Treat Your Fireplace Like the Focal Point It Is With These Fireplace Ideas (2024)

Fireplaces not only provide architectural and visual intrigue, but they give your home a cozy central hub. Whether you have a beautiful modern fireplace or a pretty but nonfunctioning decorative antique fireplace, it's a definite asset, but it can also be a decorating challenge. A fireplace is a natural centerpiece, so you don't want it to look sparse, but you also don't want to overdo it. And what if it's the best place for the television to go? Don't worry, we found a solution for that. The best fireplace decor ideas go far beyond holiday garlands; they work as part of your room's decor scheme to create balance and add polish.

If you have a working fireplace, it's important not to sacrifice safety for style. Electric fireplaces should be installed with a glass covering, so you can proceed with decorating without worry. If you have gas logs or a wood-burning fireplace, you'll need to invest in a proper fireplace screen and safety tools. If you use your fireplace often, you'll also want to avoid hanging decorations too close to the firebox to ensure they don't burn, melt, or warp.

The most common way to decorate a fireplace is by hanging a mirror or art above it and adorning the mantle with sentimental family photos and candles. However, fireplace decor can and we'd argue should also incorporate the surrounding area, walls, and hearth. Ahead, we're highlighting 70 fireplace decor ideas from designers that you can easily incorporate into your home.

One large painting the same dimensions as the fireplace always works when your living room has the ceilings to carry it off, like in this one designed by Hoedemaker Pfeiffer.

Embrace your fireplace's old-world charm and adorn your mantel with your favorite collectibles and flea market finds. Take a note from celeb Carson Kressley's Pennsylvania farmhouse, where vintage weather vanes and signage mingle with antique photographs on the mantel.

If you prefer bold paint colors and even bolder artwork, let British tastemaker Lucinda Chambers's fireplace decor inspire you. Treat the area above the mantel as a place of rest. A single piece of artwork encourages the eye to linger on the room's focal point.

An ornate mirror and simple topiaries are all the fireplace decor needed in designer Paloma Contreras's historic Houston townhouse. Walls painted in Benjamin Moore Dove White let the colors of her family's books and the plush sofas stand out.

We can't all have double-height ceilings like the ones in this Mark D. Sikes–designed living room, but we can always create the illusion of taller ones. Extending the molding or an accent color up to the ceiling gives the appearance of more space.

Designer Corey Damen Jenkins treated the wall above this fireplace like the rest of the room, covering it in the same wallpaper and painting the fireplace the same color as the woodwork and ceiling. It doesn't need much more decoration than that.

Embrace your home's awkward features (like a freestanding wood-burning stove) by making them part of your decor as designer Whitney Leigh Morris did in this cozy living room. A woven basket of firewood adds natural texture, and the hanging broom to sweep the hearth doubles as artwork.

A rich coat of eggplant paint is really all this fireplace and the bookshelves that flank it need to make a statement. Graphic art and statement flowers take this living room designed by Cecilia Casagrande in an even more vibrant direction.

To complement a fireplace constructed of fieldstones gathered on this home's property, design firm Mise en Scène Design opted for simple fireplace decor. An antique clock and sconces quietly catch attention over the mantle, and a simple screen blocks sparks below.

You may not have quite as big a supply as the owners of this kitchen designed by Richard T. Anuszkiewicz, but you can borrow their cool firewood storage idea. It looks like art stacked in this niche.

To make this living room feel (and look) larger, London-based architecture and interiors firm McLaren.Excell opted to showcase the chimney rather than cover it with drywall.

When you're entertaining outside, there's no such thing as too much candlelight. Lanterns with pillar candles up the ambiance around this outdoor fireplace.

If you want to make a brick fireplace feel new again, dark paint can take it in an unexpected direction. The inky black fireplace in this Nannette Brown–designed living room looks elevated, sophisticated, and clean (because black paint conceals soot!). The same approach is used throughout the room, which is enveloped in Amherst Gray paint from Benjamin Moore. An antiqued mirror plays up the moodiness while still bouncing light.

Designer Andy Beers of Ore Studios describes this cantilevered living room as a "large transparent jewel box that hangs over the forest floor." So "seating is transfigured around a fireplace for a kind of campfire sense."

Here's more proof that a nonworking fireplace can still be a valuable feature. Alison Victoria grouped a collection of candles in this mantel to re-create the cozy warmth you get from a roaring fire. Try clustering some pine-scented candles to get the flickering flame effect and forest fragrance.

Lydia Pursell covered all the surfaces (excluding the floors) in a blue-green paint color, from the trims to the fireplace surround and mantel. It's a bold and unexpectedly mod approach in a classic dining room that exudes confidence.

In her Brooklyn brownstone, designer Delia Kenza honored the original style of the home's architecture, ornate granite and all. She inserted a new (but antique-looking) wood-burning stove that produces real fire but eliminates the risk of the indoor smoke you'd get from a masonry fireplace. On top, sculptures in different mediums create a cool contrast.

A display of black and white prints leans casually above the mantel in this clean, quiet vignette designed by Jeffrey Dungan. The restraint and modesty of the color story mixed with the simplicity and casualness of the artwork create a distinct beauty that's both mysterious and approachable.

The large round mirror over the fireplace echoes the shapes of the coffee table and sofa in this living room designed by Aamir Khandwala. They soften the strong, straight lines of the room—and the mirror makes it look even brighter.

Kristin Fine painted the exposed brick fireplace surround white to complement the crisp and modern interior without stripping this home of its farmhouse personality.