Decorative fireplace for a cozy atmosphere
Long gone are the days when only owners of private city or country houses could afford to admire the flame of fire in a fireplace. Nowadays, the owner of the usual apartment can also equip a hearth or its spectacular imitation. Modern technologies allow you to install electric fireplaces in any room, and you can create a false fireplace with your own hands. A decorative fireplace in the interior is a great way to create a cozy and relaxing atmosphere in the interior of a house or apartment, the possibility of introducing exclusivity and originality. And all this without the construction of a chimney, coordination and obtaining permits in various instances, without risk to households and neighbors - only aesthetics and safety. But to choose the appropriate model of a decorative fireplace you have to work hard - the modern market offers many options.
Types of fireplaces that do not require the creation of a chimney
The most popular are electric fireplaces, which can serve as heaters. The flame in such centers is the image on the screen. Modern models are equipped with functions for creating a fairly realistic picture. Obviously, such devices do not require the creation of a chimney, and in general special conditions for them are not necessary - the presence of an electrical outlet is sufficient.
Many owners of apartments and houses argue that the flame in electric fireplaces is not natural and prefer to install gas fires. The flame in such fire chambers will be real, but the installation of the hearth will require the coordination of the relevant authorities. And the installation space is very limited - the device will need a connection to the gas pipeline.
An effective alternative to the gas hearth is the portable model of the so-called biofireplace. The device can be installed anywhere without reference to any communications, it does not require a hood and is safe from the point of view of operation. In addition, in a biofireplace you can admire the real flame, and not the picture displayed on the screen - the source of fire is a special type of fuel, which is based on alcohol.
But all of the above models that simulate a fireplace in the interior have a serious drawback - a rather high cost. But even in this situation, designers offer us a very elegant solution - a real fireplace, but without the possibility of creating a flame. Of course, one can’t expect physical heat from such a design, but it is the best suited for creating a certain atmosphere in the interior. You can create a false fireplace with your own hands, installing it even in a children's room without risk and special hassle.
In addition to the fact that a decorative fireplace can be used in a city apartment, absolutely in any room, it has other advantages. Unsuccessful architectural solutions (ledges, pipes and beams, joints of plates, etc.) can be hidden behind a pseudo-fireplace. Also inside the false fireplace you can hide various communications - electrical wires for the camera or player, backlight. The pseudo-fireplace is inexpensive and safe, you can show your design abilities by creating it with your own hands. Such an element of the interior, no doubt, will become its decoration, having joined the rest of the decor of the room. A mantelpiece can be used as a storage system.
Ways to create a false fireplace for a modern interior
There are a lot of options for creating a pseudo-fireplace in the interior of a wide variety of rooms. You can use the services of specialists or try your hand at creating a hearth from the following materials:
- drywall;
- wood;
- tile;
- natural or artificial stone;
- wall panels;
- polycarbonate;
- metal;
- plain cardboard and film;
- even drawing and wall stickers.
Pseudo-fireplaces (which can be done with your own hands) are divided into two types:
- mobile (the design can be moved to any place);
- stationary (the focus is in one place constantly and is not transferable).
A mobile pseudo-fireplace is most often a design similar to a closet, but with a facade in the form of a fireplace portal. Such an interior item is certainly very convenient - it not only decorates the design of the room, brings a special aura, it can be moved, taken with you when moving and used as a storage system, while it’s not easy to put books or photos as part of the mantelpiece, but and inside the structure to store the necessary things.
A stationary pseudo-fireplace in the interior is not only a decorative element, it can perform several functions. It all depends on the purpose of the room itself, the method of execution of the fireplace portal, the material and style of interior decoration. Of course, the creation of a fireplace, even a decorative one, is better planned before the start of repairs. But this does not mean that a false fireplace cannot be integrated into an already designed room - the work is not the dirtiest.
