open fireplace is large or full open , view create conversation zones , pair two chairs in one section and a set of perpendicular sofas on the other .

The more wide your room , the more thought-provoking this might be , so represent it out before you dedicate to a layout . Use painters tape on the floor to show the size and shell of furnishings to help give you a feel of the tempo of the room and how easy guests will be able-bodied to carry on a conversation even above the crackling of a roar fireplace .

6. Create Symmetry

Symmetry can be important when title furniture around a open fireplace . But , in certain coating , crooked layout shape just as well . Consider your infinite , style , and how you design to use the room before determine whether or not to create a 1:1 smell . pernicious changes like combine up the seating styles on either side of the open fireplace , or bestow different wall decor but keeping the furnishing reproducible , can elevate thelook of your fireplacein a room that ’s unexpected .

7. Go for Built-Ins

A surefire manner to create more deepness and interest around your hearth is withbuilt - Immigration and Naturalization Service . Shelves and cabinets offer copious storage , and they can also behave in a part that ’s similar to wallpaper when they ’re draw with extra trinkets , tomes , and collections . If space admit , opt for symmetrical unit on either side of the fireplace . Consider tot up subroutine library lights , sconce , or wallpaper on the back of shelf for lend style .

8. Work Around Media

Whether aTV belongs above the mantelor not is an ongoing public debate , but no matter which bivouac you find yourself in , take media placement into consideration when style furniture around a hearth is preponderating . Think about the viewability of the screen in gain to your space ’s focal point . If your screen is positioned away from the hearth , you might want to add swivel seating area that can cursorily switch orientation when the big secret plan is on . Lighter , transferrable furnishing like poufs , ottoman , and side chairs can all figure out in this scenario as well .

If your television receiver will be concentrate above the mantel , assure the besiege seating area is pulled back enough to allow for proper distance when consider — no one desire a neckache after movie nighttime , after all .