2nd Rewind Wednesday: Kate’s Fireplace Transformation

Welcome to our 2nd Rewind Wednesday!!

We’re digging into our archives and re-playing some of our favourite posts! Not only does sharing archived posts mean that we get a wee mid-week break from blogging, it also means that our visitors get a chance to read a post they may have missed.

So… last week Kelly shared her Black with White Stripes post… this week it’s my turn! :-)

Don’t forget ~~ this is a blog party and we hope you’ll re-play along!! For detailed instructions on how to participate, please click on our Rewind Wednesday button at the top of our sidebar (right). And, at the end of my Rewind Wednesday post, you’ll find Mr. Linky!!

Cheers!!

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CondoMania Part III

I can't tell you how excited I am to share this transformation with our readers!

If you've been following my CondoMania posts (Part I and Part II) you'll know that I've been working with my first client, Kate, to transform a loft-style condo into an urban-contemporary space. My first big project for Kate's condo was the fantastic transformation of her kitchen from blonde maple to sleek black... what a difference!

The most important makeover in her condo however - the one that would make the biggest impact - was the fireplace.

Here is the original fireplace. I love the reclaimed brick wall set on either side of the 17 foot tall fireplace, and I think the brown multi slate on the fireplace facade is great too. But the two of them together just didn't work.

What could I do to make this wall the feature that it was meant to be?

Inspiration came (yay!) from a gas fireplace display at a local home trade show... the company had their fireplace inserts mounted in a wall of beautiful wood. Very sleek and contemporary! And I knew right away that it would be a wonderful solution for Kate's fireplace. My blog-partner Kelly helped me take the idea to the next level by suggesting that I incorporate stainless steel in the overall design. Together we came across these inspiration photos (photo #2 comes from the program Rate My Space, Episode 102; unfortunately photo #1 & #3 can't be referenced.

Kate loved the idea!! Now I had to make the idea a reality.

That's where Bob Scott and his team at Finecraft Cabinetry came in. Bob and I worked together on the creation of the fireplace mantle for my little bungalow and I loved his work, so I knew he'd be able to take my idea for Kate's fireplace and make it happen! By the way, Bob is a skilled cabinet maker and can do soooo much more then fireplaces. Be sure to check out his site (link above).

Using lovely fir stained in a beautiful dark brown/black, Bob and his carpenter Tyler made a masterpiece!!
Check it out...

Look up… look waaay up!

As you can imagine, Kate simply loves the final result!

The impact of the new fireplace is unmistakeable... it demands your attention the moment you walk into the room! Imagine how wonderful it will look when we hang a dramatic piece of art in the nook over the mantle!!

Now comes the real fun stuff :-)

The walls are being painted this week... I'm making some simple light and airy curtains for the 16 foot tall windows (behind the sofa)... light fixtures for the dining room and kitchen need to be sourced... Kate needs a dining table and chairs (thinking of "ghost" chairs)... accessories around the room...

Lots to share in future posts!!

Thanks for dropping by... I hope you like our handiwork!!

Victoria from Edin Interiors

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Now comes the fun stuff!

The following blogs are participating in our 2nd Rewind Wednesday blog party:

Fireplaces, Fireplaces and more... Fireplaces

Victoria @ Edin Interiors

For most of us, a fireplace is more a visual statement in a room then it is a primary source of heat. Can you imagine what it must have been like back in the days of castles, knights and damsels... heating large stone rooms with massive fireplaces, all the heat going up the chimney, the rooms constantly smokey. Thank goodness for central heating.

A few years back I had the pleasure of visiting Leeds Castle in Kent, England where I saw these amazing fireplaces! This beautiful castle, built by King Henry the VIII, was originally a hunting lodge so the rooms were smaller and likely easier to keep (somewhat) warm. As lovely and romantic as these rooms and their fireplaces are, I think layers were in order on cold winter days!

Now, one would assume that with the recent completion of Kate's fireplace, and with the current topic of my post today, I have fireplaces on the brain :-) Well, maybe! HaHa!! Actually, I'm responding to Paul Anater's request that I explain how the facade was put together. (Paul is a professional kitchen designer and hosts a great blog called Kitchen and Residential Design... I suggest you check it out!). For all you craftsman like Paul, and for all your amateur tinkerers like me, scroll down to the end of this post to find that explanation.

For everyone else... I thought I'd share some other fireplace projects of mine! Well... I'm mostly responsible for these remodels!! I'm the idea-person and tiler in the family and my husband, Brian, is my go-to-man and handy assistant. Of course, when necesary, we call in the experts ;-)

This first photo shows the after of a quick and easy make-over... we were selling Brian's condo and had to fix it up, fast! The tile surround of this fireplace was 80s pink. Ugly!! To bring it up to date, I simply primed and painted the tile in a semi-gloss black. What a difference!

Our next fireplace was also stuck in the 80s with flesh-coloured marble tiles and brass vent slats on the gas insert. I removed the offending tiles and retiled the face of the fireplace in a beautiful slate (Desert Sand). Then, to modernize the vent slats, Brian spray painted them in black BBQ paint. A relatively easy makeover with fantastic results!

I'm in love with our current fireplace! Take a look at these 2 before pictures:

The first photo was taken on the day we moved in (I know... what a mess!) and the second photo was taken after we'd removed the mantle and had a gas insert installed. The original firebox was quite large so to make the insert fit - and to give us the benefit of better viewing the fire - we placed the insert on cement blocks. Brian then clad the entire fireplace in cement board, after which I set to work tiling the facade. Again, we used Desert Sand slate, although in 4x4 tiles. With the assistance of Bob Scott from Finecraft Cabinetry (he built the surround for us - and he and his carpenter Tyler built Kate's fireplace facade), we have a beautiful fireplace that perfectly suits our 1939 bungalow! I'm still working on the mantle display though - and I'm not happy with the living room colour!! :-(

Now... for those of you interested, explanation time!

Of course, everything started with Bob coming in to measure this superwall! I don't have much in the way of drawing skills (but I'd better hone up on that!!), so I explained what I wanted from Bob and showed him my inspiration photos. He came back with a pretty-close-to-perfect rendering of what I wanted for Kate's fireplace. So... all was a go.

Overall, the installation was relatively straightforward... although it did take longer then anticpated. Bob used fir sheeting, 5/8" thick for the job. Everything was built, stained, and lacquered at the shop... Tyler built the boxes that would fit around the "pillars" and he prepared the back (cladding the inside of the nook) sections separately. Along the bottom and top edges of each piece, Tyler routered a section aproximately 1/4" down and 1" wide. This is where the 2" stainless steel strips would be glued.

Once on site, Tyler dry fit each piece and made necessary alterations to the pillar pieces to accommodate the uneven brick wall (see picture 1 and 2 above). Once a pillar piece - and its corresponding pillar piece - fit, he attached the back section. He then slid it into place, securing it to the section below it by using biscuits to ensure a good, strong connection. Next, he screwed the full section to the wall along the area that would be covered by the stainless steel strips. The final step was glueing the stainless steel strips into place.

Voila!

If you've read to the bottom of the page, thank you!

Happy blogging!!