Most often, to create a pseudo-fireplace, a frame made of wooden beams is used, which is sheathed with drywall or plywood. The design is sufficiently reliable both for use in its original form, and as a portal into which an electric fireplace will be installed. But creating a frame for the subsequent installation of an electric device, it will be necessary to use not ordinary drywall, but fireproof. And it’s better to use metal products as a profile for the installation of drywall.
On such a pseudo-fireplace, created with the help of a wooden frame sheathed with plasterboard, a rather strong mantelpiece is obtained. She is quite capable of supporting the weight of frames with photos, books, and even flower vases. In a word, a false fireplace is not only a decorative element, but also helps to bring another functional and useful decor to the interior of the room.
The following materials are used to decorate a decorative fireplace, which is created using a frame and plywood or drywall paneling:
- artificial stone (one of the most popular options);
- laminate dies;
- wall panels of one or another modification (most often imitating brick or masonry);
- liquid wallpaper, decorative plaster;
- metal sheets;
- moldings, stucco molding from gypsum and its modifications;
- on the fireplace portal you can simply draw the desired surface;
- You can use stickers.
Examples of using a decorative hearth in various rooms
Living room
Nothing contributes to the creation of a symmetrical layout of the living room, like a fireplace installed in the center of one of the walls. The hearth instantly becomes the focal point around which furniture and decor are built - a sofa and armchairs, a coffee table and various coasters are installed. The space above the fireplace portal becomes an example of symmetry - a TV or a mirror, a picture or a panel above the fireplace shelf and candlesticks, lamps or books on it.
So, with what to fill the space of the created fireplace, given that the kindling of fire in it was not originally planned? There are no options to consider, this is the case when you can use your imagination without restrictions. Bookshelves and a collection of unique minerals, original candles and aroma lamps, a vase of flowers or a herbarium created by your own hands - this can be either a whole composition, or one, a unique decorative element.
One of the most common ways to fill a fireplace portal is to use logs. You will be provided with a unique atmosphere - it feels like a real fireplace in the room and it is about to light up. Notes of natural warmth, some plaque of suburban life will be most welcome in the urban dwelling.
Even logs lying next to the fireplace can create a special atmosphere. In addition, you can use woodpile as an original decorative element - it can be a basket, a metal stand or any other item created or chosen by you to attract everyone's attention.
Another, no less popular way to fill the space of the fireplace portal is to use candles of the most varied modifications. Most often, from several products of the same design, but of different sizes, compositions are compiled that even when not lit can decorate the interior.
Vases with fresh or dried flowers, compositions with branches, twigs and other gifts of nature, which create a special touch of the interior, are very popular.
Bedroom
It is difficult to imagine any other piece of furniture that would fit so harmoniously into the design of the bedroom, creating a very special atmosphere of relaxation and relaxation to prepare for sleep, like a fireplace. And let the flame in the hearth not be real, but the image displayed on the screen. But the hearth is completely safe for the owners and the premises. You can not be afraid to fall asleep with the device turned on - almost all modern models have a "sleep mode" or are able to simply maintain the room temperature set on the thermostat.
Children's room
Perhaps the only safe way from any point of view to bring such an element of the interior as a fireplace into the decor of a child’s room is to create a false fireplace. There are a lot of design variations for a child’s or teenager’s room - the fireplace portal is glued over with a magnetic black film on which you can draw and mount parts, install shelves for storing books or toys, collectibles or simply place the most iconic interior item for the child as the focal point for the entire room design .
Dining and kitchen
If in your home there was an opportunity to allocate a separate room or a large zone as part of a combined room for arranging a dining room, then there is definitely a place for installing a fireplace. Compact or large-scale, stationary or portable, electric fireplace or just its imitation - this piece of furniture in any case will create an atmosphere of warmth and comfort in the room for dining. It is noteworthy that you can create a hearth in the dining room for any stylistic direction adopted for its arrangement: from classic to avant-garde, from country to minimalism.